Effect of process conditions on generation of hydrochloric acid and lithium hydroxide from simulated lithium chloride solution using bipolar membrane electrodialysis

A feasibility study was carried out on generation of hydrochloric acid and lithium hydroxide from the simulated lithium chloride solution using EX3B model bipolar membrane electrodialysis (BMED). The influence of a series of process parameters, such as feed concentration, initial acid and base concentration in device component, feed solution volume, and current density were investigated. In addition, the maximum achievable concentrations of HCl and LiOH, the average current efficiency, and specific energy consumption were also studied and compared in this paper to the existing literature. Higher LiCl concentrations in the feed solution were found to be beneficial in increasing the final concentrations of HCl and LiOH, as well as improving current efficiency while decreasing specific energy consumption. However, when its concentration was less than 4 g/L, the membrane stack voltage curve of BMED increased rapidly, attributed to the higher solution resistance. Also low initial concentration of acid and base employed in device component can improve the current efficiency. Increasing of the initial concentration of acid and base solution lowered energy consumption. Moreover, a high current density could rapidly increase HCl and LiOH concentration and enhance water movements of BMED process, but reduced the current efficiency. The maximum achievable concentration of HCl and LiOH generated from 130 g/L LiCl solution were close to 3.24 mol/L and 3.57 mol/L, respectively. In summary, the present study confirmed the feasible application for the generation of HCl and LiOH from simulated lithium chloride solution with BMED.

The Effect of Lithium Chloride on Neutrophil Activation on Exposure to Serum of Patients with Septic Shock

The aim of the study: to examine the anti-inflammatory effect of lithium chloride by exposing the human neutrophils to serum of patients with septic shock in vitro.Material and methods. The study was carried out on neutrophils extracted from the blood of 6 healthy donors, which were activated with serum from patients with septic shock. The neutrophil activity was evaluated with fluorescent antibodies to the CD11b and CD66b markers of degranulation. The level of human neutrophil apoptosis and necrosis was assessed 22 hours after extraction; quantitative assessment was made using annexin V and propidium iodide with flow cytofluorimetry. Intact and activated neutrophils were treated with 0.3, 3.0 and 9.0 mmol lithium chloride solution.Results. The level of CD11b expression on the surface of intact neutrophils (healthy donors) was 3434.50 [3311.0-3799.0] arbitrary fluorescence units (AFU). Incubation of neutrophils with serum of patients with septic shock increased CD11b expression 2.5 times to 8589.0 [7279.0-11258.0] AFU (P=0.005) vs intact leukocytes, and increased CD66b expression 2.7 times up to 27 600.0 [22 999.0-28 989.0] AFU ((P=0.005) vs intact neutrophils. Lithium chloride in concentrations of 0.3, 3.0 and 9.0 mmol in a dose-dependent manner reduced the level of expression of CD11b and CD66b molecules on the surface of activated neutrophils. Septic serum reduced spontaneous neutrophil apoptosis, and 3.0 mmol and higher lithium chloride solution induced spontaneous neutrophil apoptosis.Conclusion. Lithium chloride reduces the activation of neutrophils preactivated by serum of patients with septic shock, reduces expression of CD11b and CD66b molecules on the neutrophil surface, inhibiting the process of their activation (degranulation). Lithium chloride in concentration of 3.0 mmol and higher is able to induce spontaneous apoptosis of neutrophils activated by serum of patients with septic shock.

Cardioprotective effect of lithium chloride on a rat model of myocardial infarction

<p><strong>Aim.</strong> To investigate the cardioprotective effect of lithium chloride in vivo on a rat model of myocardial infarction.<br /><strong>Methods.</strong> Twelve male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into two groups of six, with both groups modelling cardiac ischaemia and subsequent reperfusion. At the start of reperfusion, 30 mg/kg of 4.2% lithium chloride solution was intravenously administered via a catheter to the test group and 0.5 ml/kg of saline solution was administered to the comparison group. A control group comprised sham-operated rats that were not injected with any drugs other than anaesthesia during making skin incision. At the end of each experiment, the total area of the risk zone and areas of the infarction zone and left ventricle were calculated for each animal using a double-staining technique with 2% methylene blue and 1% triphenyltetrazolium chloride. A further series of experiments using 15 male Sprague-Dawley rats (third group) was performed to assess the protein content of glycogen synthase-3β in myocardial tissue. The method was similar to that for the earlier experiments; however, at the end of the experiments, the hearts were removed and homogenised, following which the concentration of glycogen synthase-3β was determined using electrophoresis.<br /><strong>Results.</strong> The group treated with lithium chloride showed a significant decrease in the area of the infarction zone compared with the group treated with saline. The difference in the indices between the two groups was &gt;26% (p &lt; 0.05).<br /><strong>Conclusion.</strong> This study demonstrated that 30 mg/kg of 4.2% lithium chloride solution, administered at the onset of reperfusion, exerted a protective effect on cardiomyocytes in a rat model of myocardial infarction by reducing the area of the infarction zone compared with that in the control group. This effect was probably mediated by an almost two-fold increase in the content of the phosphorylated form of glycogen synthase-3β in the myocardium.</p><p>Received 23 June 2019. Revised 6 August 2019. Accepted 7 August 2019.</p><p><strong>Funding:</strong> The study did not have sponsorship.</p><p><strong>Conflict of interest:</strong> Authors declare no conflict of interest.</p><p><strong>Author contributions</strong> <br />Conception and study design: A.N. Kuzovlev<br />Data collection and analysis: O.A. Grebenchikov<br />Statistical analysis: A.V. Ershov<br />Drafting the article: A.V. Lobanov, E.R. Shayhutdinova<br />Critical revision of the article: V.V. Likhvantsev<br />All authors approved final version to be published.<br /><br /></p>

Effect of Corrosion of Stainless Steel Welded within Lithium Chloride

The difficulties experienced in welding processes of martensitic stainless steel led to development of a new class of them, known as stainless mild martensitic steels. Also, due to the current high demand for energy and materials to oil extraction at great depths, scientists have being developing specific researches about mechanical resistance and corrosion of steels and how these properties are influenced by high temperature processes. This research studies the effect of welding process over the corrosion resistance of the 13Cr4Ni0.02C steel in a lithium chloride solution with a concentration of 120,000 PPM Cl-. The corrosion tests were conducted by cyclic potentiodynamic polarization in the base metal, weld bead and heat affected zone (HAZ) areas of the steel, in average temperatures of 23°C (as reference) and 3°C. The results revealed that the weld bead and heat affected zones of the 13Cr4Ni0.02C steel in a temperature of 3°C are less resistant to corrosion in this environment than the base metal in the same conditions.