Battery technologies, particularly those used in electric vehicles (EVs), rely on high amounts of manganese for several reasons:
1. Manganese as a cathode material: Manganese is utilized as a key component in certain cathode chemistries, such as lithium manganese oxide (LiMn2O4) or lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxide (NMC) cathodes. These cathode materials play a crucial role in determining the performance characteristics of lithium-ion batteries used in EVs. Manganese-containing cathodes offer benefits like high energy density, good thermal stability, and high power capabilities.
2. Cost-effectiveness: Manganese is relatively abundant in some places and is thus more economical compared to other metals commonly used in battery technologies, such as cobalt or nickel. Its widespread availability makes it an attractive option for manufacturers aiming for cost-effective battery production to meet the growing demand for EVs.
3. Safety and stability: Manganese-based cathodes have demonstrated improved safety and stability, reducing risks like thermal runaway, which can cause battery failures or fires. This makes manganese-containing batteries more reliable and safer for EV applications.
4. Increased cycle life: Manganese-based cathodes also tend to offer longer battery cycle life, meaning they can undergo more charge-discharge cycles before showing significant degradation. This enhanced durability is beneficial to EVs, as it ensures the battery’s longevity and performance over prolonged usage.
While battery technologies are evolving rapidly, it’s worth noting that not all batteries and EVs solely rely on manganese. Different chemistries may use varying combinations of metals like cobalt, nickel, manganese, or iron, depending on the desired performance, cost, and sustainability goals.
Limited Manganese in Europe
There are several reasons why manganese mining in Europe is limited:
1. Limited reserves: Europe has relatively small reserves of manganese compared to other regions like South Africa, Australia, and Brazil. The available deposits are generally smaller and lower in grade, making it less economically viable to extract manganese in large quantities.
2. Environmental regulations: European countries have stringent environmental regulations and strict permitting processes for mining operations. These regulations aim to protect the environment, public health, and biodiversity. Compliance with these regulations can be costly and time-consuming, discouraging companies from pursuing manganese mining activities in Europe.
3. Economic factors: Manganese mining requires a significant amount of capital investment in infrastructure, equipment, and operational costs. The low-grade manganese deposits in Europe, coupled with lower manganese prices in the international market, make it less economically feasible to invest in mining operations compared to other regions. Companies often prioritize higher-grade deposits in economically favorable locations.
4. Import dependency: European countries import a substantial portion of their manganese requirements from other countries. They rely on countries with significant manganese reserves, such as South Africa, Gabon, and Australia, to meet their demand. This dependency on imports may further discourage exploration and development of domestic manganese deposits.
5. Shift towards clean energy: Europe is transitioning towards cleaner energy sources and reducing its reliance on fossil fuels. As a result, there is a growing focus on battery technologies and electric vehicles, which require high amounts of manganese. However, Europe currently lags in the development of a domestic manganese supply chain, which limits the availability of this critical mineral for the emerging clean energy sector.
Overall, the limited reserves, strict environmental regulations, economic feasibility, import dependency, and evolving clean energy priorities contribute to the limited manganese mining in Europe.
Where Does Manganse Come From?
Manganese deposits are primarily formed through oxidation and weathering processes. Manganese is a common element in the Earth’s crust, but it does not occur as a pure metal. Instead, it is typically found in combination with other elements, such as oxygen, sulfur, and various minerals.
Manganese deposits are mainly formed by the interaction of manganese-bearing rocks or minerals with groundwater, where chemical reactions led to the precipitation of manganese minerals. These deposits can appear as sedimentary layers or as nodules and crusts on the seafloor. The exact mechanisms of formation can vary depending on the specific geological settings.
As for the limited occurrence of manganese deposits in Europe compared to Africa, several geological factors come into play. One of the main reasons is the difference in geological history. Africa has a more extensive, diverse, and ancient geological history, resulting in a larger number of manganese-rich environments and a higher chance of their formation.
Moreover, the presence of specific geological formations, such as basin structures, hydrothermal vents, and continental margiins, can facilitate the accumulation of manganese deposits. Africa possesses more regions with favorable geological conditions for manganese deposition, including parts of South Africa, Gabon, Ghana, and Côte d’Ivoire, among others.
In contrast, while Europe does have some manganese deposits, they tend to be less abundant and widespread. This can be attributed to various factors, such as different tectonic and geological activities in Europe compared to Africa, including the absence of large-scale tectonic events that may have generated the necessary conditions for significant manganese deposits. Additionally, the geologic history and composition of Europe’s rocks and minerals may have limited the availability and accumulation of manganese deposits in this region.
