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Nice. Here's MP Minerals' plant for doing that, in Alliance, TX.[1] It's a modest sized plant in an industrial park. It's fed by a huge mine in California, whic
by Animats 3mo ago
Nice. Here's MP Minerals' plant for doing that, in Alliance, TX.[1]
It's a modest sized plant in an industrial park. It's fed by a huge mine in California, which has an onsite beneficiation plant. Beneficiation is the first step of separation - sorting the good stuff out from the unwanted dirt, with rock crushers, screens, and flotation. This being "rare" earth mining, the amount of good stuff is tiny relative to the unwanted dirt. This new technology works on the separated good stuff.
Although these separation plants aren't big compared to mines, US mines had been sending rare earth ores to China for processing. That's gradually moving back to the US as more separating plants are built.
[1] https://vimeo.com/1062796280/dc953ac6d5 https://vimeo.com/1062796280/dc953ac6d5?
- dylan604 3mo agoThat's one of those corporate videos that's totally useless. Lot's of "pretty" pictures with drone footage, but there's no there there. Who do videos like this work on?
- defrost 3mo agoGloss for potential investors / capital raisers wanting a bit more than the dry quarterlies and annual reports as they prep for raising 50 or a 100 million in more forward capital loans for processing expansion. It's literal lube for the grinding wheels of commerce. Some can get by on the technical reports and capex and projected returns, others want a bit of "a vision" / proof of big shed and machinery.
- cadamsdotcom 3mo agoJust one nitpick. Literal lube is lube. This is not lube. This is a video.
- defrost 3mo agoLiterally a video for lubricating acceptance of a project. Literally.
- BigTTYGothGF 3mo agoLiteral video, metaphorical lube.
- ButlerianJihad 3mo ago> The new approach relies on a layered form of manganese oxide—a mineral material with the right size layers to allow ions to slip in and out and to differentiate rare earth elements. Seems literal to me! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bentonite#Drilling_mud https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bentonite#Drilling_mud https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talc#Uses https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talc#Uses https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graphite#Other_properties https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graphite#Other_properties
- cadamsdotcom 3mo agoIt's a video about literal lube! But a video isn't literally lube :) it's a video.
- defrost 3mo agoBy Oxford English Dictionary literal definition, not all lubricants are fluids. Etiquette is a mere lubricant of the order of society. OED entry "lubricant" (B.noun) Fine music‥has a sensible effect in‥animating and as it were, lubricating my inventive faculty. OED entry "lubricate" (2.a verb) Lube also used for cash - greasing palms, etc.
- throwaway27448 3mo agoUsing the a non-lube to lubricate is still metaphorical. But, I just ignore the word literally and english still works just fine
- defrost 3mo agoIgnoring literally is A-Ok in my book (and forum comments) but I would point out that a "non lube" used to ease a transition, smooth an action, or remove friction is <cough>literally</cough> a lubricant (by definition and hundreds of years of common usage).
- kirubakaran 3mo agohttps://www.merriam-webster.com/grammar/misuse-of-literally https://www.merriam-webster.com/grammar/misuse-of-literally
- Animats 3mo agoThere's something to be said for that. If the Slate electric car people had a picture of their factory, they'd be more credible.
- pfdietz 3mo agoIs that mine in California the one powered by burning sulfur? If I recall correctly, they need sulfuric acid to extract the minerals, and they need power, and burning sulfur to make sulfuric acid produces steam, and sulfur is easier to ship than the acid, so...
- merek 3mo agoWhat's the general process for the initial separation of unwanted dirt? I've worked in a zinc smelter a long time ago, the initial stage was roasting, heating the ore to 900C to burn off unwanted components (such as sulfur, which went on to become sulfuric acid), and to melt other components. I guess I'm surprised at the absence of flue stacks and cooling towers at the facility shown in the video. Perhaps the facility in the video only shows "cleaner" downstream processing for marketing appeal, or separation processes are fundamentally different?
- Animats 3mo ago60 Minutes had some coverage of the beneficiation plant.[1] For rare earths, that's mostly grinding and sorting by density and magnetic properties. It's a large plant near the mine. Bags of rare earth ore worth about $120,000 per pallet come out, and those are transported to the Texas location for the next step, which has a lot more heat and chemistry. [1] https://www.linkedin.com/posts/60-minutes_rareearths-activity-7441636828861861888-7X9E https://www.linkedin.com/posts/60-minutes_rareearths-activit...
- virtualwhys 3mo agoMP is well positioned in the REE processing space -- now if the share price would stop collapsing then companies in the critical minerals sector would be able to raise capital more easily (MP is the bellwether for the sector)
- ksec 3mo agoThanks. Now MP is on my radar.
- virtualwhys 3mo agoCertainly at $41, a 52 week low, it's a fire sale (hit $100 back in October.
- 2mo ago