Mining In Solution
Rethinking mining at depth
minerals
Mining
Colorado has the two US mines dedicated to molybdenum. Molybdenum is a metal used mainly as an alloying agent in cast iron, steel and superalloys. Henderson is an underground mine that opened in 1976. The ore travels to the mill on a conveyor 15 miles long, and ten of those…
Antimony
Three countries mine about 85% of the world's antimony: China, Russia and Tajikistan. The United States imports 91% of what it uses, more than half of it from China, which banned antimony exports to the US in December 2024. The metal goes into ammunition, lead-acid batteries and…
Raising a Titan: The story of titanium!
‘Twas Art that moved the beast. And rockets.
Red Rocks: Our destiny and China
Seventeen Chinese elements control the world.
Yes, Transformers Are a Problem...
But So Are Converters, Inverters, and MMCs!
Energy Incarnate! Making the miracle metal.
Caging the lightning: How we make aluminium
The Tank Killer: Making Tungsten
Life, death and new worlds: Gifts from the miracle metal.
Making cement from a different type of rock could clean up emissions
Limestone might not be the only source for Portland cement.
Mangrove Lithium Cuts Waste in Battery Production
A new lithium refining method uses electrochemistry to cut waste and energy use, easing a key bottleneck for electric vehicles.
A huge cache of critical minerals found in Utah may be the largest in the US
The discovery could bolster efforts to make the U.S. less dependent on China for minerals essential for renewable power.
How Japan Built a Rare-Earth Supply Chain Without China
The 15-year effort by Japan is a model for countries now scrambling to reduce their dependence on Beijing’s critical metals.
The "Critical Minerals" Crisis of 100 Years Ago
I review a fascinating dissertation on interwar metals trading and the "Age of Alloy Steel"
The U.S. doesn’t refine cobalt. This startup wants to change that.
The U.S. doesn't currently refine cobalt, a valuable material in a number of goods and products. This startup wants to change that.
Ukraine rare earth minerals
Inside an American Rare-Earth Boomtown
Industrialists and researchers are plotting a new future for these critical materials
Inside the Crime Rings Trafficking Sand
Organized crime is mining sand from rivers and coasts to feed demand worldwide, ruining ecosystems and communities. Can it be stopped?
What’s the most sustainable way to mine the largest known lithium deposit i
Scientists studying the McDermitt Caldera in Nevada and Oregon think they've found a new, more sustainable way to mine lithium.
The underbelly of electric vehicles
Mining and processing the minerals needed to meet the growing demand for EVs can be costly for workers, local communities and the environment.
Is the World Really Running Out of Sand? — Practical Engineering
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.] If you have to know the answer right away, it’s no; or at least, my goal with this video is to convince you that the world is not running out of sand. But if it were that simple, I wouldn’t be here (right?)…