Services → Critical Minerals → Processing Plant Consulting
Battery Mineral
Processing Plant
Consultants
From flowsheet to full-scale production — Delta3CoreTec provides specialized process engineering, pilot plant design, and scale-up consulting for battery mineral processing facilities across lithium, graphite, rare earth, and cathode precursor manufacturing.
25+
Years Process Engineering
$250M+
Capital Projects Supported
$125M
DOE Grant Secured
6+
Critical Mineral Categories
What We Do
What is Battery Mineral Processing Plant Consulting?
Battery mineral processing plant consulting covers the full engineering and advisory lifecycle for facilities that convert raw critical minerals — lithium, graphite, cobalt, manganese, rare earths — into battery-grade materials ready for cell manufacturing.
A specialized battery mineral processing consultant bridges the gap between laboratory results and commercial production. This includes developing process flowsheets, sizing and specifying equipment, designing pilot plants, running techno-economic analyses (TEA), and guiding facilities through the critical TRL 4→9 scale-up stages where most projects stall or fail.
Unlike general chemical engineering consultants, battery mineral processing specialists understand the tight electrochemical performance specifications that OEMs demand — purity thresholds, particle morphology targets, electrochemical testing protocols — and design processing plants around meeting those specs consistently at scale.
The Scale-Up Gap We Solve
Lab results don't translate to pilot
Process parameters shift non-linearly at scale
Pilot plant yields don't hold at commercial scale
Equipment selection and process control become critical
OEM qualification fails at first submission
Specification gaps not caught until product testing
Delta3CoreTec's approach
Process engineering + OEM spec alignment + stage-gate discipline from day one
What's Included
Processing Plant Consulting Services
Comprehensive support across every stage of battery mineral processing plant development — from concept through commercial operation.
Process Flowsheet Development
Development of mass and energy balanced process flowsheets tailored to your feedstock characteristics and target product specifications. Includes unit operation selection, equipment sizing, and reagent consumption modeling for lithium, graphite, and rare earth processing routes.
View all services →Pilot Plant Design & Commissioning
End-to-end pilot plant engineering for battery mineral processing facilities at 100 kg/day to 5 MT/day scale. Covers equipment specification, P&ID development, HAZOP, commissioning protocols, and operator training — designed to generate the performance data needed for both OEM qualification and grant applications.
View all services →Techno-Economic Analysis (TEA)
Rigorous TEA models covering CAPEX, OPEX, IRR, and NPV for battery mineral processing plants at various scales. Includes sensitivity analysis on feedstock price, yield assumptions, and energy costs — essential for investor due diligence, DOE grant submissions, and board-level go/no-go decisions.
View all services →Process Optimization & Yield Enhancement
Systematic process auditing and DOE-driven optimization for existing battery mineral processing operations. We identify yield loss points, optimize critical parameters, and implement statistical process control (SPC) systems that sustain improvements. Typical outcomes: 20–35% yield improvement, 15–30% OPEX reduction.
See anode optimization →TRL/MRL Assessment & Stage-Gate Management
Independent TRL and MRL assessments for battery mineral processing technologies, from TRL 3 bench work through TRL 9 commercial deployment. Stage-gate frameworks that align technical milestones with funding tranches and investor expectations.
View all services →Grant Writing — DOE, ARPA-E & IRA Programs
Technical writing and project structuring for DOE, ARPA-E, and IRA/BIL grant programs targeting battery mineral processing plant development. We combine deep process engineering credibility with grant strategy expertise — having supported the successful award of a $125M DOE grant for a critical minerals processing facility.
Learn more →Industry Context
Why Battery Mineral Processing Plant Consulting Is Different
The global push to build non-Chinese battery mineral supply chains has created an urgent demand for experienced battery mineral processing plant consultants — engineers who understand not just chemistry and process engineering, but the specific performance standards that lithium-ion battery manufacturers require, the regulatory landscape for critical mineral projects in North America and Europe, and the funding mechanisms available to de-risk commercial-scale investment.
Most process engineering firms approach battery mineral processing plants the same way they would a conventional chemical plant: focus on throughput, yield, and CAPEX efficiency. This misses the fundamental challenge. A lithium processing plant consultant working on battery-grade lithium hydroxide must understand that the customer — a cathode manufacturer or battery cell producer — has specifications measured in parts-per-million impurities and will run months of electrochemical testing before qualifying a new supply source. Every process design decision must be made with that qualification endpoint in mind.
