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ISSN 2056-6727 (Print)

The magazine of the Minor Metals Trade Association

Antimony Day

MMTA China Visit

Molten History

Economics of Resources

1st Edition 2018/ January

The

CRUCIBLE

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Disclaimer: The information and data contained in this edition of the Crucible (the Material) has been compiled by the Minor Metals Trade Association (MMTA) from sources believed to be reliable at the time of writing but the MMTA makes no representation or warranty (express or implied) as to the accuracy, timeliness or completeness of the Material. The Material is provided for information purposes only, but is not to be relied upon as authoritative or taken in substitution for the exercise of the reader’s own skill and judgment. It should not be relied upon for any specific or general application without first obtaining competent advice. The MMTA, its members, staff and consultants accept no liability whatsoever (however that liability arises) for any direct, indirect or consequential loss arising from any use of the Material.

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Quick charging batteries 4

Veolia report 6

Molten history 8

Letter from N America 10

Fireworks 11

Antimony Day 12-13

China Adventure 14-15

Happy New Year from the MMTA Happy New Year, and a prosperous 2018 to members and colleagues.

We are pleased to welcome two new members: CAI Custom Alloys, Inc. and Zenith Metalik Alloys Ltd bringing a total of 15 new members for 2017. We hope this extremely positive trend continues into the coming year.

A small reminder, don’t forget to pay your MMTA subscription for 2018 as soon as possible. This greatly lessens the administrative burden on the small MMTA executive team.

We are greatly looking forward to the Montreal conference in April, excellent Member rates are still available, so book now to avoid disappointment and to maximise your savings.

Don’t forget– if you have any business news or announcements to share with the membership, contacts us to reserve your spot in the next Crucible.

Birgit Bender, RC Inspection

NEW YORK DINNER 

Thursday 18 January 2018 

The Cornell Club‐New York | 6 East 44th Street            

| New York, NY 10017   

Get the New Year started with industry friends and colleagues! Networking drinks will be followed by a 4‐course meal and wine. 

Share networking drinks and canapés with business colleagues and friends and enjoy a presenta on on Energy Storage Outlook & Impact on Global Metals Market, by        Kenneth Hoffman, former Global Head of Metals and Mining Research at Bloomberg L.P. and Head of Global Metals at Pruden al Securi es, currently with McKinsey's        Materials Prac ce, and Yayoi Sekine, Head of Energy Storage at Bloomberg Energy     Finance.  

MMTA members pay only $170 (130GBP) and non‐members $220 (GBP168). Bookings can be made on the website or, by          contac ng Gina: gina@mmta.co.uk 

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Quick charging lithium ion batteries Scientists at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) and the Forschungszentrum Jülich have now presented a process that, for the first time ever, allows this so-called lithium plating process to be investigated directly. This puts new strategies for quick-charging strategies close at hand.

Lithium plating, the depositing of metallic lithium at the anodes of lithium-ion batteries, is one of the primary factors that limits charging current. The performance of batteries suffers significantly from these metallic deposits. In extreme cases this can result in short circuits and even batteries going up in flames.

When charging batteries, the positively charged lithium ions move through the liquid electrolytes and are deposited in the porous graphite anodes. However, the larger the current and the lower the temperature, the greater the probability that the lithium ions will not be deposited within the electrodes, as desired, but rather as a solid metallic layer on the outer surface.

Even though this phenomenon is basically well-known, many aspects remain shrouded in mystery. Until now, it was not possible to directly observe how and under which circumstances lithium plating takes place. "Using traditional methods of microscopy, we can only observe a battery after the fact, because it needs to be cut open," explains Dr. Josef Granwehr at the Jülich Institute of Energy and Climate Research. "In the process, further reactions that distort the results become inevitable."

Even highly developed processes like neutron scattering allow for only indirect analyses. Compounding the problem is the fact that available slots for measurements at research reactors and large particle accelerators are scarce. This makes these tools more suitable for fundamental investigations than for tedious, practical test series.

The electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy process presented in the renowned scientific journal Materials Today, on the other hand, can be readily integrated into laboratory procedures - with only moderate investment. The method is akin to the better-known nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, albeit focusses on electron spins rather than atomic nuclei.

