The study of treasure is lost from the main minerals in the United States.

The United States is home to dozens of active mines. Some copper extract, while others dig into iron. Whatever the supplier, it usually forms a small part of the rocks that are pulled from the ground. The rest is usually ignored. lost.

“We only produce some commodities,” he said Elizabeth HollyProfessor of Mining Engineering at the Colorado School of Mines. “The question is: What is in these rocks?”

Answer: a lot.

In study Published today by ScienceHolly and her colleagues aim to determine what is another in those rocks. They found that 70 important elements in 54 active astrologers, the possibility of recovery is enormous. There is enough Lithium In one year of the United States, for example, to operate 10 million electric cars. For magnes, 99 million are sufficient. These numbers exceed all of the American import levels of these elements and their current demand.

Critical minerals are necessary to produce Li -ion batteriesSolar panels, and other technologies are low or zero carbon that work to transmit clean energy. The United States has long obtained these minerals, a political, fraught with.

The vast majority of lithium comes from Australia, Chile and China, for example, while Cobalt Often it comes from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. While securing a local supply for rare or critical materials was the target of American policy for decades, the batch may be intensified in recent years. Former President Joe Biden’s legislation included the law to reduce inflation in 2022, incentives for the production of local minerals, and this year, President Donald Trump signed on Executive order Summoning the forces of wartime It would allow more rental and extraction on federal lands.

“Our national and economic security has become strongly threatened by our dependence on the production of mineral minerals for foreign authorities.” “It is necessary for our national security to take immediate measures to facilitate local mineral production as far as possible.”

Trump also made critical minerals a The cornerstone of the continuous support of Ukraine. Meanwhile, China recently Extensive export controls on rare ground mineralsWhich confirms the unstable nature of the global market.

Holly research indicates that the increase in local secondary products can address this instability. Even the recovery rate is 1 percent, as it was found, “greatly reduces dependence on import of most elements. 4 percent recovery of lithium will completely show current imports.

Holly said: “We can focus on corporate mines already and add additional circles to their operation,” Holly said. “It will be a really fast way to bring the necessary minerals to production.”

This last research is “very valuable”. He sees it as a great starting point for a multi -sectarian approach to address the secondary product problem and move towards a zero waste system. He said that other areas that will need attention include looking beyond the neglected rocks to the “huge” quantities of water used by the mine. It is also believed that the government should play a more aggressive and organized policy in pressure in order to recover coins.

“Mining is a very old industry,” Samawi said. “Who will feel the risks?”

The Ministry of Energy recently announced Experimental program to recover secondary productsAnd it took the Pentagon a $ 400 million in the operator One of the rare mineral minerals in the country. At the same time, Congress recently abolished large parts of the law to reduce inflation, which would have pushed the demand for critical minerals, and has reduced federal funding to American geological survey and Science Office at the Ministry of EnergyAmong other research weapons.

Isabelle Barton, a professor of geological engineering at the University of Arizona, said the general trend of scientific study is “not new.” “It is a very hot mining theme these days.”

Interest in a growing conversion of thinking contributes to a strong focus on the targeted minerals to consider what can be produced, including critical minerals. “There is some relatively simple. There are others that are difficult to reach,” Barton said. “Mining companies are present to make profit.”

The discovery of the most economically life -standing way is the next step. Holly hopes to reach this research. She said that the secondary capabilities differ greatly by mines, and the analysis can help determine the location of minerals. For example, it seems that the red dog mine in Alaska has the largest capabilities in the country, while Nickel It can be found in Stelllower and East Bolder mines in Montana.

She said: “The financing (research and development) was on the critical metals a little scattered.” “Our paper allows the development of a strategy.”

This article was originally appeared in Barrier in https://grist.org/science/us-mines-are-litelly-throwing-awayway-way-critical- Mineraals/. Grist is a non -profit and independent media organization dedicated to the novel of climate solution stories and a just future. Learn more in Grist.org.