Re:Soviet Union sold titanium to US believing they needed it...
by c_o_n_v_e_x on Sunday June 18, 2023 @08:37PM
(#36385987)
This is the case for many materials. The raw material itself is not rare, the bottleneck is the refining/processing capability and thus the refined material is scarce.
- The shortage of lumber in US a few years was due to lack of saw mills, not trees
- Shortage of semi-conductor grade Neon due to lack of plants that can refine the gas to the required purity
- Shortages of oil derived products due to constraints on refining
- "Rare earth" shortages as few countries refine. China is one of the few countries willing to tolerate the pollution generated from the refining processes.
- The shortage of lumber in US a few years was due to lack of saw mills, not trees
- Shortage of semi-conductor grade Neon due to lack of plants that can refine the gas to the required purity
- Shortages of oil derived products due to constraints on refining
- "Rare earth" shortages as few countries refine. China is one of the few countries willing to tolerate the pollution generated from the refining processes.