What Elements Of Nature Are Essential To Make Technological Devices?

Mobile phones, computers, and tablets comprise five electronic device manufacturing elements.

Forget buying new devices – we’re running out of this terrestrial staple for your batteries.

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Copper is a very important element in the manufacture of many electronic devices because it is a good conductor of electrical and thermal energy. However, Chile’s National Copper Corporation (CODELCO) has noticed a considerable decrease in this mineral because the technology market notices the scarcity.

This inconvenience comes at a time when many users discard their phones, computers, or tablets before they reach the end of their useful life to get hold of the latest releases. For this reason, the lack of copper stocks affects manufacturers and consumers in all countries, not just Latin America.

But is it true that other elements of nature are essential to manufacturing products beyond copper? We review the resources used to achieve today’s technological development.

1. Cobalt

Cobalt batteries are used to increase the performance of lithium, extend the autonomy of devices, and are applied in small patches of lithium oxide to obtain greater storage capacity compared to batteries that do not have cobalt. Also, its capacity is minimized after completing approximately 130 charge cycles.

2. Tin

Tin is essential for photovoltaic technologies to transform solar energy into electrical energy, considering that these materials absorb solar radiation despite having a much lower efficiency than lead.

3. Boron

This semiconductor could play an important role in the development of fuel cells; in addition, it is an ideal candidate for manufacturing the electrodes of the magnesium, aluminum, sodium, lithium, or potassium ion batteries that are currently used.

4. Lithium

The importance of lithium is present in the automotive industry as a result of the boom in electric cars. On the other hand, the batteries that have this resource allow the devices to achieve a prolonged useful life thanks to the immunity of the memory effect.

5. Aluminium

Aluminium is widely used in structural engineering; it is also a good conductor of electricity for the chassis of consumer electronics products or electrical conduits.

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