"Electrons are placed in an externally applied, static magnetic field," explains Granwehr. Unpaired electrons in the sample are "sounded out" using microwaves. In the magnetic field, these stimulate the electrons to flip, which can be measured via the associated drop in microwave radiation intensity. EPR can differentiate between metallic lithium plating and lithium embedded in the graphite anodes.

"The key to detecting lithium plating using EPR was the construction of a test cell compatible with the requirements of EPR spectroscopy while at the same time exhibiting good electrochemical properties," explains lead author Dr. Johannes Wandt. "The geometry is also important. Precise measurement results are contingent on the sample being exposed to the magnetic field but not the inevitably present electric field."

To ensure this, Wandt developed a rod-shaped cell while he was a doctoral candidate in the group of Prof. Hubert A. Gasteiger, Chair of Technical Electrochemistry at TUM, that allows the formation of metallic lithium to be detected directly and with quantitative precision.

"Using this process, it is now for the first time possible to investigate lithium plating and the associated processes in a differentiated manner that is relevant to a whole array of applications," says Rüdiger-A. Eichel, a director at the Jülich Institute of Energy and Climate Research.

"One example is the development of safe and at the same time fast charging protocols," explains Rüdiger-A. Eichel. Our process make determining the maximum charging current before lithium plating sets in possible, as well as ascertaining other boundary conditions like temperature and the influence of electrode geometry."

Beyond this, the methodology is well suited as a test procedure for a variety of battery materials, for example the development of new admixtures that suppress lithium plating.

More information: Johannes Wandt et al, Quantitative and time-resolved detection of lithium plating on graphite anodes in lithium ion batteries, Materials Today (2017). DOI: 10.1016/j.mattod.2017.11.00 Read more at: https://phys.org/news/2017-12-procedure-quick-charging-lithium-ion-batteries.html#jCp

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'In the long run...' Demand, supply, and the economics of resource availability

The mining industry has a problem, bemoaned Codelco chairman Oscar Landerretche, the economist who heads one of the world’s largest copper and molybdenum producers. What problem? A “bullish” atmosphere at the recent London Metals Week.

Surely that’s good news for the industry? Hardly, Landerretche said, speaking at the Veolia Institute’s 10th International Conference on resource availability. The highly financialised mining industry reacts to short-term boom-and-bust cycles. During an upswing, there is no incentive for companies to manage material efficiency or mitigate their impact. Conversely, on a down-swing, there is no money to do so. Rather, Landerretche indicated, he would prefer a “technological arms race” to manage mining’s environmental impacts, such as remediating old mine sites or using desalination to treat water.

As Landerretche’s comments illustrate, short-term market signals often clash with long-term goals to steward the metals and minerals necessary for low-carbon technologies, creating conflicting incentives for business. How can the balance be tipped in favour of nudging companies and their shareholders to think more about resource availability, the sustainability of primary resource extraction, and a shift towards both materials and energy efficiency in a low-carbon transition? How can we ensure metals and minerals will not be a limiting factor to the growth of the low-carbon, circular economy?

Future scenarios

For markets to operate properly, allocate resources and make supply meet demand, we first need to understand what demand for metals and minerals might look like, via various future scenarios. Metals such as copper and aluminium for power transmission, batteries and other infrastructure will be essential to electrified low-carbon systems, said Yale University industrial ecology expert Thomas Graedel. While technological change is highly unpredictable, work done on metal demand projections suggests 2.5 to 4 times current demand, and 3 to 4 times current production by mid-century, Graedel added.

The automotive industry is a key source of potential demand growth. If the US auto market switched from steel to aluminium in SUVs, pickups, MPVs and elsewhere where it is not already used, auto sector demand for aluminium would balloon – accounting for 40-70% demand growth in the US and Western Europe. As for copper, hybrid electric vehicles use 30kg of copper per unit, while battery electric vehicles use 60-80kg per unit.

