The Elements of Innovation Discovered

Articles from the December 4, 2024 edition


Sorted by date  Results 1 - 10 of 10

  • Two Nutrien executives holding the John T. Ryan award.

    Nutrien wins awards for mine safety tech

    A.J. Roan, Metal Tech News|Updated Dec 3, 2024

    As the future of mining takes shape beneath the prairies of Saskatchewan, Nutrien's innovative use of tele-remote technology is advancing safety in their potash mines and earning prestigious recognition. This year, Nutrien's Lanigan mine team received the John T. Ryan Mine Safety Technology Award for their commitment to improving underground operations, alongside the National Safety Council's Green Cross for Safety Innovation, recognizing their transformative approach to miner...

  • Events Calendar

    Updated Dec 3, 2024

    Submit your event...

  • Battery electric Liebherr haul truck and excavator at Fortescue Pilbara site.

    Fortescue advances clean energy project

    A.J. Roan, Metal Tech News|Updated Dec 3, 2024

    Fast chargers aim to begin electrifying heavy mining operations by 2025. As mining shifts toward decarbonization, Fortescue is taking steps to electrify its operations with a 6-megawatt (MW) fast charger test unit, backed by funding from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) – a project that aims to revolutionize charging technology for heavy mining equipment, with the eventual deployment of 250 fast chargers across its iron ore operations by the end of the decade. F...

  • Illustration of a Mars astronaut riding vehicle with fuel station in background.

    Mars could be a rocket fuel waystation

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated Dec 3, 2024

    Study suggests Martian rocks may be saturated with fuel-building ingredients. Onsite production of materials such as fuel and construction resources have been under study to extend the distances and livability of space exploration. Rockets that can make or collect fuel can go farther, and astronauts that don't need to bring their own tools and building materials can stay in space longer. This use of the surrounding environment to produce new materials has its own discipline...

  • Illustrated map of Madagascar, uranium yellowcake next to Toliara marked with X.

    Madagascar greenlights rare earth mine

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated Dec 3, 2024

    Lifts suspension holding back development at Energy Fuels' Toliara critical minerals project. With approval from the Malagasy Council of Ministers, Energy Fuels, one of the largest uranium producers in the United States, is resuming its Toliara project in southwest Madagascar after a five-year suspension of development. "The lifting of the suspension by the Malagasy Government is a very significant step in the development of the Toliara rare earths, titanium, and zirconium...

  • Stacks of shining copper rods in a somewhat dimly lit room.

    Studying superconductors with supercomputers

    A.J. Roan, Metal Tech News|Updated Dec 3, 2024

    Berkeley Lab team use cutting-edge tech to explore copper efficiency. For over three decades, scientists have chased the dream of room-temperature superconductivity. Now, harnessing the raw power of cutting-edge supercomputers, researchers are unraveling the mysterious interactions within superconductors – unlocking insights that could lead to practical materials capable of conducting electricity with zero resistance, and effectively changing the world as we know it. N...

  • A gloved hand installs a processor on a computer’s motherboard.

    China export ban deals blow to US economy

    Shane Lasley, Metal Tech News|Updated Dec 3, 2024

    The cutoff of gallium and germanium could send America's GDP plummeting by $3.4 billion; antimony a top concern for the Pentagon. In a move that could deal a multibillion-dollar blow to the American economy and impact the nation's military readiness, China has completely banned the exports of gallium, germanium, antimony, and superhard materials to the United States. Gallium and germanium are essential ingredients for semiconductors used to make computer chips; and antimony...

  • Flag of Norway half-submerged in the ocean.

    Norway reverses deep-sea mining decision

    K. Warner, Metal Tech News|Updated Dec 2, 2024

    Norway's attempt to open up a U.K.-sized section of Arctic seabed to mineral exploration and potential mining has been halted – for now. Several official studies and commercial forays into deep-sea mining have discovered a wealth of vital energy transition minerals secreted at the bottom of the world's oceans, globally available and hotly contested. Countries large and small are now peering eagerly into the depths of territorial and international waters to find incalculable a...

  • Computer-generated image of a satellite above a purple planet.

    UN to monitor mining facilities from space

    Shane Lasley, Metal Tech News|Updated Dec 2, 2024

    Partners with Value.Space to use satellites to assess the risks of mine tailings storage facilities. To help safeguard people, environment, and mineral supply chains critical to the clean energy transition, the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) is collaborating with Value.Space to deploy satellite-based monitoring and risk profiling to strengthen the United Nations' mining safety initiatives. The primary objective of this partnership is to lower the risk...

  • Closeup of a Universal Field Robots emblem on a Cat excavator.

    Sandvik acquires Universal Field Robots

    Shane Lasley, Metal Tech News|Updated Dec 2, 2024

    Buyout of OEM-agnostic autonomous mining tech provider is expected to expand the scope of Sandvik's AutoMine platform. To expand upon the capabilities and compatibility of its already world-leading AutoMine mining automation platform, Sandvik has acquired Universal Field Robots (UFR), a fast-growing Australia-based provider of autonomous interoperable solutions for the surface mining and underground mining markets. In recent years, Sandvik has significantly grown its...