OUR PICKS: CRITICAL MATERIALSOUR PICKS: CRITICAL MATERIALS

Tri-Cities Scientists ‘Magically’ Mining Metals from Water (Steven Ashby, Ph.D.. PNNL)
Centuries ago, alchemists tried to turn lead into gold. While they were not successful, the prospect of coaxing valuable materials from abundant sources remains tantalizingly attractive.
Today, scientists at the Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory are working with industry to test an approach that uses magnetic nanoparticles to capture critical materials, such as lithium, from various water sources.

The U.S. Has a Critical Need for Rare Earth Minerals That Enable Clean Energy, and This Exploration Company May Have Found the Largest Deposits in North America  (Dominick Reuter, Business Insider)
Demand for clean energy minerals is projected to increase by up to 600% in the coming decades. A mineral exploration company may have found the largest reserves of rare earth elements in the US. The discovery comes at a time when political pressure is building to increase domestic supply.

‘Deep-Sea Gold Rush’ for Rare Metals Could Cause Irreversible Harm  (Rupert Neate, Guardian)
Mining companies are planning to profit from the new industry, but environmental campaigners warn of disastrous consequences.

China Tightens Its Grip on the Building Blocks of the Future  (Helen Cahill, The Telegraph)
Ukrainian mines were set to help EU break its reliance on Beijing for rare earth metals.

Europe’s Green Deal Requires Massive Amounts of Battery Metals – Study  (Valentina Ruiz Leotaud, Mining)
A recent study by KU Leuven University shows that meeting the European Union’s Green Deal goal of climate neutrality by 2050 will require 35 times more lithium and 7 to 26 times the amount of rare earth metals compared to Europe’s current use.
According to the paper, the energy transition will also require 30% more aluminum than what is employed today in the continent, as well as 35% more copper, 45% more silicon, 100% more nickel and 330% more cobalt. All these metals are considered essential for producing electric vehicles and batteries, renewable wind, solar and hydrogen energy technologies, as well as the grid infrastructure needed to achieve climate neutrality. 

Lynas Races to Keep Up with Global Rare Earths Demand  (Reuters / Mining.com)
Lynas Corp the world’s only processor of rare earths outside China, sees growth in demand for the metals used in everything from cars to missiles rapidly outpacing production and expects to spell out expansion plans in the next six months.
“Our biggest challenge right now is to grow as fast as the market,” Lynas Chief Executive Amanda Lacaze said on Thursday.

Are Critical Minerals the Next Semiconductors?  (August Pfluger, Washington Examiner)
 Fighter jets like the ones I flew in Syria as an Air Force pilot, electric vehicles (EVs), and wind turbines all have one thing in common—they need critical minerals to function. These critical minerals, like semiconductors, are a prerequisite in the production of a range of products. If the access to critical minerals in raw or processed form was cut off, not only would large parts of the economy quickly grind to a halt, but our national security apparatus would be at risk. No longer would the United States be able to produce new airplanes, satellite communication systems, and other key materiel in the case of a conflict.

Ingenious AI Method Could Find Precious New Rare-Earth Compounds  (David Nield, Science Alert)
Rare-earth elements are crucial components in all kinds of electronics, from smartphones and broadband cables to wind turbines and electric cars. But coming up with useful compounds that can expand our practical use of rare-earths is notoriously difficult, with unpredictable results.
Now, scientists have come up with a clever way to help the search of new rare-earth compounds: A newly developed artificial intelligence system with predictive powers that will take us beyond what would be possible for humans in the lab.