Besides major metals like copper and aluminium, the demand for ‘companion’ metals such as indium and gallium is growing. These solar-cell materials, and many other minor metals, are produced only or largely as by-products: indium is a by-product of zinc processing, while gallium is a by-product of aluminium, for example. If production of major metals falls, so will production of their companion metals.

By some estimates, low-carbon technologies alone in 2050 will increase metal demand by 10% from today – putting distinct additional pressure on resources, yet not so large as to be a reason to panic, noted UC Berkeley’s Sangwon Suh.

The business case for resource efficiency

Do markets work? Broadly, yes, said Oxford economist Cameron Hepburn. Pricing sends efficient signals to the market, pushing companies to find new sources of materials and more efficient ways to use them. To some degree, the scarcity or availability of resources is priced in. So far, though, high prices have pushed most companies towards finding new reserves rather than using resources more efficiently. But what about pricing negative externalities, technological and business model innovations, and long-term stewardship to make resources available? For these, markets aren’t necessarily efficient, and in some areas there is a near-complete absence of markets, such as pricing carbon emissions.

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Industry can take some steps on its own to support sustainable resource availability. To shelter its R&D investment from the effects of market fluctuations, Codelco created a subsidiary specifically to research and develop new innovations to minimise environmental impacts.

Speakers also challenged businesses to recognise the value of the circular economy: for instance, investing in the circular economy offers opportunities to keep assets in cycle for longer. Historically, value was generated in a linear way: fast moving consumer goods companies have 80% discard rates. But technology, data and business models are converging, making products-as-a-service and improved asset utilisation a possibility. Jamie Butterworth of Circularity Capital described the $630bn of potential and 840 growth-stage companies in his firm’s pipeline, out of which 1 in 100 will be selected for investment. Circularity Capital invests in what Butterworth termed “enablers”, companies that provide solutions and services for the circular economy, and “transformers”, companies that are transforming their products, materials, and operations to become more circular and capture value from waste.

For larger companies, the circular economy is also an elegant way of mitigating supply chain and other business risks: resource availability improves resilience, and they might also benefit from lower insurance pricing, better credit markets and so on. And securing circular supply sources reduces reliance on potentially volatile primary resource markets, noted Systemiq co-founder Martin Stuchtey.

But businesses must also win over financial institutions: actuaries and accountants resistant to address the new accounting challenges that circular business models might produce; and banks, pension funds, and private investors unaccustomed to valuing non-financial impact.

To some degree, investors are already taking a hard look at businesses’ environmental risks. Four out of five institutional investors in an EY survey this year said companies had neglected environmental, social and governance issues for too long, but generating sustainable returns over time required a sharper focus on these. Meanwhile, a CDP report in July examined mining companies’ true emissions costs and risks from water stress. “Ultimately, investors need to see the hard evidence that companies are really doing this,” Butterworth said.

Takeaway questions:

What steps can your business take to shelter resource-availability innovation from short-term performance requirements? As an investor, how is your company taking into account the non-financial risks and benefits surrounding resource availability?

 

This story is drawn from sessions at the “Strategic Materials for a Low-Carbon Economy: From scarcity to availability,” a conference co-hosted by the Veolia Institute and Oxford Martin School in November 2017.

NEWS IN BRIEF Source: Chemical Watch

1. Current European chemicals law, including REACH, will be incorporated into UK law, junior minister Steve Baker has told a House of Commons debate on the EU Withdrawal Bill. A new clause to ensure Britain participates in REACH after Brexit is not necessary, he said.

2.The REACH Directors' Contact Group has rejected an Echa proposal to grant small and medium-sized enterprises conditional free access to REACH data and joint submissions for the May 2018 registration deadline.

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At temperatures as hot as the sun and under pressures over a million times atmospheric pressure, the metal molybdenum melts. Tracking the molten history of the metal clarified the melting point, the border between solid and liquid phases. To track the melting process, a team focused an x-ray beam into the tight confines between two ultra-hard diamond micro-anvils. A laser heated the small volume. The x-ray beam allowed the tracking of fine features that uniquely formed from the melted metal and were a clear indication that melting had occurred.

