<P> The development of lithium ion batteries increased the demand for lithium and became the dominant use in 2007 . With the surge of lithium demand in batteries in the 2000s, new companies have expanded brine extraction efforts to meet the rising demand . </P> <P> Lithium production has greatly increased since the end of World War II . The metal is separated from other elements in igneous minerals . The metal is produced through electrolysis from a mixture of fused 55% lithium chloride and 45% potassium chloride at about 450 ° C . </P> <P> As of 2015, most of the world's lithium production is in South America, where lithium - containing brine is extracted from underground pools and concentrated by solar evaporation . The standard extraction technique is to evaporate water from brine . Each batch takes from 18 to 24 months . </P> <P> In 1998, the price of lithium was about 95 USD / kg (or 43 USD / lb). </P>

Where does most of the world's lithium come from