Why is indium an important mineral? government gives money for research

The Utah Geological Survey has been tapped with federal funds to conduct a three-year survey of the country’s only well-established source of an essential mineral — and it’s found only in Utah’s Juab County.

The state agency will also use the money to research other critical minerals in that region.

Indium is important. It is used to make touch screens, like the ones on your cell phone, or windshields, like the ones in your car. It is necessary for anyone who wishes to install solar panels. It also has other industrial uses.

“We are excited about the opportunity to study the unique geology of this deposit and learn more about why so many important critical mineral resources are concentrated here,” said Stephanie Mills, senior geologist with the Utah Geological Survey and principal investigator of this study. .

How the survey works: No indium was produced in the United States last year, and researchers believe the Utah deposit will be enough to meet all of domestic demand for 10 years. Sources of zinc, an essential component for many metal alloys and considered a crucial mineral, and copper, one of the most essential raw materials for electric vehicles and efficient energy networks, can also be found in the Western Desert.

The Utah Geological Survey was awarded $300,000 to partner with American West Metals, a mining company that owns the deposit. The study gives the state agency unimpeded access to the site for additional research and to do critical mineral mapping.

Utah’s Connection to Vital Minerals: According to the research, American West is a mining company focused on developing low-footprint resources to support the global energy transition.

Utah is home to a wide variety of rare earth elements and essential minerals and plays a vital role in domestic production in the US.

The Minerals Education Coalition says every citizen born in the United States will need more than 3.19 million pounds of minerals, metals and fuels in their lifetime, including 950 pounds of copper, 282,444 pounds of coal and 2,692 pounds of aluminum.

While the Biden administration has an ambitious plan for the entire country to… transition to clean energythe need for more domestic production rather than relying on dominant foreign players – such as China – has created a political dilemma as protesters have pushed back new or planned projects.

In January, President Joe Biden’s Department of the Interior canceled two leases for a copper mining project in Minnesota.

Like then the presumptive Democratic nominee for the US presidency, Biden said in 2020 that he would oppose any uranium mining around the Grand Canyon. But with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, his administration has stepped up efforts to increase domestic uranium production, as nearly half of the US supply comes from Russia and its allies.