Characterization of high-pressure melting was used to map the important region of the temperatures and pressures just before a solid metal melts to become a pool of liquid. Measurements at extreme temperatures and pressures were made possible using a miniature diamond cell and a laser. This new x-ray scattering method enabled a more accurate phase map. It resolved differences between models and earlier experiments, and also revealed a new phase.

The reliable detection of the melting point of materials at high pressure has been experimentally difficult. What is needed is a way to tell whether a sample is solid or liquid in the confines of a small high-pressure cell. With this new method, controlled laser heating and rapid cooling created a measurable structural signature that labelled a material's trip into the molten state.

In the research, a team sandwiched a small sample of molybdenum metal between miniature diamond anvils. They squeezed the metal to extreme pressures: over a million times the Earth's atmospheric pressure. They used infrared laser beams to heat the sample volume to extreme temperatures up to that on the surface of the sun. At the same time, a bright highly focused x-ray beam generated diffraction patterns. These patterns are sensitive to the micro-crystalline state of the metal. Researchers found that the distribution of the initial crystalline grain sizes grew to larger diameters after initial heating.

When the sample melted, the grains disappeared. And, after rapid cooling, the liquid re-crystallized with much smaller grains. These assessments can be used to answer the question, even after the fact, of whether a particular temperature excursion caused the metal to melt. The structural changes are a new, more reliable criterion for exploring the phase map at extreme pressure and temperature. This new approach improved the accuracy of the molybdenum phase map and removed discrepancies between theory and less accurate measurements in the scientific literature.

Also, the study of the microstructure close to but below the melting point revealed a new phase with highly textured re-arrangement of fine grains. It is similar to the textured structure found after deposition of metal films onto a substrate by vapor condensation. Learning to manipulate these microstructures has implications for a host of high-temperature applications, including mechanical properties of materials in engines and armaments.

More information: Rostislav Hrubiak et al. Microstructures define melting of molybdenum at high pressures, Nature Communications (2017). DOI: 10.1038/ncomms14562

Journal reference: Nature Communications

Provided by: US Department of Energy

Putting molten history on the map

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Letter from North America Dear Members

A very Happy New Year to MMTA members everywhere.

As many of you may have read, here in New Year we are currently experiencing something called a “bombogenesis event”, aka Winter Storm Grayson. It appears that bombing cyclogenesis, or bombogenesis, occurs when there is drop in pressure of 24 millibars over 24 hours.

According to the Weather Channel here, “Grayson's central pressure dropped 59 millibars, or 1.74 in Hg, over a 24-hour period between 10 a.m. EST Wednesday and 10 a.m. Thursday, more than doubling the requirement.”

So, what’s it like? Brisk (≈ 25°F), a smattering of snow (over 6”), and bracing winds (22 mph). It was certainly a wee challenging walking the usual two and a half miles to work at 0630 hrs this morning.

Things here, except on a political front, have been pretty quiet, what with the holidays and the chilly (and somewhat debilitating) weather. Apart from the markets soaring to new highs, the volatility in them remains incredibly low. So who knows what 2018 is going to bring.

We do know, however, that this year should bring considerable largesse for those involved in defense. December 12th, 2017 marked the signing into law by President Trump of the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2018. This huge defense bill authorizes everything from military end strength to troop pay raises in fiscal 2018. According to Military.com, it “authorizes about $700 billion for the Defense Department, including $634 billion for the base budget and $66 billion for the war budget.”1

The signed act actually did end up containing at least one specific item that may be of interest to some members. Back in October last year I wrote about US Congressman Duncan Hunter and the bill he was promoting (H.R.1407 - METALS Act).2 This proposed establishing a Strategic Materials Investment Fund for, amongst other things, the purpose of “developing new technologies for the more efficient smelting, sintering, leaching, processing, separation, beneficiation, or production of strategic and critical materials.”

Whether taking the lead from Congressman Hunter, or just as part of the political process, TITLE XLII—Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation (under “END ITEM INDUSTRIAL PREPAREDNESS ACTIVITIES”) of the new act (now Public Law No: 115-91) authorizes some US$5 million to be spent on: “Development of improved manufacturing technology for separation, extraction, smelter, sintering, leaching, processing, beneficiation, or production of specialty metals such as lanthanide elements, yttrium or scandium.” I have yet to discover definitively to whom this money will go, but it will most probably be the U.S. Army Research Laboratory. And I suppose even such a vanishing amount (compared with the act’s whole authorization) is better than nothing.

