WEBVTT - Sodium, Iron, Magnesium, Nickel... Why Metals Are So Important – Lab 061 0:00:00.440 --> 0:00:02.440 Last week we had doctor Snowden on the show and 0:00:02.520 --> 0:00:05.640 she talked to us all about nuclear energy, and it 0:00:05.680 --> 0:00:08.400 feels like it was right on time because those gas 0:00:08.400 --> 0:00:11.639 prices had just skyrocketed, so we need to continue focusing 0:00:11.720 --> 0:00:16.000 on natural resources and ways to power our lives. 0:00:16.239 --> 0:00:18.440 Yeah, and I thought, Okay, we got that under control. 0:00:18.440 --> 0:00:20.000 I feel like I know what's going on with energy. 0:00:20.200 --> 0:00:22.600 But then it felt like all along my timeline all 0:00:22.600 --> 0:00:25.080 in the news. Another natural resource that I hadn't considered 0:00:25.200 --> 0:00:27.680 was popping up. NASA's talking about making a new alloy. 0:00:28.040 --> 0:00:32.240 Biden was talking about the infrastructure plan only using US steel, 0:00:32.520 --> 0:00:33.839 and I was like, do we have enough of that? 0:00:34.280 --> 0:00:37.120 Where is the steal coming from? Is Pittsburgh still doing that? 0:00:37.880 --> 0:00:40.320 I'm concerned. And then not only is Elon Musk talking 0:00:40.320 --> 0:00:43.720 about buying Twitter, Tesla's also in the news for using 0:00:44.000 --> 0:00:46.680 manganese as the metal in their new battery cell they're 0:00:46.680 --> 0:00:49.640 trying to work on. I'm TT and I'm Zakiyah and 0:00:49.680 --> 0:01:18.480 from Spotify. This is stove Labs. Welcome to Dope Labs podcast, 0:01:18.600 --> 0:01:21.880 a weekly podcast that makes this hardcore science, pop culture 0:01:21.920 --> 0:01:24.440 and a healthy dose of friendship. There's a lot of 0:01:24.440 --> 0:01:28.480 conversation about natural resources, and we see those gas prices 0:01:28.600 --> 0:01:31.920 sky rocketing, and some folks are saying we should pay 0:01:31.959 --> 0:01:35.280 closer attention to metals. Yeah, mercury and tuda mercury and 0:01:35.319 --> 0:01:38.800 retrograde nickels nowhere to be found. I mean, it's all bad. 0:01:39.920 --> 0:01:43.480 So this week we're talking all about metals. We're figuring 0:01:43.520 --> 0:01:46.640 out what constitutes a metal. So how is it classified 0:01:47.040 --> 0:01:49.720 and where we see metals and not just in the 0:01:49.760 --> 0:01:52.120 stuff that we use in day to day that we 0:01:52.200 --> 0:01:54.320 know about, but some of the ways that metals are 0:01:54.400 --> 0:01:55.720 used that we don't know about. 0:01:56.040 --> 0:01:57.840 All right, let's get into the recitation. 0:02:07.280 --> 0:02:08.160 So what do we know? 0:02:08.560 --> 0:02:11.440 Well, I think the concern about metals isn't new. I 0:02:11.480 --> 0:02:14.799 remember when people were stealing like copper pipes. I remember that. 0:02:14.919 --> 0:02:16.040 I do remember that. 0:02:16.320 --> 0:02:18.720 Which told me something was up with at least copper, 0:02:19.040 --> 0:02:19.680 right is. 0:02:19.639 --> 0:02:22.000 It because copper is expensive and people feel like they 0:02:22.040 --> 0:02:22.720 can resell it? 0:02:23.000 --> 0:02:23.160 You know? 0:02:23.200 --> 0:02:25.239 There was just so many questions swirling around that. But 0:02:25.280 --> 0:02:28.280 it was a very interesting time to be alive. I 0:02:28.280 --> 0:02:31.840 think another thing that we know is that metal is important, 0:02:32.120 --> 0:02:35.120 that we need it for a lot of different things 0:02:35.160 --> 0:02:38.800 in our tech and a lot of engineering applications. And 0:02:38.880 --> 0:02:41.800 in biological applications. So what do we want to know? 0:02:42.080 --> 0:02:44.520 I know, I want to know when we consider all 0:02:44.560 --> 0:02:46.800 this stuff, Like you just said the gas price is 0:02:46.840 --> 0:02:49.840 going up, considering our natural resources and what's going on 0:02:49.880 --> 0:02:52.240 with the planet. Metals are coming out of the earth, 0:02:52.360 --> 0:02:54.680 So how are we looking on metals? Are we on track? 