A moment with Bond Chemicals Director Campbell Heath on their new ‘Liquid Lithium’ product

AQUA: So what exactly is this new pool and spa sanitiser product?

Campbell: “We are currently in the process of commercialising a new, superior, bestin-class lithium-based spa sanitiser. Liquid Lithium spa sanitiser is positioned to become the best available product on the market, replacing and the old solid lithium hypochlorite product.

This new product features a superior efficacy and safety profile compared with existing non-lithium options so it becomes the preferred product on the market – similar but much improved against the old Solid Lithium Hypochlorite.

We have recently commenced sales from our production facility in Laverton North, Victoria and are looking to promote the benefits of the product throughout the Australian spa and pool market.

AQUA: How did this new product come about?

Campbell: “Bond Chemicals commenced research into new and improved ways of making hypochlorites and discovered their solutions displayed unrivalled efficacy and stability when compared with existing non-lithium products on the market. These solutions are also superior to the previous solid lithium hypochlorite, highlighting that a breakthrough had been made.

AQUA: Tell us a bit about the background to the development of this new product?

Campbell: “Around 2017 a structural change occurred in the global Lithium market. The demand for lithium skyrocketed on the back of unprecedented demand for electric vehicles and hence lithium batteries. This change in turn created an unfortunate impact in the spa disinfection market - lithium hypochlorite manufacturing ceased. So, in a very short time, the market was left without its number one product.

As a result, the spa disinfection market was forced to pivot to alternative nonlithium products – namely bromine-based disinfectants or isocyanurates. Both of these alternatives suffer from significant limitations in terms of efficacy and safety – and ultimately the customer experience.

Bromine-based disinfectants possess inferior efficacy for killing the target bugs in spa water when compared with hypochlorite. They also create acidic spa water conditions which leads to increased corrosion of spa parts such as pumps, and as a result significant additional operating costs for the spa owner.

“Spa service technicians are currently seeing this problem broadly across the market and are keen for a safer alternative.”

AQUA: What is so unique and different about Liquid Lithium?

This new Bond product is superior to current non-Lithium products in the following aspects:

• Less corrosive

• Best-in-class efficacy

• Stable Bond product – eliminates the need for isocyanurate and the associated cycling-up issue

• Does not contribute to additional hardness in spa/pool water

It is also superior to the old solid Lithium Hypochlorite product in the following aspects:

• Not as corrosive (Bond product does not contain the high levels of salt that the old solid Lithium Hypochlorite used to contain)

• Best-in-class efficacy

• No need to dissolve – ready for immediate use

• Increased stability – lower level of strength decomposition with time

This new product also supports a better environmental outcome since it will eliminate the parts corrosion issue as well as drive greater water efficiency by eliminating the need to purge contaminated water (eg. Cycled-up cyanurates).

The performance characteristics of Liquid Lithium are as follows:

• Advanced product stability has enabled acceptable shelf life as a liquid product:

• Heightened stability at high temperature (52 degC) makes this product ideal for spa usage as well as any other high temperature disinfection applications (eg. Plunge pools):

• Liquid format enables easier dosing (no need to dissolve solid) whilst smaller bottle volume ensures ergonomics of handling 1L, 2.5L and 5L bottles is acceptable to the Customer

For more information on Bond Chemicals’ new Liquid Lithium product please visit:

www.bondchemicals.com.au