The act is, as you can imagine, somewhat long. So perhaps it is not surprising that, prior to signing the bill and after having praised the “[b]rand-new, beautiful equipment [that] is on its way — the best you’ve ever had by far. We make the best in the world, and you’re

going to have it”, President Trump ended his short speech thus: “I won’t be showing all of this to everybody, believe it or not. That’s a lot of pages. That is a lot of pages.”3Indeed!

For those members either in Russia or thinking of visiting Moscow in September next year, there looks to be a really interesting conference there on the 3rd through to the 7th: The International Conference on Magmatism of the Earth and Related Strategic Metal Deposits, which will be held at Vernadsky Institute of Geochemistry and Analytical Chemistry of Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia.

According to the conference’s site, it will be focused on several research areas:

Ore deposits of strategic metals: genetic models and patterns of location.

Geochemical and petrological features of alkaline, basic and granite magmatism in various geodynamic environments.

Mantle sources and processes controlling genesis of ore-producing magmas.

Theoretical and experimental modeling of mantle processes and mineral associations.

Applied and technical mineralogy of critical metals, mineral processing, etc.

Modern analytical technics and its application to the geochemistry, mineralogy and petrology.

I think it looks fascinating.

In the meantime, however, as always, I remain, with best wishes from New York

Tom Butcher

January 4th, 2018 ©2018 Tom Butcher

Tom Butcher is an Associate Director at Van Eck Associates Corporation ("VanEck"). The views and opinions expressed herein are the personal views of Tom Butcher are not presented by or associated with VanEck or its affiliated entities.

1Military.com: Trump Signs 2018 Defense Bill: Here's What It Means for You, https://www.military.com/daily-news/2017/12/12/trump-signs-defense-bill-heres-what-it-means-you.html

2Congress.gov: H.R.1407 - METALS Act, https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/house-bill/1407/text

3The White House: Remarks by President Trump at Signing of H.R. 2810, National Defense Authorization Act for FY2018, https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/remarks-president-trump-signing-h-r-2810-national-defense-authorization-act-fy2018/

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Environmentally safe red glare rocket changes fireworks

Researchers at the U.S. Army Research Laboratory and the Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich, Germany have developed an environ-mentally-friendly red light flare popular in fireworks displays and among Soldiers who use them in training and battlefield operations as signalling devices.

The formula is a lithium-based red-light-emitting pyrotechnic composition of high purity and color quality, and avoids a list of environ-mentally-objectionable elements, namely strontium and chlorinated organic materials, both considered hazardous to humans.

The new formulation is based on a non-hygroscopic dilithium nitrogen-rich salt that serves as both oxidizer and red colorant. The formulation may draw interest from the civilian fireworks and military pyrotechnics communities for further development as they both have a vested interest in the development of environmentally conscious formulations, stated ARL's Dr. Jesse J. Sabatini, a research chemist, who with the university's Professor Thomas M. Klapötke coauthored a paper in a recent edition of Angewandte Chemie. To achieve red-light-emission of high color purity, the authors report a formulation consisting of powdered magnesium and hexamine as the fuels, nitrocellulose, an epoxy binder system, and a lithium-based high-nitrogen salt, which serves as both the oxidizer and colorant. When burned, this formulation was found to exhibit a relatively cool-burning flame, while producing suitable quantities of red-light-emitting atomic lithium. While further optimization is still needed to improve the luminosity of Li-based red-light-emitting flares, this represents the first known example of a successful red-light-emitting formulation of high color quality and purity based on lithium that does not contain any perchlorates, halogenated materials or strontium-based materials. Historically, the formulations for red-light-emitting pyrotechnic formulations included powdered metal fuels like magnesium and aluminium, strontium nitrate and perchlorate oxidizers, as well as carbon-based chlorinated organic materials such as poly(vinyl) chloride. "When these formulations are burned, a bright red light is produced; brought about by the generation of strontium(I) chloride (SrCl). SrCl is a deep red-light-emitter, and it is what's known as a metastable molecular emitter; an emitter that is not stable in the ground state at low temperatures, but which is stable in the excited state during a high temperature combustion process. Unfortunately, perchlorates, chlorinated organic materials and strontium-based materials found in traditional red-light-emitting pyrotechnic formulations are falling out of favor from an environmental perspective, and are facing increasing scrutiny and/or regulatory action from the EPA," said Sabatini. The authors cited a recent EPA report that found strontium as potentially harmful to human health, specifically that it replaces calcium in the bone, interferes with bone strength, and thus affects the skeletal development of children and adolescents. In 2014, the EPA made a preliminary decision to start regulating the amount of strontium in drinking water. Strontium has been detected in 99?% of all public water systems and at levels of concern in 7?% of the public water systems in the USA. Whereas U.S. military training grounds were not included in the study, these facilities may show elevated concentrations of strontium as well, given the presence of strontium in currently used red-light-illuminating signaling pyrotechnic compositions.

