The commodities Corner

[USA11]

Liquid metal batteries new use for Sb Pb Li

Advances in molten metal mass storage battery chemistry has led to a practical technology that should create significant demand for Lead, Lithium and Antimony.

This new market may exceed the automotive demand for lead and Lithium. Antimony, primarily used for fireproofing has been under pressure for alternatives making it the most important driver for Antimony future prices which already trades at a 10 - 20% premium to copper.

The majority of Sb production is by-produced with base metals but environmental controls on smelter emmisions have led to steep penalties comparable to Arsenic. Increased Sb prices and advances in hydrothermal refining processes could reduce these penalties and acceptance limits would make contaminated mineral feasible to mine.

These affected vein deposits typically have high precious metal grades. Gold mines abandoned after depletion of clean ore leaving a valuable potential resource of copper/ gold if the Antimony situation should improve.


http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/nature13700.html
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