0:02:54.960 --> 0:02:56.200 Do we need to cut back? 0:02:56.280 --> 0:02:56.440 You know? 0:02:56.480 --> 0:02:57.120 Where are we? 0:02:57.360 --> 0:03:00.800 What I want to know is more of the biology 0:03:00.880 --> 0:03:04.400 side of metals, because I think I understand metals when 0:03:04.400 --> 0:03:08.359 it comes to engineering and structures and the importance there, 0:03:08.840 --> 0:03:13.760 But I don't really know metals when it comes to biology. 0:03:13.919 --> 0:03:16.000 So I'll be really interested to hear more about that. 0:03:16.280 --> 0:03:19.120 And I think, even though I know the metals are 0:03:19.120 --> 0:03:23.040 important for technology, than what like, are we subbing them out? 0:03:23.400 --> 0:03:25.320 Are we using a variety of metals? Are there some 0:03:25.360 --> 0:03:28.320 metals that we just always use for tech stuff? Like? 0:03:28.360 --> 0:03:31.040 Where are we on that? Okay, let's jump into the dissection. 0:03:43.480 --> 0:03:46.080 Our guest for today's episode is doctor Kate Butner. Kate 0:03:46.160 --> 0:03:47.680 is a friend of the show and our friend in 0:03:47.720 --> 0:03:48.160 real life. 0:03:48.240 --> 0:03:51.520 I'm Kate Butner. I am a bioin organic chemist in 0:03:51.840 --> 0:03:54.160 the chemistry department at Guttysburg College. 0:03:54.480 --> 0:03:57.360 Okay, so first things first, what is an inorganic chemist. 0:03:57.840 --> 0:03:59.840 I know, when we hear the word organic, we usually 0:04:00.360 --> 0:04:04.080 like whole foods, But this type of inorganic has to 0:04:04.080 --> 0:04:07.720 do with the makeup of a chemical compound. So organic 0:04:08.240 --> 0:04:13.200 means carbon based compounds and inorganic is non carbon based compounds. 0:04:13.600 --> 0:04:17.359 Kate is an inorganic chemist who focuses on metals, so 0:04:17.400 --> 0:04:19.719 we asked her to help us understand how common metals are, 0:04:20.000 --> 0:04:21.760 why we should care about them, and what are the 0:04:21.800 --> 0:04:23.480 defining features of metals. 0:04:23.760 --> 0:04:27.159 When you generally are thinking about metals, you're thinking about 0:04:27.760 --> 0:04:29.200 probably metals in bulk. 0:04:29.560 --> 0:04:31.640 What Kate means, what she says in bulk is that 0:04:31.680 --> 0:04:33.960 when we're interacting with metals in our day to day 0:04:34.000 --> 0:04:37.600 lives like jewelry, cutlery, and appliances, we're seeing the end 0:04:37.640 --> 0:04:40.480 product of a compound that was once very, very tiny. 0:04:40.640 --> 0:04:43.320 So the goal we see in jay Z's grill looks different. 0:04:43.480 --> 0:04:46.440 Well, you can have pure gold in your grill, but 0:04:46.760 --> 0:04:49.880 for other metals like steel, steel is not something that 0:04:49.960 --> 0:04:52.480 you just you know, open up the ground you find steel. 