The Elements of Innovation Discovered
The Elements of Innovation Discovered
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Finding ORE Act would link USGS with allied nations to map minerals. In a bid to strengthen mineral security and reduce foreign dependence, U.S. lawmakers have introduced a bipartisan bill that would authorize the U.S. Geological Survey to partner with allied nations on global mineral mapping – a foundational step to expand U.S. access to critical resources and challenge China's global supply grip. As global demand for critical minerals accelerates, the U.S. is working to s...
Export restrictions have already begun to affect U.S. and EU, with automotive part manufacturers making hard decisions to halt production. In April 2025, China imposed sweeping restrictions on the export of rare earth minerals and magnets, targeting sectors critical to Western economies in retaliation for renewed U.S. tariffs. Although some tariffs were later paused, China's restrictions have remained firmly in place, and the effects are being felt by automotive manufacturers...
Restricts exports of rare earths critical to defense and high-tech. China responded to President Trump's "Liberation Day" tariffs with 34% tariffs on imports from the United States plus restrictions on the exports of a group of seven rare earth elements vital to aerospace, auto manufacturing, nuclear energy, and advanced weapons systems. "This is a precision strike by China against Pentagon supply chains that enable our most powerful weapons and defense systems, from stealth...
Ten teams recognized for groundbreaking solutions to reclaim critical materials. With potential billions of dollars in critical materials lost in discarded electronics each year, the U.S. Department of Energy has announced the first winners of its $4 million E-SCRAP competition, recognizing innovations that transform e-waste into a valuable resource for supply chains and sustainability. First announced in March, DOE saw the immense potential of recovering valuable and...
USA Rare Earths produces first batch of critical REE magnets at its Innovations Lab in Stillwater, Oklahoma. Crossing a major milestone on the path to breaking America's reliance on China for an essential component of electric vehicles, wind turbines, robotics and military technologies, USA Rare Earth LLC (USARE) has produced its first batch of rare earth magnets at its Innovations Lab in Oklahoma. "Our new Innovations Lab, which we will finish building out in the coming month...
Invests $45 million for regional Carbon Ore, Rare Earth and Critical Minerals (CORE-CM) assessment across the nation. To help break America's reliance on imports for many of the minerals critical to the nation's economy and security, the U.S. Department of Energy is investing $45 million into six regional projects from Alaska and the Pacific Northwest to the Appalachian Mountain region near the Atlantic coast. "Rebuilding a domestic supply chain for critical minerals and...
From space tech-enabled copper exploration in Australia to nuclear fuel made in America, MTN counts down the most popular articles of 2024. Over the past year, Metal Tech News writers delivered more than 500 articles with deep insights into the scientific breakthroughs, mining initiatives, government policies, and market conditions that are shaping the future for technology metals and mining technologies. These articles took readers from material science discoveries in the... Full story
Coal ash waste stream might become feedstock for extracting much-needed domestic rare earth elements. The U.S. has relied almost entirely on imports for its supply of rare earth elements (REEs) – nearly 75% of which comes from China, whose geopolitical tensions with the West have put several critical mineral supply chains onto shaky ground. Meanwhile, at a special landfill in Shrewsbury, Massachusetts, researchers have discovered massive potential for this suite of elements h...
With ambitious technological and financial cooperation, Western allies could produce enough critical minerals to meet climate goals. In the aftermath of the COVID pandemic, nations quickly discovered the perils of an uneven distribution of production and processing capabilities in the guise of globalization. Phrases like "near-shoring" and "friend-shoring" led discussions of a green economy as remedies to the trade imbalance between the United States and the People's Republic...
Tapping the massive underground resource will hinge on landowner royalty agreement. The promise of lithium beneath Arkansas and five neighboring states cannot be overstated. Arkansas' little corner of the Smackover Formation – a massive permeable limestone geological extending from Florida to Texas – was estimated earlier this month by the U.S. Geological Survey to host between five and 19 million tons of lithium reserves. With such a massive lithium discovery and big names ea...
Separation and processing are the master link of US supply chain. From tech devices such as smartphones and computer monitors to clean energy products like electric vehicles and wind turbines, household goods like vacuum cleaners and refrigerators, and military hardware such as F-35 fighters and communications equipment, rare earths have a critical role to play in nearly every facet of America's economy and security. The United States, however, currently relies on China for ne...
Tin is indispensable today and shapes innovation of tomorrow. From $5 flashlightS to multi-million-dollar super computers, virtually all electronics rely on tin, primarily because of its use in soldering. If circuit boards are considered the backbone of technology, then tin-based solder could be seen as the connective tissue that holds the industry together. Despite its fundamental role in the Digital Age, tin is often overshadowed by other critical minerals and contends with...