The next step in this research is to make the strontium- and halogen-free red flare the team developed brighter, Sabatini said. "In other words, efforts now need to be made to increase the luminous intensity of the formulation or a close derivative thereof. This can be done in parallel with doing what is called prototype experiments, in which the new flare formulations can be tested on larger scales. The improvements in luminosity and the large scale prototype tests will be needed in order to push the technology forward."

Journal reference: Angewandte Chemie International Edition

Provided by: U.S. Army Research Laboratory Read more at: https://phys.org/news/2018-01-environmentally-safe-red-glare-rocket.html#jCp

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Antimony Day review 2017 Antimony Day: Because we are stronger together

Caroline Braibant, Secretary-General of the International Antimony

Association (i2a)

The International Antimony Association (i2a) organized its first Antimony Day in Brussels on 29 November 2017. The event gathered more than 100 representatives of the antimony value chain, including miners, producers, traders, and users, as well as press, the scientific community, and European authorities. The aim of the day was to raise awareness about the revamped regulatory scrutiny on antimony substances, and to call the value chain to collaborate with and support i2a in addressing the authorities’ request for exposure evidence.

Since the release of the results of the NTP inhalation carcinogenicity studies in 2016, new animal toxicological evidence needs to be considered for the classification and risk assessment of antimony trioxide and other related antimony substances. In the EU and the US, this evidence is subject to specific evaluation processes. Under EU-REACH, this process is called Substance Evaluation and will commence formally under the leadership of German REACH authorities (BAuA) in Spring 2018. Substance Evaluation is the regulatory step taken by authorities to gather all relevant information before concluding on the applicable classification and on the possible risks related to the use of substances, and subsequent risk management measures to be implemented to control that risk (e.g. with an Occupational Exposure Limit or OEL, or a number of use-specific restrictions).

There are two main endpoints which need to be reassessed in light of recent evidence: lung toxicity and reproductive toxicity. Investigations assessing the possible reproductive toxicity of antimony substances, points towards no impacts upon fertility and

no, or comparatively mild, developmental toxicity, always related to maternal toxicity. Unless a classification is warranted for this endpoint, REACH foresees additional tests to be performed, which constitute a very significant cost and possibly a misuse of laboratory animals. Lung toxicity has manifested itself as pneumoconiosis in workers exposed to very high (historical) levels of antimony substances, before the implementation of the current OEL of 0.5 mg/m³, and as cancer in laboratory animals. This requires deciding on whether the Carcinogenicity Category 2 classification of Antimony Trioxide should be ‘upgraded’ to a Category 1B, whether or not similar health effects are observed in humans.

During the Day, authorities made the point that classification is subject to rigid rules laid down in the CLP regulation, which do not take account of particle size or exposure potential. Classifications are derived on the basis of animal study results, which are known to be specifically designed to reveal some toxic effect at the highest dose used. All substances are potentially toxic; their toxicity will occur at or above a specific dose or concentration, which varies across substances, but is not necessarily reflected in the resulting classification. The classification of antimony substances will be subject to these abstract theoretical rules, and will not reflect the actual risk of using the substances.

