The periodic table of elements hosts so many elements that it’s difficult for some to memorize all the elements by name alone. Even though that seems like a lot, we are actually running out of elements. Each element added in the periodic table was from technological efforts. Some elements cannot be man-made, so researchers are looking for places where they can mine the materials we need, as Discover Magazine details:
Europium and indium are crucial for televisions and touch screens. Rhenium is necessary in fighter jet engines. And to avoid some of the effects of climate change, we need lithium and cobalt for electric vehicle batteries, tellurium for solar panels and dysprosium for wind turbines.
Yet we cannot make these elements — they formed, along with Earth, billions of years ago. To replenish our dwindling stores and keep up with a growing, modernizing world, we must mine for more.
hey’re looking for natural ores in places once considered too remote to mine, before the materials’ demand justified the costs and arduous journeys: the Arctic, the deep sea and even the asteroids nearest Earth.
But after a century of heavy industrial activity, we also have a wealth of human waste
Head on to their website to see the list of locations where researchers are looking for elements!
image via Discover Magazine