The Elements of Innovation Discovered
The Elements of Innovation Discovered
Sorted by date Results 26 - 50 of 188
The ages of human history have been defined from stone to iron, from hunting to husbandry, and from industry to information. The latest change has come not through any one revolutionary commodity or tool but in an overall shift from resource consumption to one of stewardship. "The argument could be made that, with the clean energy transition, we're exchanging a fossil fuel-based energy system with a metals-based energy system," said Scott Odell, MIT Environmental Solutions...
With no Plan(et) B, Wabtec is pushing ahead with tech to electrify trains and trucks for net-zero emissions mines. From electric trains delivering Western Australia iron ore to the next generation of zero-emissions mining trucks, Wabtec Corp. is committed to providing the decarbonizing electrification solutions that will allow the mining industry to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050. "What we are working on today is making sure that all of our solutions are geared towards...
The start of ExxonMobil's new lithium production unit in southwestern Arkansas in mid-November highlights rapidly growing industry interest in producing the white mineral from the briny aquifers that proliferate in this region of the United States. Lithium is a crucial component in the manufacture of batteries needed for electric vehicles, and demand for the white mineral is projected to quadruple by 2030. ExxonMobil said its new unit is expected to begin producing the white...
Garnering another roughly C$2 million in funding toward the development of its rare earths recycling demonstration plant to be built in Saint-Hubert, Quebec, to date, Geomega Resources Inc. has accumulated over C$10 million in the last year alone. Provided by Next Generation Manufacturing Canada (NGen), this round of funding is part of a total envelope of roughly C$2.96 million awarded to Geomega and a private Quebec-based research and development company to perform a project...
The Salton Sea geothermal reservoir in Southern California could produce up to 3.4 million metric tons of lithium, which is plenty to make batteries for enough electric vehicles to replace all cars currently on U.S. highways, according to a comprehensive analysis carried out by the U.S. Department of Energy. The analysis, funded by the Geothermal Technologies Office and conducted by DOE's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, confirms the region's significant potential to...
Exploring the potential of near-infinite geometries, engineers from NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center has partnered with Elemuntum 3D to print rocket engines from a metal that, for all intents and purposes, is not ideal for millions of pounds of thrust – aluminum. The capabilities of additive manufacturing, however, may just unlock a different future into the stars. Aluminum has many of the hallmarks of an ideal metal for building rockets – lower density, high-strength, and...
Arguments against the expense and impracticality of space exploration have been ongoing since before the Apollo missions ever got off the ground. In fact, NASA's budget has hovered between a minute 1% and 0.4% of the total federal budget since the 1970s. Missions fail, lose funding, or fall out of favor between presidencies. But there is one assurance that private investors can take to the bank-innovation in the face of space exploration always pays. "You have to innovate, an...
Seeking every advantage when it comes to the efficient and sustainable production of lithium and boron at its Rhyolite Ridge project in Nevada, Ioneer Ltd. has signed a research and development memorandum of understanding with Korea-based EcoPro Innovation Co. Ltd. to study the lithium clay resources at this prospective lithium-boron property. Situated about 200 road miles southeast of the Tesla Gigafactory Nevada, Rhyolite Ridge is a development-staged lithium-boron project t...
Each year in Canada, roughly 200 active mines contribute to billions of tons of mining waste. The estimated number of tailing storage facilities surveyed worldwide is over 12,000. While considered industrial waste, these facilities also contain a number of useful minerals at a concentration deemed too low to be worth extracting-until now. Enter biomining, which covers several biological separation technologies offering eco-friendly recovery of valuable and strategic materials...
Liquid metal again displays an almost magical ability to become a catalyst for lowering CO2 in the atmosphere A liquid metal with semiconductor properties that make it an essential ingredient in next-generation smartphones, telecommunication networks, and solar technologies, gallium already lives at the edge of science fiction and science reality. Working at this threshold, Australian scientists are demonstrating that gallium may also be a major catalyst for the green energy f...
Young scientists brings lifetime of passion, curiosity, hope to producing better materials for fusion energy. Spurred by next-generation thinking, innovative uses of composite metal-ceramic 3D printing in the field of nuclear may just be the "Eureka!" moment needed to unlock one of Man's greatest accomplishments – fusion. When Alexander O'Brien sent in his application for graduate school at Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Department of Nuclear Science and E...
Taking a major step toward its goal of building a mining media powerhouse, EarthLabs Inc. has cut a deal to acquire The Northern Miner Group, which publishes the Northern Miner, Canadian Mining Journal, and MINING.COM. "This acquisition aligns perfectly with our strategic focus on innovation in the disruptive media landscape," said EarthLabs Chief Business Officer Cejay Kim. "EarthLabs will now own one of the largest social media platforms and news media publications focused o...
