Classroom example E3 Lithium
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Ask the classFor you
About E3 LithiumFor you
SourcesHow do you separate something valuable from a complex liquid?
E3 Lithium · Calgary-based company. Clearwater project between Calgary and Red Deer.
Where it fits
Pick your class- Chemistry 20 · Solutions and quantitative chemical change
- Chemistry 30 · Electrochemistry, as a wider battery connection only
How it works
Schematic · not to scale
From mixture to material
Mixed brine contains lithium alongside other substances.
Separation recovers a lithium-rich stream.
Purify and convert toward battery-grade material.
Manage the remaining material in a separate stream.
The return arrow shows test results informing design. Compare recovery, purity, water and energy. The dots represent a conceptual mixture, not particular chemical species or measured amounts.
The lesson, in the real world
A separation has to recover the useful material, reach the right purity and work beyond a small test.
Project stage: Development and scale-up. The planned commercial facility is not operating yet.
- 1
E3’s Clearwater project targets lithium dissolved in underground brine in Alberta.
- 2
Extraction and downstream treatment separate and purify the material. E3’s process role names membrane treatment, ion exchange and crystallization among the methods it evaluates.
- 3
Engineers and operators use models, operating readings and demonstration tests to inform equipment and process design.
- 4
Compare recovery and purity alongside water, energy and reliable operation. A demonstration result does not by itself show that a commercial plant is operating.
Our explanation
Who does this work
Roles connected to this example
What each kind of work involves, the job titles to look for, and where to find postings in Calgary.
Process engineering
Design and test the steps that separate useful materials from a mixture.
Classroom connection
Concentration, mixtures and quantitative chemical change become practical questions about recovery, purity, water use and scale.Job titles to search
Process engineer · Chemical engineer · Process technologistEmployer posting · experienced engineering roleProcess and plant operations
Keep processing equipment running safely and learn from its measurements.
Classroom connection
A separation method must work repeatedly. Careful measurements help explain why performance changes between trials.Job titles to search
Plant operator · Process operator · Power engineerEmployer posting · demonstration operationsLaboratory analysis and quality control
Prepare samples and check that analytical measurements can be trusted.
Classroom connection
Solution preparation, calibration and measurement quality connect classroom chemistry to testing real liquids.Job titles to search
Laboratory technician · Analytical chemist · Quality control technicianRelated work at another employer
Cards distinguish work documented at E3 Lithium from related work at other employers. Dated accounts and postings are not a current staff roster or a promise of a vacancy.
Ways in
For your students
Ways to prepare for this work
Programs that teach skills this work uses. Each is one route in, not a requirement, and no program has endorsed this page.
University of CalgaryUniversity degreeCalgary
Chemical Engineering (BSc)
Engineering foundations, process design and a final-year team design project, with an internship opportunity.
About this route
An undergraduate engineering route. The Stantec job example asks for a relevant degree and EIT registration or eligibility; E3’s role additionally asks for substantial experience.
Why it connects to the work · our interpretation
Process engineeringDesigning and evaluating chemical processes provides a foundation for separation, water treatment and scale-up work.
SAITTwo-year diplomaCalgary
Chemical Engineering Technology
Practical work in unit operations, process simulation, equipment design and safe operation of processing units.
About this route
A technology diploma is a distinct route from an engineering degree; it does not replace a posting’s engineering-degree requirement.
Why it connects to the work · our interpretation
Laboratory analysis and quality controlAnalytical Instrumentation covers chemical analysis and QA/QC in laboratory settings. This is a preparation route, not a guarantee of meeting an employer’s requirements.
Process engineeringProcess calculations and simulation support technical work alongside engineers.
Process and plant operationsEquipment operation and troubleshooting connect directly to monitoring and improving a process.
SAITTwo-year diplomaCalgary
Power Engineering Technology
Thermodynamics, safe plant operation and practical work with equipment such as pumps, compressors and boilers.
About this route
Prepares students for ABSA certification exams. Power engineering certification is distinct from a professional engineering degree and is not claimed as an E3 requirement.
Why it connects to the work · our interpretation
Process and plant operationsTraining with energy and process equipment develops skills relevant to plant operation and monitoring.
Ask the class
Use it in class
Ask the class
If two separation methods recover different amounts of lithium but use different amounts of water and energy, what would you need to compare before choosing one?
Separating a useful substance is only part of the challenge. A process also has to work repeatedly, at a useful scale, with acceptable resource use and cost.
Mindset it shows
Optimize across competing constraints rather than one number.
About E3 Lithium
Developing a route from Alberta brine to battery-grade lithium carbonate.
- Local connection
- Clearwater lies between Calgary and Red Deer. The operator job example is for the demonstration facility east of Olds and Didsbury; the engineering posting is based in Calgary.
- Source: E3 Lithium: company and Clearwater project(opens in a new tab); E3 Lithium: Shift Operator(opens in a new tab); E3 Lithium: Intermediate Process Engineer(opens in a new tab)
- Team size
- Not verified. We have not found a dated, sourced figure.
- The problem
- Lithium is dissolved in underground brine alongside other substances. Producing a battery material requires extraction, purification and conversion, with a process that can work at larger scale.
- Source: E3 Lithium: company and Clearwater project(opens in a new tab); E3 Lithium: Intermediate Process Engineer(opens in a new tab)
- What they do
- A planned supply of battery-grade lithium carbonate from Alberta brine. This is a development project, not an operating commercial plant.
- Source: E3 Lithium: Clearwater status update, 29 September 2026(opens in a new tab)
- Who uses it
- Prospective battery-material customers. E3 reports discussions and non-binding agreements with potential supply partners; these are not completed sales.
- Source: E3 Lithium: Clearwater status update, 29 September 2026(opens in a new tab)
E3 Lithium is developing the Clearwater lithium project in Alberta. It is using demonstration operations and engineering studies to develop a commercial facility.
Source: E3 Lithium: company and Clearwater project(opens in a new tab); E3 Lithium: Clearwater status update, 29 September 2026(opens in a new tab)Read each source’s date and scope: a documented role is not proof of a current vacancy or of where every position is based.
Reported as E3 Lithium states it. E3 Lithium has not reviewed or endorsed this page.
Sources and course fit
Sources checked 24–29 Sep 2026
Where it fits
- Chemistry 20 · Solutions and quantitative chemical change
- Chemistry 30 · Electrochemistry, as a wider battery connection only
Editorial mapping to published CBE course topics. Pending educator review. No outcome-code alignment is claimed.
Organization claims are reported as the organization states them. E3 Lithium has not reviewed or endorsed this page.
What we know, and how
| Type | Claim | How we know |
|---|---|---|
| work | Developing direct lithium extraction from brine.Source: E3 Lithium; Process role description (PDF) | Company-stated |
| status | The commercial facility is planned, not operating.Source: Process role description (PDF) | Not yet operating |
| roles | A water process engineer / process chemist was sought.Source: Process role description (PDF) | Employer posting · not proof it’s filled |
| pathways | Chemical engineering or process chemistry degree, plus experience.Source: Process role description (PDF) | Employer requirement |
| pathways | Director’s chemistry and chemical engineering degrees.Source: Management biographies | One actual route |
| course fit | Chemistry 20 solutions. Chemistry 30 battery context only.Source: CBE Chemistry 20–30 topics | Editorial · pending review |
Solid green: the organization states it. Outlined: seen in a dated source. Dashed: our interpretation, not yet researched, or announced but not yet real.