Critical minerals like cobalt, lithium and rare earth elements abound in Australia. But we’re not making the most of these in-demand resources.
Building solar panels over water sources is one way to both provide power and reduce evaporation in drought-troubled regions.
Robin Raj, Citizen Group & Solar Aquagrid
From pulling carbon dioxide out of the air to turning water into fuel, innovators are developing new technologies and pairing existing ones to help slow global warming.
A pilot plant near the Salton Sea in California pairs lithium extraction with geothermal energy production.
Michael McKibben
Lithium is essential for batteries that power electric vehicles and store energy from solar and wind farms. A new U.S. source could provide 10 times more lithium than the country uses today.
Off-road vehicles are driven on a property that will be mined for lithium along the Salton Sea, in Niland, Calif., in July 2021. Lithium is critical to rechargeable batteries.
(AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
Canada could become a global leader in the supply of materials needed for renewable energy systems if it finds ways to control the environmental footprints associated with their extraction.
Local communities near lithium deposits shouldn’t become zones of sacrifice, shouldering the socio-environmental costs of supporting a renewable energy transition.
Afghanistan has mineral resources that include precious gems and minerals such as copper and rare earth elements.
Majid Saeedi/Getty Images
Afghanistan has vast mineral resources that have long attracted interest from outside countries, but a lack of infrastructure and political instability means they’re unlikely to aid its economy now.
Energy storage can make facilities like this solar farm in Oxford, Maine, more profitable by letting them store power for cloudy days.
AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty
The US is generating more electricity than ever from wind and solar power – but often it’s not needed at the time it’s produced. Advanced energy storage technologies make that power available 24/7.
Building renewable energy infrastructure involves mining for materials such as lithium, graphite and cobalt. If not done responsibly, that could cause huge environmental damage.
Picture of the Sun taken by the SOHO space telescope.
NASA/ESA
Bolivia’s huge lithium reserves are isolated and hard to extract, and global uncertainty over electric vehicles is bad for business.
Iron ore piles at Dampier, Western Australia. Australia could convert iron oxide to metal for export, producing it with no emissions.
CHRISTIAN SPROGOE/ Rio Tinto
Eminent economist Ross Garnaut says if climate action fails, he fears the consequences ‘would be beyond contemporary Australia’. But zero-emissions iron and aluminium could be the way forward.
If you are intimidated by the periodic table, then this introduction through the first column of elements will give you a feel for how and why the elements are arranged in this order.
A year ago, the world’s largest lithium-ion battery began dispatching power to South Australia’s grid. It has been a remarkable success but there are some concerns that have so far escaped scrutiny
Electric cars are taking over – but they really as green as they look?
Jack Amick / flickr
A new rechargeable ‘proton battery’ - made chiefly from carbon and water - promises to outperform conventional lithium-ion batteries, while also being more environmentally friendly.