0:04:52.600 --> 0:04:55.640 Steel is actually iron that's been treated with carbon to 0:04:55.680 --> 0:04:58.960 get this really strong material. So steel is an alloy, 0:04:59.480 --> 0:05:02.760 not just one singular metal, and alloy is a combination 0:05:02.920 --> 0:05:06.920 of two metals to create another. When we're talking about alloys, 0:05:06.960 --> 0:05:09.680 that's usually in the bulk. That's how we get steel, sterling, silver, 0:05:09.880 --> 0:05:12.360 and a lot of the different metal compositions that we 0:05:12.480 --> 0:05:15.680 know and love today. But on the opposite end of 0:05:15.680 --> 0:05:19.919 that spectrum are really really tiny particles like nanoparticles. I 0:05:19.960 --> 0:05:22.280 worked with nano particles when I was in graduate school, 0:05:22.320 --> 0:05:26.919 and when I was working with nanoparticle gold at that scale, 0:05:27.279 --> 0:05:30.960 when the gold particles are so tiny, when it's suspended 0:05:31.000 --> 0:05:33.839 in a liquid, it almost gives us pinkish purple color. 0:05:34.240 --> 0:05:38.280 So from nanoparticle to bulk materials that we're using, the 0:05:38.320 --> 0:05:41.280 physical properties can change in the way that we interact 0:05:41.279 --> 0:05:43.479 with those properties can change as well. 0:05:43.720 --> 0:05:45.719 I think there are other examples of metals behaving in 0:05:45.760 --> 0:05:46.960 ways that we aren't aware of. 0:05:47.240 --> 0:05:49.800 So those are things like sodium, which if you're thinking 0:05:49.800 --> 0:05:52.240 about sodium metal and you take a hunk of sodium 0:05:52.240 --> 0:05:54.559 metal and throw it in water, it will catch on fire. 0:05:54.800 --> 0:05:57.960 That reminds me of Lab twenty seven. Here comes the 0:05:57.960 --> 0:06:01.440 boom where we talked all about fireworks. So sodium is 0:06:01.640 --> 0:06:04.280 one of the elements that's used in fireworks to help 0:06:04.360 --> 0:06:07.720 give them their color. Sodium makes orange, copper makes green, 0:06:07.839 --> 0:06:10.320 strontium makes red. So it all makes sense. 0:06:10.440 --> 0:06:11.880 But sodium is everywhere. 0:06:11.920 --> 0:06:13.040 It's your table salt. 0:06:13.120 --> 0:06:16.760 And so you have sodium and potassium that you're eating 0:06:16.839 --> 0:06:19.920 every day and are important for you living. 0:06:20.480 --> 0:06:22.919 Did you know that sodium and potassium or metals. 0:06:23.200 --> 0:06:25.320 You know, it makes sense based on what we know 0:06:25.320 --> 0:06:27.480 about the periodic table, but I don't think of them 0:06:27.520 --> 0:06:29.919 in that form from a biological perspective. I think of 0:06:29.920 --> 0:06:32.719 them always in a compound with some other element, like 0:06:32.800 --> 0:06:36.880 sodium and chloride, giving me sodium chloride, which is salt. 0:06:37.080 --> 0:06:40.080 You know, So did I know? Is it buried somewhere 0:06:40.120 --> 0:06:41.640 deep in my head? I don't think of it that way. 0:06:41.839 --> 0:06:44.200 Well, you know our cereal is not catching on fires, 0:06:44.279 --> 0:06:45.760 so we know it's very very different. 0:06:47.440 --> 0:06:49.640 When I think about metals, I'm thinking about steel and 0:06:49.640 --> 0:06:52.800 titanium and copper, and I'm thinking back to those early 0:06:52.880 --> 0:06:56.680 principles I learned that probably are the most primitive concepts 0:06:56.680 --> 0:06:59.279 in material science. I know you know it way better 0:06:59.320 --> 0:06:59.560 than me. 0:06:59.640 --> 0:06:59.840 T T. 0:07:00.240 --> 0:07:02.800 And I think you know I haven't had to look 0:07:02.839 --> 0:07:04.800 back and think about the periodic table in this way 0:07:05.160 --> 0:07:08.000 so I didn't really appreciate just how many metals are 0:07:08.040 --> 0:07:08.360 in it. 0:07:08.520 --> 0:07:12.360 On the periodic table, metals make up over two thirds 0:07:12.400 --> 0:07:13.280 of the elements. 