Original Source of Manganese: Exploding and Colliding Stars
Manganese nucleosynthesis refers to the process by which manganese atoms are formed through nuclear reactions in stellar environments.
The primary precursor element for manganese formation by nucleosynthesis is iron (Fe).
Manganese (Mn) is produced through nucleosynthesis in massive stars during different stages of stellar evolution. In the core of massive stars, hydrogen is fused into helium through a series of nuclear reactions. As the core runs out of hydrogen fuel, fusion reactions continue to occur with heavier elements, eventually leading to the formation of iron.
When a massive star reaches the end of its life and undergoes a supernova explosion, the highly energetic environment allows for additional nucleosynthesis processes to occur. This includes the rapid capture of neutrons, known as the r-process, which can generate elements heavier than iron.
During the r-process, neutron-rich environments provide conditions where rapid neutron capture can occur before beta decay stabilizes the nuclei. This process leads to the production of heavy elements, including manganese, in a relatively short period of time.
Therefore, iron, the element formed through fusion in the core of massive stars, acts as the primary precursor for manganese formation through nucleosynthesis via the r-process.
How is manganese made by stars ?
Sources of nucleosynthesis:
1. Big Bang nucleosynthesis: It is believed that shortly after the Big Bang, the universe was primarily composed of hydrogen and helium, with trace amounts of lithium and beryllium. This initial cosmic nucleosynthesis is responsible for the creation of these elements.
2. Stellar nucleosynthesis: Stars are the factories of nucleosynthesis. Through the process of nuclear fusion, stars convert lighter elements into heavier elements. This includes the fusion of hydrogen to form helium in the core of stars, and subsequently, the fusion of helium to form elements like carbon, oxygen, and so on. Stellar nucleosynthesis is responsible for the production of most of the elements up to iron (Fe).
3. Supernova nucleosynthesis: During a supernova explosion, massive stars undergo a cataclysmic event that releases an enormous amount of energy. This energy leads to the synthesis of heavier elements beyond iron. Supernova nucleosynthesis is responsible for the creation of elements such as copper, zinc, silver, gold, and even elements like uranium and plutonium.
Atomic number of Mn and Fe compared:
The atomic number of an element refers to the number of protons present in its nucleus. The atomic number determines the identity of an element.
The atomic number of manganese (Mn) is 25, meaning it has 25 protons in its nucleus, while the atomic number of iron (Fe) is 26, indicating it has 26 protons. Therefore, the atomic number of Fe is one more than that of Mn.
You might wonder then, why does manganese come from a heavier iron atom, why can’t reactions in stars can’t just add a proton to chromium (Cr)?
Manganese (Mn) with atomic number 25 is not produced in stars by adding a proton to chromium (Cr) with atomic number 24 because the process of adding a proton to an atomic nucleus is not energetically favorable in a star’s core.
In stellar nucleosynthesis, elements are produced through nuclear fusion processes. Fusion reactions occur when two atomic nuclei come close enough for the nuclear forces to overcome the electrical repulsion between the positively charged protons, resulting in the formation of a heavier nucleus.
To add a proton to an atomic nucleus, one would need to overcome the strong electrostatic repulsion between the protons, which becomes increasingly difficult as more protons are added to the nuclear core. In the case of chromium, which has 24 protons, adding a proton to form manganese would create an electrostatic repulsion that requires a significant amount of energy input.
In the cores of stars, the temperatures and pressures are generally not sufficient to overcome this electrostatic repulsion and facilitate the fusion of additional protons to generate elements beyond iron (Fe), which has atomic number 26. Consequently, elements heavier than iron are not produced in significant quantities through stellar nucleosynthesis.
Elements like manganese (Mn) and those beyond iron are mostly formed through other processes such as supernova explosions or neutron capture reactions in stellar environments with high neutron flux.
Conculusion
There you have it. Atomic and sub-atomic forces that rule the universe determine the locations and amounts of different resources in the earth which we humans have learned to utilize.
Citations:
[1] https://newsi8.com/why-is-manganese-mining-in-europe-so-limited/
[2] https://www.investigate-europe.eu/posts/green-transition-mines-metals-minerals-china-europe
[3] https://www.spglobal.com/marketintelligence/en/news-insights/latest-news-headlines/manganese-sulfate-bottleneck-looms-over-us-european-ev-manufacturers-73926378
[4] https://subs.ft.com/products?location=https%3A%2F%2F%2Frare-earths%2F
[5] https://www.socialeurope.eu/europe-must-unite-to-stop-deep-sea-resource-grab