Risk is determined by both hazard (classification) and exposure. Hazardous substances with no or controlled exposure can be safe to use.

For BAuA to assess this safety, they require exposure evidence, i.e. exposure data that can be compared and shown to be below the dose at which toxic effects may occur. This exposure data needs to be collected from workplaces of producers and users of antimony substances. During the Antimony Day, several participants confirmed that air levels of antimony in the workplaces are being monitored, and that the sector has been innovating into the production of non-dusty forms of antimony substances, so as to minimize and prevent any exposure. BAuA welcomed this initiative and called for actual evidence to be provided via i2a, who can submit this data through the respective REACH dossiers.

Geert Krekel addresses the meeting

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Following a scene-setting morning session, the afternoon session of the Antimony Day was dedicated to collect specific views and input from every segment of the antimony value chain. The representatives were organized in breakout groups with dedicated facilitators invited to gather supply chain-segment specific answers on the following three questions:

What would be the impact for you of a more severe classification?

What data do you have to mitigate this worst-case scenario?

Are you willing to generate any missing data?

The main common impact of a reclassification across the various segments of the value chain is the cost related to the relabeling, repackaging, and transport requirements, as well as the ‘black-listing effect’ and resulting communication needs with customers. Some uses may decrease as a result of these increased compliance costs, and smaller companies may be unable to carry the weight of this cost and may have to close down. The actual impact will however be specific for each antimony substance, as they have different toxicity and use profiles. There are two sets of evidence that should be populated: one to specify an exposure route for the carcinogenicity classification, and one to demonstrate the low and controlled exposure there is in workplaces where antimony substances are produced or used. If the scope of the carcinogenicity classification specifies the inhalation exposure route, only physical forms which can be inhaled (i.e. powders) of the classified antimony substances would need to be relabeled, repackaged or subject to new transport requirements. Forms which are not dusty or inhalable would not be affected. Demonstration of no or controlled exposure would comfort authorities that no further risk management measures are needed and that uncertainty assessment factors used in a number of their assessments can be reduced, yielding more realistic thresholds and safety levels to comply with.

Existing data may not be sufficient to demonstrate that the carcinogenicity effect is only taking place via inhalation, or that exposure is controlled and low in all producing and using sites. Provided there is a structured plan and demonstrated business case to generate missing information, all segments of the antimony value

chain confirmed their willingness to generate missing data. Importantly, several representatives requested that more socio-economic cost/benefit evidence is generated too, in order to strive for realistic and proportionate information requirements and regulatory decisions.

In the so-called Solutions Panel, the battery, flame retardant textiles, PET and plastic masterbatches sectors further discussed the role of i2a and the antimony value chain in addressing the identified information requirements and authorities’ requests. It was generally agreed that i2a should centralize the various information generation initiatives, and be the main communication channel with REACH and other authorities evaluating antimony substances, such as the NTP.

The various evaluations and decision-making on antimony substances will take until 2020, just about the time needed for Industry to implement a consolidated and routine exposure monitoring program, and regular updates of the classification and risk assessment datasets in the form of REACH dossiers. The Antimony Day has prompted many follow-up exchanges between i2a and possible Members and collaborators. The event enabled both awareness-raising and constructive networking for many in the value chain, and should be reproduced to maintain the momentum and build a sustainable and responsible Sb industry, where Sb substances continue to be the material of choice for many technology-enabling applications.

The call for information, collaboration and support will be made with the Asian part of the antimony value chain, at the conference

organized by Argus in Singapore on 28 February and 1 March 2018.

The next Antimony Day will take place in Brussels on 14 November 2018, and will focus on flame retardant applications of antimony substances. More information can be found on www.antimony.com.

