This story initially appear on GRIST and part of Climate table cooperation.
In the summer of 2023, Vasileios Tsianos, Vice President of Business Development at NEO MATERIALSStart receiving calls from government officials on both Atlantic banks. In the world of industrial materials, anchor is famous for creating a rare earth magnet, used in everything, from household appliances to electric cars. But these calls are not rare earth. They are about something significantly rarer: metal gallium.
Recycling anchor a A few dozen tons of pure gallium a year, mainly from scrap producing semiconductor chips, at a factory in Ontario, Canada. In North America, this is the only industrial metal manufacturer, used in not only chips, but also clean energy technologies and military equipment.
China, the world's leading manufacturer so far, only Notification New export control on Gallium, Obviously to meet To report that the US government is considering restrictions on selling advanced semiconductor chips to China.
Unexpectedly, people want to talk to Neo. Tsianos told most people that people are interested in producing Gallium outside China, Tsianos told Grist.
Since Tsianos began to receive those calls, tensions in the 31st element on the periodic table, as well as 32nd time, Germanium, was also used in a range of advanced technologies, escalated. In December, China completely banned Exports both metals to the United States after the Biden government's decision Limit the export of chips of the United States.
Now, some companies operating in the US and Canada are considering expanding the production of rare metals to help meet the needs of the United States. While Canada's important mineral producers may be caught up Tax threatsAmerican metal manufacturers can see the support from the new government, calling for priority to finance federal funding for important mineral projects in one. Executive order 1. In addition to the United States and Canada, industry observers say China's export ban is promoting global care about When making mineral supply chains more important so that no country has a suffocating for important materials for a high -tech, clean energy future.
This latest penalty area is putting a lot of wind in the efforts of important mineral supply chain, not only in the US but globally, around the globe, Seaver Wang of a breakthrough institute, a research center focused on technology solutions for environmental issues, telling Grist.
Gallium and Germanium are not exactly the household names. But they are found in indispensable products for modern life and a society without fossil fuels. With its impressive electrical properties, Gallium is used in Semiconductor chip That goes to everything, from mobile phones to electric converters in electric cars to LED lighting. The metal is also used in the production of rare earth magnets for electric vehicles and wind turbines, in thin -film solar cells, and sometimes, in common silicon photovoltaic cells, where commercial silicon, where It can help increase performance and extend life.