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 Tantalum : known economically workable deposits will be exhausted in 2038 |
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Tantalum is a chemical element of the periodic table, with symbol Ta and atomic number 73. This metal is the eleventh non-renewable resource set to disappear thanks to intensive exploitation by mankind. Extractable deposits of tantalum will disappear for good in 2038. Owing to a lack of necessary information, this date is only an approximation. Link: http://environment.newscientist.com Tantalum's main application, in metallic powder form, is in the manufacture of electronics components, chiefly condensers. Tantalum condensers are found in mobile telephones, beepers and personal computers. Tantalum is also used in surgical applications, for artificial bones and joints. Tantalum is also used in the manufacture of numerous high-melting-point alloys. It is a highly ductile solid. Problems arising from its disappearance will start to make themselves felt well before any of these fateful dates. |
Even if, thanks to advances in technology, we find new deposits by digging deeper and deeper into the Earth's crust, this will afford us only a few years' reprieve and will not make a major impact on the situation. Tantalum was created when a star exploded and the Sun and the Earth were formed from the debris, over five billion years ago. You cannot produce it artificially and there is no substitute. The Moon and the asteroids do not contain the metal in an extractable form. And just imagine the energy it would take to bring some back from Mars or Venus! There will still be recycling but demand, which will keep growing exponentially with the development of the emerging economies, will far outstrip supply. 52% of current production comes from 8 principal mines in Australia, Brazil, Canada, Ethiopia and China.
To learn more about tantalum, see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tantalum
Translation Nicholas ROSE
Don't miss reading Point of view by
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