US National Toxicology Program

EU regulation on the Registration, Evaluation and Authorization of Chemicals

EU regulation on the Classification, Labelling and Packaging of Chemicals

Tamara Alliot of the MMTA leads a discussion group

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Diary: MMTA visits China—new and old

A tiny part of the Forbidden City, Beijing

Experimental Solar Road in front of power-generating glass walls at CNBM (Chengdu) Optoelectronic Materials Co Ltd

James Peer welcomes guests to the MMTA Dinner in Chengdu

MMTA Chairman, James Peer opens CNIA’s Global Minor Metals Forum (China), Chengdu

Contemplation in Confucian Temple, Nanjing

7th China Aviation Industry Summit, Shanghai

MMTA General Manager, Maria Cox addresses delegates at the China Aviation Industry Summit

Super-fast bullet train

Old town, Nanjing

Enjoying the hospitality of Kailida of Changsha

Being welcomed to Nanjing by longstanding MMTA member, Metalink

Presenting new MMTA member, Chenzhou Fengyue Environmental Protection Ltd with their member certificate

Beauty of the frozen lake at the Summer Palace, Beijing

Maria Cox and Xiao Fang, of Kailida of Changsha visit Chairman Mao’s statue in Changsha

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The visit began with a presentation at the 7th China Aviation Industry Summit, where I had the opportunity to demonstrate the important role of MMTA members to the aerospace sector in front of representatives of all the main aircraft manufacturers. After outlining the importance of minor metals, the main topic was how rising demand for minor metals will be met in the future.

All the main aircraft manufacturers were in positive mood, anticipating increased demand in large aircraft from Boeing and Airbus, as well as the smaller, single aisle aircraft, which both Bombardier and Embraer have earmarked as key growth areas within the Chinese market for servicing second tier cities.

All speakers stressed the importance of the global supply chain they rely on and this tied in with the MMTA’s message of the importance of the role of MMTA members within those supply chains.

Taking the superfast train to Nanjing the following day was a stark reminder that we have a lot of work to do on our rail network in the UK!

After being welcomed to visit the factory of longstanding MMTA member, Metalink, I was treated to a fascinating tour of the old town and its sites of historical importance.

An internal flight later, and I was being welcomed by new member Chenzhou Fengyue Environmental Protection Co Ltd, who gave me a fascinating tour of their factory, and took me for a spicy Hunan Province lunch. I had the opportunity to present them with their membership certificate in person, something that is sadly not often possible.

The following day, another new MMTA member, Kailida of Changsha was my host. Xiao Fang not only shared an impressive lobster with me, but also took me to visit her company, followed by the garden island in the centre of the city’s river, where we visited the commemorative statue of the young Mao Zedong.

Then it was on to the CNIA’s 2nd Global Minor Metals Forum (China) in Chengdu,

where MMTA Chairman, James Peer, opened the conference. He stressed the importance of China to the minor metals industry, and the importance of the MMTA in bringing together all elements of

what is a global supply chain, essential to our modern way of life.

On the first evening, the MMTA was delighted to welcome many MMTA members and over 120 other conference delegates to the MMTA banquet dinner.

The conference focussed on elements important to the Chinese economy. These included indium—with presentations from MMTA members Indium Corporation and Zhuzhou Keneng New Material Co Ltd., gallium, selenium and the development of ITO target materials.

One key theme was the significant impact supply-side structural reform will have on the minor metals industry. Antaike’s Feng Juncong illustrated that new environmental regulations will not be peripheral, and will have a significant impact on future supply from China.

The conference heard from both producers and consumers of a range of minor metals, including a section on solar technology developments, with speakers from Vital Materials, First Solar and CNBM (Chengdu) Optoelectronic Materials Co Ltd, who welcomed delegates to a site visit of their solar panel factory in the city on the final day of the conference. Amongst other things, we saw innovative power-generating glass walls, a solar powered electric bike charging area, which the company envisages as a precursor to developing an EV charging park, and an experimental solar road surface.

The final stop on my tour was Beijing, where after meeting with CNIA and Antaike and enjoying traditional Beijing hotpot with them, I had the wonderful opportunity to visit the Forbidden City and the Summer Palace, both of which were stunning historical sites.

I would like to give a heartfelt thanks to all my wonderful hosts during my stay in China.

Frozen lake at sunset, Summer Palace, Beijing

Small section of the Forbidden City

Dragon stands guard at the Forbidden City

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