Hard rock minerals like gold, silver, copper and lithium on public lands belong to the American public, but under a 150-year-old law, the US gives them away for free.
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Articles on Metals
Displaying 1 - 20 of 25 articles
Claims about the discovery of a coveted room-temperature superconductor peppered the news in 2023. We pulled three stories from our archives on what superconductivity is and why scientists study it.
Electric arc furnaces can use up to 100% scrap steel as its raw material, resulting in a significant reduction in emissions.
The demand for the minerals needed to build clean energy technology currently exceeds the available supply. If this issue continues, governments may find it hard to reach their clean energy targets.
Plants have evolved several ways to deal with heavy metals that might otherwise poison or kill them.
While iron and calcium are the metals that get the most attention, zinc is also important for human health and function.
Custom fabrication involves taking measurements, choosing tools, deciding on sequences of steps and ordering from a menu of materials. AIs under development promise to take humans out of the loop.
Iron fights anemia. Bismuth relieves gastric problems. Lithium acts against depression and gold can treat rheumatoid arthritis. Metals are precious tools for good health.
Companies are eager to mine the deep ocean for valuable mineral deposits. But scientists are concerned about impacts on sea life, including creatures that haven’t even been discovered yet.
Small-scale gold mining operations in developing countries are major sources of toxic mercury pollution, using techniques that haven’t changed much since the California Gold Rush 150 years ago.
Manufacturing minerals is an expanding field of study. Making more of them could help alleviate various pressures faced by our growing population. But how are they made, and where can they be used?
The Trump administration is supporting new mines in Alaska and Minnesota that many opponents say could devastate sensitive areas around them.
Spiders use different types of silk for different purposes – and not all of them are as strong as steel.
Gold is one of 12 confirmed elements on the periodic table whose discoverer is unknown.
Electric cars and smartphones have created growing demand – and volatile prices – for once obscure metals.
China, which recycles much of the world’s waste material, is slashing its scrap imports. This move could force the United States and Europe to boost recycling instead of shipping trash overseas.
Siberia’s red river reminds us that mining for minerals and metals can still compromise the environment.
Identifying mine waste materials as economic resources will help support global demand for critical metals, boosting the mining industry during the downturn. All with environmental benefits.
From making renewable energy practical to revolutionising farming, the chemicals industry could make a huge contribution to the environment.
It should be no surprise that a once great industry has lost its edge – the shine dullened a while ago.
Top contributors
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Principal Research Fellow/ Group Leader- MIWATCH, The University of Queensland
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Professor of Inorganic Chemistry, UCL
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Research Geologist, US Geological Survey
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Lecturer in Applied and Environmental Geology, University of Leicester
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Lecturer in Applied and Environmental Geology, University of Leicester
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Assistant Professor, Aarhus University
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Senior Lecturer in Applied Geology, University of Leicester
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Assistant professor, University of Nottingham
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University Lecturer in Physics at the Cavendish Laboratory, University of Cambridge
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Research Geochemist—Environment, disasters, and health, US Geological Survey
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Research Physical Scientist, US Geological Survey
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Director of Energy Lancaster and Professor of Physical Chemistry, Lancaster University
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Senior Lecturer in Operations and Supply Management, University of Bath
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Reader in Environmental Science, University of Hull
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Director of the Center for Industrial Ecology, Yale University
