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…
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…
‘Twas Art that moved the beast. And rockets.
Seventeen Chinese elements control the world.
But So Are Converters, Inverters, and MMCs!
Caging the lightning: How we make aluminium
Life, death and new worlds: Gifts from the miracle metal.
Limestone might not be the only source for Portland cement.
A new lithium refining method uses electrochemistry to cut waste and energy use, easing a key bottleneck for electric vehicles.
The discovery could bolster efforts to make the U.S. less dependent on China for minerals essential for renewable power.
The 15-year effort by Japan is a model for countries now scrambling to reduce their dependence on Beijing’s critical metals.
I review a fascinating dissertation on interwar metals trading and the "Age of Alloy Steel"
The U.S. doesn't currently refine cobalt, a valuable material in a number of goods and products. This startup wants to change that.
Industrialists and researchers are plotting a new future for these critical materials
Organized crime is mining sand from rivers and coasts to feed demand worldwide, ruining ecosystems and communities. Can it be stopped?
Scientists studying the McDermitt Caldera in Nevada and Oregon think they've found a new, more sustainable way to mine lithium.
Mining and processing the minerals needed to meet the growing demand for EVs can be costly for workers, local communities and the environment.
[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?)…