This critical metal is only found in mine waste? Dr Olivia Mejias Gonzalez on indium...
About this episode
Dr. Olivia Mejias Gonzalez discusses the critical metal indium, its rarity, and its connection to mine waste.
✨ The Weirdest Critical Metal You've Never Heard Of: Indium, Mine Waste & the Hunt for Hidden SuppliesYou've touched it hundreds of times. It's in your phone screen, your laptop, your solar panels, your TV. But unless you're a obsessed with periodic table trivia, you probably have no idea what it is.Meet indium. Its a critical metal so rare, yet so essential. But here's the catch: there's basically no such thing as an indium mine.Today we're talking to the wonderful Dr Olivia Mejas-Gonzales, a research fellow at the Centre in Critical Resources for the Future, who did her entire PhD on this obscure element. Olivia - you're going to love her. She's a dynamic Chilean and a curious scientist who's not afraid of getting her hands dirty. Olivia shares some of her experience working underground at El Teniente, one of the world's great copper mines; including the challenges she faced - and overcame - being the only female on site at the time. Amazing!And Indium? Well for Olivia that story involves mine waste, surprising mineral discoveries, mysterious supergene enrichment zones, and some super cool synchrotron research. Plus, she's got a teaser about using biology to extract…
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