In 1945, scientists built the ENIAC, the world's first programmable general-purpose digital computer (SN: 2/23/46, p. 118). Nicknamed the "Giant Brain," ENIAC weighed more than four elephants and covered an area about two-thirds the size of a tennis court. Less than 80 years later, the ubiquitous smartphone, which has far more computing power than the ENIAC. society owes this miniaturization of electronics in large part to the special magnetic power of rare earths. A small rare-earth magnet can do the same job as large magnets that do not contain rare earths.

Coal mining can pollute nearby waterways, producing acidic water that is rich in heavy metals. Researchers are seeking to use this coal waste to obtain rare earth elements.

Analysis of latest tungsten market from Chinatungsten Online

China’s ammonium metatungstate (APT) and tungsten powder prices keep stable on May 25, 2023 when the overall confidence in the raw material market has increased after the announcement of long-term contract prices by large companies. 

China rare earth price showed a steady upward trend in the week ended on Friday, May 26, 2023 mainly due to the recent increase in downstream inquiries, the slowdown of production by some rare earth manufacturers, the general increase in the profit awareness of holders, and the rapid development of rare earth downstream industries such as the wind power industry and the good market outlook. 

China molybdenum price showed a pattern of rising in the week ended on Friday, May 26, 2023, mainly reflected in the general upward of molybdenum products and the acceleration of actual transaction speed, which was mainly due to the difficulty in increasing the supply of molybdenum raw materials, increasing downstream demand, and optimistic market outlook.

Analysis of latest tungsten market from Chinatungsten Online

The ferro tungsten and tungsten carbide powder prices in the Chinese market remain stable on May 24, 2023 as the market is in a stalemate with poor liquidity. 

K-doping, dispersion of La₂O₃ particles, and Re alloying have been mainly used as modification methods for modified tungsten materials. To clarify the effect of these modifications, the main conditions of the basic production route were the same for all materials, including cold isostatic pressing, sintering, rolling or forging, and finally heat treatment for stress relief. In order to study the effect of the reduction rate (deformation rate) in rolling and forging, several levels of deformation rates were used.

To develop modified tungsten materials, progress has been made in the development of irradiation-resistant W materials with improved thermomechanical properties over the past decade under collaborative university research and development in Japan. Researchers have developed grain refinement, work hardening, alloying, and dispersion strengthening aimed at improving the ductility and toughness of modified tungsten materials, even under neutron irradiation.

As a plasma-facing material (PFM) for fusion reactor steering, the mechanical properties of W materials still suffer from some defects, namely ductile-to-brittle transition temperature (DBTT) and brittleness due to recrystallization. To solve these problems, modified tungsten materials with improved thermomechanical properties, neutron irradiation tolerance, and microstructural homogeneity with mass production possibilities have been developed in the last decade with collaborative R&D at Japanese universities.

Analysis of latest tungsten market from Chinatungsten Online

China’s ammonium paratungstate (APT) and tungsten powder prices are unchanged from the previous trading day because the market continues to be quiet.