DOE releases strategy to address the availability of critical materials
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DOE releases strategy to address the availability of critical materials www.energy.gov/criticalmaterialsstrategy
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ey materials critical to advancing clean energy technology are susceptible to major supply chain disruptions, according to a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) report, Critical Materials Strategy, released in December 2010. The report outlines a strategy for reducing the risk of disruptions through research and development, diplomacy, policy, and other means. The United States depends on rare earth metals and other materials with unique properties for clean energy production, security, transportation, and communications technology, for example. Ensuring access to these materials is absolutely necessary, said Karl Gschneidner, Jr., a senior metallurgist at DOE’s Ames Laboratory and one of the report reviewers. “The country has no alternative.” In order to illustrate the risks to access of key materials, the report de-
Importance to clean energy
scribes potential sources of disruption along the supply chain for four clean energy component technologies: permanent magnets, advanced batteries, thin-film photovoltaics, and phosphors. Potential risks for these examples range from geographically limited mining sites to intellectual property rights and political, regulatory, and social factors. To put these risks in context, the report includes an historical analysis of the supply, demand, and prices for key materials; an overview of related DOE and other federal programs; a look at critical materials strategies in other nations; projections for the supply and demand of key materials in the near and mid terms; analysis of the criticality of 14 key materials; and likely program and policy directions for DOE. This strategy is a first step toward a new DOE research agenda. “Building on this strategy, DOE will work closely with its national labs, other federal agencies, ConShort term (0–5 years) gress, and international Dysprosium partners to develop its 4 first integrated research (high) Cerium agenda on critical mateEuropium Lanthanum Indium Tellurium Gallium Neodymium rials,” said Diana BauTerbium 3 Yttrium er, a policy analyst for DOE and Team Leader Cobalt Lithium Praseodymium for the Critical Materi2 als Strategy. Priority topics are likely to inSamarium Critical 1 clude magnets, motors Near critical (low) Not critical and generators, batteries, photovoltaics and 1 (low) 2 3 4 (high) lighting, environmenSupply risk tally sound mining, materials processing, The short-term criticality matrix shows analyses that combine the and recycling research importance of a material to the clean energy economy and supply risk with respect to that material. Source: U.S. Department of and development. Energy, Critical Materials Strategy, December 2010. One aim that will be highlighted in the inte-
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MRS BULLETIN
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VOLUME 36 • MARCH 2011
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www.mrs.org/bulletin
grated research plan is developing materials, components, and systems that can reduce the need for critical materials that are at risk. Research and developmen
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