The same principle applies across the battery mineral supply chain. A graphite processing consultant developing a synthetic graphite anode facility needs to design processes capable of achieving 99.95%+ carbon purity, tightly controlled D50 particle size distributions, and specific tap density targets — not as secondary considerations, but as the primary design criteria that determine every furnace specification, purification chemistry choice, and spheronization equipment selection. Delta3CoreTec brings this battery-first lens to every mineral processing plant engagement.
We also understand that most battery mineral processing plant projects in the current environment require government funding support to reach commercial scale. The DOE Loan Programs Office, ARPA-E, and multiple IRA and BIL funding streams all require detailed technical packages that demonstrate process maturity, realistic TEA projections, and credible scale-up plans. Our consulting engagements are structured to generate the documentation and data these programs demand — not as a separate deliverable, but as a natural output of rigorous process development work.
Delta3CoreTec's principal consultant, former Urbix CTO Palash Bharadwaj, has led battery mineral processing plant projects from bench-scale feasibility through pilot plant commissioning and on to commercial scale — including a facility supported by a $125M DOE grant. This "spark to scale" track record across the complete project development lifecycle is what distinguishes genuinely specialized critical mineral processing plant consultants from generalist engineering firms entering the battery space.
Our Methodology
Spark to Scale: Processing Plant Development Roadmap
Feasibility & Flowsheet Development
Process concept development, feedstock characterization, preliminary flowsheet design, and order-of-magnitude TEA. Deliverables: process basis document, preliminary CAPEX/OPEX estimate, identification of critical process risks, and go/no-go recommendation for pilot investment.
Pilot Plant Design & Build
Detailed pilot plant engineering: P&IDs, equipment specification, vendor qualification, site layout, HAZOP, and commissioning plan. We design pilots specifically to answer the critical scale-up questions — not just demonstrate the process works, but to generate the engineering data needed for commercial plant design.
Process Optimization & OEM Qualification
DOE-driven optimization of critical process parameters, development of QA/QC systems, production of OEM qualification samples, and electrochemical performance validation. This stage generates the certified performance data that unlocks offtake agreements and secures the next round of financing.
Commercial Scale-Up Engineering
Development of the commercial plant technology package: scale-up factors, equipment sizing for 1,000–50,000 MT/year throughput, detailed TEA, project execution plan, and investor-ready technical documentation. Ongoing advisory support through construction, commissioning, and ramp-up.
Commercial Production & Continuous Improvement
Operational support, yield monitoring, predictive maintenance programs, and continuous process improvement. We remain engaged as a technical partner long after first production — because the gap between nameplate capacity and optimized commercial production is where lasting competitive advantage is built.
Track Record
What Specialized Experience Delivers
$125M
DOE grant supported for critical minerals processing facility — from pilot data to funded project
99.95%
Battery-grade carbon purity achieved consistently in optimized synthetic graphite pilot operations
35%
Yield improvement achieved through systematic process optimization at anode materials pilot plant
Synthetic Graphite Processing Plant — North America
Delta3CoreTec led process development for a battery-grade synthetic graphite facility targeting non-Chinese supply chain qualification. Starting from bench-scale characterization, we developed the full process flowsheet, designed a 500 kg/day pilot plant, and led the optimization program that achieved OEM qualification standards. The resulting technical data package supported a successful multi-stage funding raise and DOE grant application.
18 mo
Lab to pilot production
40%
Energy consumption reduction
100%
OEM spec compliance
$250M+
Total capital facilitated
FAQ
Common Questions
Related Consulting Services
Anode Materials
Anode Process Optimization
Yield improvement and quality optimization for synthetic graphite and silicon anode production.
Full Services
All Consulting Services
Complete overview of Delta3CoreTec's battery materials and critical minerals consulting offerings.
Grant Support
DOE & IRA Grant Writing
Technical grant writing for DOE, ARPA-E, and IRA programs targeting battery mineral processing.
Get Started
Ready to Talk About Your
Processing Plant Project?
Book a 30-minute scoping call. We'll assess your project stage, identify the highest-leverage consulting interventions, and propose a focused engagement — no boilerplate proposals.