Critical mineral supply concerns the identification, extraction, processing, and recycling of materials essential for energy, defense, and high‑technology systems, with particular emphasis on rare earth elements, uranium, lithium, graphite, and related metals. The field examines geological resources, waste and urban mining pathways, nuclear fuel cycle by‑products, and advanced materials development alongside geopolitical dependencies, trade controls, and national strategies. It also addresses supply‑chain vulnerabilities and sustainability constraints that influence low‑carbon energy transitions and long‑term resource security.
Business
Scientists at PSI have created a dynamic database for vanadium, an important raw material. This metal has enormous potential for the energy transition. Vanadium redox flow batteries (VRFB) can store electricity for longer ...
Oct 1, 2025
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Energy & Green Tech
You might imagine nuclear power plants as behemoth facilities spanning hundreds of acres. Nuclear microreactors, by contrast, could sit on land the size of a football field and power a whole town.
Sep 22, 2025
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Engineering
Scientists at Oregon State University have taken a big step toward lighting and display technologies that are more energy efficient and better for the planet. The work centers around crystalline, porous materials known as ...
Sep 2, 2025
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Energy & Green Tech
From electric cars to artificial intelligence (AI) data centers, the technologies people use every day require a growing need for electricity. In theory, nuclear fusion—a process that fuses atoms together, releasing heat ...
Aug 18, 2025
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Energy & Green Tech
Researchers at the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) have begun a series of experiments that could result in more energy for the grid by increasing nuclear fuel efficiency. The tests are ...
Aug 14, 2025
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Energy & Green Tech
Shortages of certain minerals could limit global climate mitigation strategies, according to research published in Nature Climate Change.
Aug 8, 2025
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Energy & Green Tech
In the spring of 2020, a team of engineers at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) embarked on a groundbreaking project to design a microreactor test facility that could transform the world's energy future.
Jul 30, 2025
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Engineering
The Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory set a new milestone in nuclear component innovation, successfully testing two 3D-printed stainless steel experimental capsules at the lab's High Flux Isotope Reactor, ...
Jul 21, 2025
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Energy & Green Tech
As countries across the world experience a resurgence in nuclear energy projects, the questions of where and how to dispose of nuclear waste remain as politically fraught as ever. The United States, for instance, has indefinitely ...
Jul 18, 2025
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Energy & Green Tech
The world has been enriching uranium for many decades, primarily beginning in the Cold War era. As a result, there are stockpiles of depleted uranium hexafluoride (UF6), or nuclear waste.
Jul 16, 2025
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