0:07:13.400 --> 0:07:15.560 So now we understand a little bit more about what 0:07:15.720 --> 0:07:18.560 metals are. Now we want to talk about where they are. 0:07:18.800 --> 0:07:22.720 There's different levels of abundance in the Earth's crust versus 0:07:22.720 --> 0:07:25.320 in the water, versus in like the human body, because 0:07:25.880 --> 0:07:31.720 different elements are differently stabilized in different environments, and so 0:07:31.760 --> 0:07:34.080 they're going to be in lower concentrations in the oceans 0:07:34.320 --> 0:07:37.080 versus in the Earth's crust. And so lots of the 0:07:37.080 --> 0:07:40.480 metals that we find are in mineral forms, in lots 0:07:40.520 --> 0:07:43.000 of the rocks and minerals that are everywhere. And so 0:07:43.040 --> 0:07:46.040 if you look at what elements are most abundant, iron 0:07:46.320 --> 0:07:50.080 is the most abundant thing that you probably think of 0:07:50.240 --> 0:07:54.080 as a metal. Titanium is also quite abundant, just one 0:07:54.120 --> 0:07:56.520 of the reasons that we try to use it, and 0:07:56.600 --> 0:07:59.680 so iron and titanium are the most common. There's also 0:07:59.720 --> 0:08:02.960 lots of magnesium and calcium and sodium potassium, and there's 0:08:02.960 --> 0:08:04.200 also lots of aluminum. 0:08:04.240 --> 0:08:07.720 The two most abundant elements in the Earth's crust are oxygen, 0:08:07.920 --> 0:08:11.320 and silicon. So oxygen makes up about forty six point 0:08:11.400 --> 0:08:14.080 one percent and silicon is twenty eight point two percent. 0:08:14.080 --> 0:08:17.920 But those aren't metals. Silicon has some metallic properties, but 0:08:17.960 --> 0:08:21.480 not real, real metals. It's a semiconductor that makes so 0:08:21.640 --> 0:08:26.280 much sense when we think about it. Semiconductor h partially conducting. 0:08:26.720 --> 0:08:31.120 Semiconductor materials are elements that are partially conducting. Yeah, so 0:08:31.200 --> 0:08:34.200 when you hear the word semiconductor, that means that they 0:08:34.240 --> 0:08:38.280 are using those specific materials in that device. The most 0:08:38.320 --> 0:08:41.960 abundant metal found in the Earth's crust is aluminium, and 0:08:41.960 --> 0:08:44.840 that makes up eight point twenty three percent. Iron is 0:08:44.960 --> 0:08:47.720 five point sixty three percent, and it's the most mined 0:08:48.040 --> 0:08:52.079 because it's essential for steel production. Calcium is four point 0:08:52.120 --> 0:08:55.640 one five percent, Magnesium is two point three three percent, 0:08:56.000 --> 0:09:00.360 potassium is two point zero nine percent, in titanium is 0:09:00.480 --> 0:09:03.480 zero point five six five percent, and the rest of 0:09:03.520 --> 0:09:06.840 the metals, they make up point four eight percent of 0:09:06.880 --> 0:09:09.280 the Earth's crust. And notice how we didn't say anything 0:09:09.320 --> 0:09:12.559 like gold, silver, copper, nickel, platinum, or any of those 0:09:12.600 --> 0:09:16.600 other precious metals. Precious metals are metals that are rare. 0:09:16.720 --> 0:09:20.280 They're naturally occurring, but they have high economic value as well, 0:09:20.880 --> 0:09:23.920 and that's because although they're the most sought after metals, 0:09:23.960 --> 0:09:27.240 they make up less than point zero three percent of 0:09:27.280 --> 0:09:27.959 the Earth's crust. 