Rapid growth in lithium-ion batteries is straining lithium supply and exposing the slow, land- and water-intensive nature of conventional extraction (evaporation ponds and ore leaching). Meanwhile, large but dilute and chemically complex resources—salt-lake brines, geothermal fluids, oilfield brines, and seawater—remain underutilized. This review surveys lithium extraction technologies with a focus on electrically driven membrane processes. We first summarize resource chemistries and benchmark classical routes (precipitation, solvent extraction, and solid/porous adsorbents), emphasizing selectivity, robustness, and scalability in brines with high-Mg/Li and Na/Li ratios. We then review pressure-driven membranes, especially nanofiltration and ion-selective composites, highlighting design principles including charge regulation, Donnan exclusion, and coordination-assisted transport for Li+/Mg2+ separation. The core section discusses electrodialysis and solid-electrolyte architectures that use lithium-ion conductors as selective separators to decouple Li+ migration from co-ions and parasitic reactions. Case studies—redox-coupled electrodialysis, hybridization with adsorbents, and laminated solid-electrolyte membranes for seawater—illustrate how cell design and membrane structure govern selectivity, energy use, and process intensification. Finally, we outline challenges (Li+/Na+ discrimination, long-term stability in complex brines, and scale-up of brittle ceramics) and opportunities for low-carbon integration and multi-ion co-recovery. This review examined how lithium can be recovered from salt-lake brines, industrial brines and seawater using both conventional chemistry and newer electrically driven membrane systems. It compared their efficiency, selectivity, and environmental footprint and highlighted what is still needed to turn laboratory-scale devices into practical, low-carbon lithium extraction plants.
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