Projects, initiatives, and technology expand scandium supply chain security. While it may not have quite as strong a chemical bond to its adopted lanthanide siblings as they do each other, scandium does possess similar enough characteristics and is almost always found at the same geological gatherings (deposits) as the rest of its rare earth family. Named for the Latin word for Scandinavia, "Scandia," – as the mineral was thought to only dwell off the Nordic peninsula – sca...
An all-of-government strategy is beginning to unfold in the US. Over the first two years following the passage of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act, the U.S. Department of Energy has invested billions of dollars into establishing a clean energy supply chain in the United States. These heavy investments, however, have neglected one vital link – the domestic mines needed to supply the processing facilities, battery plants, and other energy t... Full story
Import-reliance a top concern for national security officials. America's heavy reliance on China and others for the minerals and metals critical to the nation's economic competitiveness, military strength, and clean energy future is high on the list of strategic concerns for top brass at the U.S. departments of Defense and Homeland Security. While much of this concern is rooted in the fact that the United States' ability to defend its strategic interests at home and abroad... Full story
Decades-long clash continues over Colorado's uranium mines with implications for economy and national security. Mining near the Grand Canyon has been an embattled topic for decades, with an outcome that has implications for American jobs, the future of green energy, the economy, and national security. Uranium fuels nuclear power, a sustainable, efficient, plentiful and practically carbon-free energy. Miners like Colorado-based Energy Fuels Resources Inc. and the current...
U.S. Department of Energy is funding a Critical Materials Supply Chain Research Facility support a resilient and secure domestic supply chain. The Department of Energy is funding a Critical Materials Supply Chain Research Facility that will help support a secure domestic supply of minerals and materials critical to economic prosperity, national security, and the green energy transition in the U.S. This week, the DOE's Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management (FECM)...
Without investors, the future of South Africa's rare earth elements enriched Phalaborwa site may depend on Washington support. Bordering South Africa's renowned Kruger National Park stands Phalaborwa, a mine sporting two rare earths-enriched phospho-gypsum waste piles that could mean over a billion in critical minerals for the U.S. – if the project can get enough support to run. To challenge China's near monopoly on rare earths, Washington has committed funds to a little-known... Full story
University convened with key leaders across government, industry, and academia on Capitol Hill to discuss sustainable production and cultivating the next generation of miners. In a pivotal move to safeguard the U.S. critical mineral supply chain, the University of Arizona has taken center stage in pioneering sustainable mining practices, nurturing a skilled domestic workforce, and powering the national transition to renewable energy and next-gen defense technology at an event... Full story
Researcher Lana Alagha received $875,000 from Rio Tinto to explore gallium and germanium recovery from copper waste streams. In a landmark development for critical minerals recovery, global mining company Rio Tinto has granted Missouri University of Science and Technology professor Lana Alagha $875,000 for a two-year project that seeks to pioneer novel techniques for extracting the highly sought after critical minerals gallium and germanium from waste generated in copper... Full story
Pentagon awards Doe Run $7 million to help scale up a cobalt and nickel processing plant in The Show-Me State. As part of a larger objective to ensure the United States has reliable domestic supplies of the minerals and metals critical to the nation's economy and security, the U.S. Department of Defense has awarded The Doe Run Resources Corp. $7 million to complete a demonstration-scale hydrometallurgical plant for separation of cobalt and nickel at their facility in...
Combining carbon-free energy with permanent storage of CO2 creates a more cost-effective self-sustaining loop. A research team at Ohio State University (OSU) has proposed the combination of carbon capture with geothermal energy in a cheap, novel method that could make capturing carbon dioxide from the air a viable option. Their system recycles some of the captured CO2 to transport geothermal energy in a closed loop that can make large-scale direct air capture cheaper and more...
Enters into agreement with ReElement for a domestic supply of rare earths for its magnet plant in Oklahoma. In a move that will begin to establish a circular and domestic supply chain for the powerful magnets used in electric vehicle motors, USA Rare Earth LLC has signed a deal to buy ultra-pure rare earth elements (REE) produced from ReElement Technologies Corp.'s state-of-the-art rare earths and battery metals refining facility in Indiana. "We are thrilled to be working...
Three projects that will advance coal-derived rare earths and critical minerals. Further attempting to strengthen America's critical mineral supply chain and by proxy its national security, the U.S. Department of Energy announced $17 million in funding for three projects focused on establishing a domestic supply of rare earth elements and critical minerals from coal-based resources. Funded through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law as part of President Biden's Investing in...
Reshoring mineral supply chains lost to globalization is a key part of DOD National Defense Industrial Strategy The urgency to onshore critical mineral supply chains in the United States has begun to shift away from a need to secure reliable sources of the minerals and metals needed to support the nation's economy and clean energy ambitions toward the need for these same mined commodities to defend American ideals and interests at home and abroad. "Establishing a fully...