The growing list of critical minerals and conflict elements like cobalt are drawing intense focus and demand for alternative sources. Investors and consumers are increasingly focused on the environmental, social and governance (ESG) credentials, provenance, and indirect emissions of these supply chains. If done right, prioritizing urban mining – specifically moving recycled materials upstream in supply chains – could provide cheaper domestic supply with a lower emissions foo...
A flurry of industry partnerships on battery material projects followed landmark alliance between nations. In a move that aligns Canada's rich minerals endowment with Japan's battery-making expertise, the two countries have entered into a historic battery supply chain agreement. "Canada and Japan are committed to advancing our shared ambitions to develop sustainable and reliable global battery supply chains," said Canada Minister of Innovation, Science, and Industry...
Seeking to curb the United States' heavy dependence on imports for critical minerals, the U.S. Department of Energy is investing $150 million to support the domestic production of these mined materials essential to clean energy, high-tech manufacturing, and the nation's general economic well-being. "The investments announced today enhance national security by reducing our reliance on foreign sources-while strengthening an existing mining and energy workforce to develop...
Data Mine North launched the first edition of Critical Minerals Alliances in 2021 with the hopes that this annual magazine would play some small role in helping to build alliances "that are not crippled by irreconcilable differences between organizations and individuals that do not always see eye-to-eye but strengthened by a spectrum of ideologies with a common goal – a healthy, prosperous, and exciting future for humankind." Today, the alliances envisioned by the Data Mine N...
From a small sprout to a mighty tree, Redwood Materials Inc. may share its roots with the Tree of Tesla but has grown into a pillar of stability in the realm of recycling amidst a time when electric vehicle battery materials are becoming increasingly difficult to source. This battery and e-waste startup's vision of creating a domestic supply through recycling has drawn nearly $2 billion in new investment to expand its operations in the U.S., spreading its own "Sequoian" roots...
Space Age mineral exploration firm invests in mining company using its cutting-edge tech. Going above and beyond its already well-established commitment to employing space-based mineral exploration technology to accelerate the discovery and delineation of minerals critical to life here on Earth, Fleet Space Technologies is investing in Thor Energy. "This partnership between Thor Energy and Fleet Space Technologies is further testament to what is possible when we fuse world-cla...
Compile national-scale datasets to assist tri-national critical minerals mapping initiative. Part of a larger collaboration to better understand the critical minerals potential across Australia, Canada, and the United States, the federal geological surveys from the three countries have merged national-scale geological, geophysical, and mineral resource information into a single dataset that is expected to enhance critical mineral discovery. "Geology doesn't stop at the border...
As the cracks in the wall continue to chill the bones of an ill-prepared American clean-energy economy, attention has been paid to nearly every facet imaginable to obtain the minerals critical to fuel a zero-carbon future; however, all has seemingly been quiet on the unconventional front. Repeated time and time again during the ongoing transition, U.S. policymakers are becoming increasingly concerned about the overreliance on China for the minerals and metals essential to...
The United States has rich deposits of copper, cobalt, graphite, lithium, nickel, rare earths, and other mined commodities needed to build the clean energy future. The often decade-long mine permitting timeline in the U.S., however, means that many of these domestic critical mineral sources will be hard-pressed to get developed in time to help meet the climate goals laid out by the White House. This extraordinarily long federal permitting process for large projects has global...
From promising solid-state battery technology that could eliminate range anxiety for electric vehicle owners to solar panels and thermoelectric devices that transform sunshine and heat into low-carbon energy, tellurium is emerging as a secret ingredient of the clean energy future. "It has flown largely under the radar, even though it's essential for cadmium-telluride solar panels and new lithium-tellurium batteries that could revolutionize energy storage," said Tyrone...
Urges the mining industry to build goodwill and trust to survive societal, geopolitical, and new technology megatrends in a changing world. Newmont President and CEO Tom Palmer did not waste his keynote address at the Minerals Week 2023 gathering in Australia to tout the many achievements of the world's largest gold mining company he leads. Instead, he delivered a powerful and sometimes foreboding message to the mining leaders in the room and around the world about the...
Show-Me State now shows US; developing hub for innovation, education to support holistic manufacturing. Due to ongoing difficulties in the supply chain, Kummer Institute's Center for Advanced Manufacturing at Missouri University of Science and Technology decided to ignore the chain altogether and purchase a large-format metal 3D printer from SPEE3D for its future manufacturing campus to support local business by giving them the environment and education to make on their own....
$2.1M awarded to three companies advancing tech for more sustainable, productive mining The Greater Sudbury region of Ontario is so enriched with deposits containing nickel and other metals needed for the clean energy transition that one of the area's parliamentary districts is named Nickel Belt. Looking to also be an epicenter of sustainable mining technologies, Marc Serré, member of parliament for Nickel Belt, and Viviane Lapointe, member of parliament for the neighboring...
