Stronger steel<\/strong> \u201cBecause of its added strength, steel plate made with ferroniobium can be made thinner than conventional counterparts. In the automotive industry, for example, car bodies can be lighter at no loss of strength. Weight reduction improves the efficiency of internal combustion and electric vehicles alike,\u201d says Stuart. In pipelines, one of the more established applications, niobium prevents cracking while also allowing for thinner pipe walls. \u201cWall thickness can be reduced to 20 millimeters (mm), half the thickness of pipes made without ferroniobium,\u201d he explains.<\/p>\n About 90% of niobium ore is processed into ferroniobium, and the remainder into products for special applications. Niobium oxides are used in the manufacture of camera lenses, electric vehicle batteries, and telescope lenses. High purity, vacuum grade niobium alloys are particularly resistant to heat, making them ideally suited for jet engines, rocket engines, and gas turbines used for power generation. Metallic niobium is used in the production of superconducting wires for computerized tomography scanners, magnetic resonance imaging equipment, and particle accelerators. Produced in the form of ingots\u2014solid cylinders with a purity of 99%\u2014metallic niobium has superconducting properties and high corrosion resistance.<\/p>\n L\u00e9o Ramos Chaves <\/span><\/a> Metallic niobium ingots from the Lorena School of Engineering (EEL) at USPL\u00e9o Ramos Chaves <\/span><\/p><\/div>\n CBMM is the only company in the world supplying the full range of niobium products. \u201cFrom inception, CBMM has invested heavily in processes to produce ferroniobium and other niobium products,” says metallurgical engineer Fernando Gomes Landgraf, a professor in the Polytechnic School at the University of S\u00e3o Paulo (POLI-USP). The Arax\u00e1 facility uses a 15-stage beneficiation and processing operation. The process begins with the extraction of ore from the ground. The primary sources of niobium are deposits of an ore called pyrochlore. Ore extracted from the CBMM mine contains only 2.3% niobium, which may seem little but is more than in most reserves. The remaining fraction consists of different forms of iron ore, barium oxide, and phosphate, as well as elements such as sulfur and silicon.<\/p>\n The Arax\u00e1 mine is an excavated open-pit operation that does not require tunneling or the use of explosives. Mined ore goes to a beneficiation unit where it undergoes a concentration process to increase niobium content to 50%\u2014this is achieved by removing undesired chemical elements present in the pyrochlore. The pyrochlore concentrate\u2014or niobium pentoxide (Nb2<\/sub>O5<\/sub>)\u2014is further refined and purified to produce a compound from which a variety of niobium products are then produced<\/a>.<\/p>\n The tailings generated in the beneficiation step are stored in tailings ponds lined with high-strength plastic, mitigating the risk of soil contamination. The tailings dams were constructed using the downstream raising method, in which the dam embankment is raised in the direction of water flow. This is a safer method than upstream raising, in which each embankment raise is placed on top of the existing tailings impoundment. The failed dams owned by Vale in Brumadinho and Samarco in Mariana (both in Minas Gerais State) both used the upstream raising method, now banned in Brazil.<\/p>\n L\u00e9o Ramos Chaves<\/span><\/a> The Arax\u00e1 mine, Minas Gerais: the world\u2019s largest niobium operationL\u00e9o Ramos Chaves<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n At current levels of consumption, the Arax\u00e1 mine has a capacity to meet global demand for 200 years. Brazil\u2019s virtual monopoly over niobium has its obvious advantages\u2014the ore is an important source of wealth and the country\u2019s third largest export\u2014but also drawbacks. Physicist Rog\u00e9rio Cezar Cerqueira Leite, a professor emeritus at the University of Campinas (UNICAMP), says Brazil’s dominant position in the market is also an obstacle to larger-scale use of the metal. \u201cNo country or company wants over-reliance on a single supplier. And for every application for niobium, there is also a substitute, including niobium from operations in other countries which, while producing more recalcitrant ores that are more expensive to process, are already operational,\u201d he notes.<\/p>\n Cerqueira Leite also points to the limited market for the metal as an obstacle to increasing consumption. \u201cNiobium has many applications, but unfortunately for all of them demand is very limited,\u201d says the researcher, who coauthored the book Ni\u00f3bio, uma conquista nacional<\/em> (Niobium, a national treasure; Duas Cidades, 1988). \u201cEssentially, a wealth of something means nothing without a market for it. And niobium is perhaps a classic case in point. Gold costs what it does because of demand.\u201d<\/p>\n Open innovation<\/strong>
\nAdding minimal amounts of ferroniobium\u2014approximately 0.05%\u2014makes steel mechanically stronger without reducing its tenacity, or its ability to deform plastically without breaking. These steels, known as microalloyed steels, are used to make oil and gas pipelines, cars, ships, and bridges. Only 8% of steel products contain niobium, suggesting there is much room for growth of the market.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/revistapesquisa.fapesp.br\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/064-069_Ni\u00f3bio_277-3-1140px.jpg\")
\nAnother constraint on international demand for niobium stems from other countries\u2019 naturally limited interest in investing in research to find new applications for a material produced virtually only in Brazil. To get around these constraints, CBMM has established an aggressive research and development (R&D) program based on open innovation. The company invests R$150 million per year in R&D, the equivalent of 3% of its revenue of R$4.8 billion in 2017.<\/p>\n
L\u00e9o Ramos Chaves <\/span><\/a> Pyrometallurgical conversion, the final stage in the production of ferroniobiumL\u00e9o Ramos Chaves <\/span><\/p><\/div>\n \u201cOur reserves make Brazil a strategic supplier of this commodity to the global market,\u201d says geologist Marcelo Ribeiro Tunes, who heads the Brazilian Mining Institute (IBRAM), an advocacy organization representing the Brazilian mining industry. \u201cThe criticism that we undersell our wealth is misplaced. The price at which niobium is sold, between US$40 and US$50 a kilogram, fluctuates with market conditions. If prices are hiked in an irrational and speculative manner, customers will simply look elsewhere for options.\u201d For comparison, a ton of iron ore is worth US$90 (or US$0.09 per kilogram) and 1 ounce (31.1 grams) of gold is traded at US$1,300\u20141 kilogram of the precious metal costs US$41,800, about a thousand times the price of niobium.<\/p>\n Marcos Stuart, head of technology at CBMM, says much of the rumors about niobium are just that. \u201cThe ore is indeed abundant in Brazil, but not uncommon elsewhere in the world. There are about 85 known deposits, most of which are not commercially exploited,\u201d he notes. He also denies that niobium is being smuggled out of Brazil. \u201cCBMM created a market for niobium after its discovery of the mine in Arax\u00e1. Previously, little was known about this element and its applications.\u201d<\/p>\n