Lithium as an investment increased tendency for costlier components to be targeted for replacement by new technologies. Current projections of the global market for lithium-ion batteries range from $26 billion in 2023 ("Navigant Research") to a very optimistic $33 billion in 2019 ("Transparency Market Research"). Lithium metal is an extremely soft, highly reactive, and flammable element. It is most frequently found in deposits such as spodumene and pegmatite minerals, with larger resources in the U.S., Canada, Australia, China, Zimbabwe, and Russia. Lithium possesses a unique chemical profile making it the lightest metal in the periodic table and the least dense solid element. Its atomic
Solid solution phase of each element is of the same crystal structure, and the similar properties of the two elements allow for unbiased substitution through the full range of relative concentrations. Solid solutions have important commercial and industrial applications, as such mixtures often have superior properties to pure materials. Many metal alloys are solid solutions. Even small amounts of solute can affect the electrical and physical properties of the solvent. The binary phase diagram in "Fig. 2" shows the phases of a mixture of two substances in varying concentrations, formula_1 and formula_2. The region labeled "formula_3" is a solid solution, with formula_2