0:09:28.280 --> 0:09:31.520 Doctor Buner explained that the abundance doesn't always correlate to 0:09:31.600 --> 0:09:34.720 what is most used, and metals are a non renewable resource. 0:09:34.800 --> 0:09:36.120 What we have is all we got. 0:09:36.200 --> 0:09:39.480 At some point, we're going to run out of precious metals, 0:09:39.559 --> 0:09:42.200 so there are lots of research fronts looking to move 0:09:42.280 --> 0:09:46.880 chemistry away from using precious metals and into using things 0:09:46.960 --> 0:09:48.920 like iron and titanium and vanadium. 0:09:48.960 --> 0:09:51.040 Okay, so now that you've laid it out, you know, 0:09:51.160 --> 0:09:53.679 just looking for something shiny doesn't always indicate that it 0:09:53.720 --> 0:09:57.600 is metal, and the amount available to us is variable 0:09:57.679 --> 0:10:00.800 depending on which element we're talking about. But how do 0:10:00.920 --> 0:10:03.440 we know for sure that something is metallic? 0:10:03.720 --> 0:10:05.800 Well, one great way to figure out if something is 0:10:05.840 --> 0:10:09.439 metallic is using our handy dandy periodic table. Like we've 0:10:09.440 --> 0:10:12.360 said in previous episodes, the periodic table is not random. 0:10:12.400 --> 0:10:16.160 It's arranged in a very specific way, and an element's 0:10:16.200 --> 0:10:19.360 position on the periodic table can give us clues. And 0:10:19.440 --> 0:10:22.440 this holds true for metals. Okay, so pull out your 0:10:22.440 --> 0:10:24.760 periodic table. Right now, we'll pause and wait for you 0:10:24.840 --> 0:10:28.840 to pull up a tab for you to look at it. Okay, 0:10:28.960 --> 0:10:32.360 So you have your periodic table, and going from the 0:10:32.360 --> 0:10:36.199 top right to the bottom left, there is an increase 0:10:36.280 --> 0:10:39.440 in metallic character of elements. So it goes from non 0:10:39.480 --> 0:10:42.720 metals in the top right. So that's helium, neon, argon 0:10:42.840 --> 0:10:47.600 and all them boron, silicon, germanium, arsenic, and antimony are 0:10:47.640 --> 0:10:52.240 all what are called metaloids. Metaloids are in between conductive 0:10:52.280 --> 0:10:55.199 and non conductive, so we call them semiconductors, and you've 0:10:55.200 --> 0:10:58.240 probably heard that word before, but we'll talk about semiconductors 0:10:58.320 --> 0:11:01.720 more in an upcoming lab. Sure you stay tuned. And 0:11:02.000 --> 0:11:04.760 as you get down to the bottom and left of 0:11:04.840 --> 0:11:08.280 the periodic table, everything to the left of the metaloids 0:11:08.440 --> 0:11:11.320 is a metal, and the farther left you go, the 0:11:11.360 --> 0:11:13.720 more metallic character the element has. 0:11:14.080 --> 0:11:17.080 So tt I feel like you've really helped me understand this. 0:11:17.120 --> 0:11:19.640 I'm looking at the periodic table. Everything to the right, 0:11:19.800 --> 0:11:23.200 those are like gases and other non metals. There's this 0:11:23.280 --> 0:11:25.960 diagonal stripe and those are things that are in between 0:11:26.120 --> 0:11:29.839 non metal and metal, and so they're semi and you're 0:11:29.880 --> 0:11:32.760 calling those metaloids and that's that diagonal stripe to the 0:11:32.840 --> 0:11:36.520 left of that stripe, which is Yes, the bulk of 0:11:36.600 --> 0:11:39.880 things on this periodic table, those are metals. And the 0:11:39.880 --> 0:11:43.280 more left you are, the further Beyonce pushed you, the 0:11:43.280 --> 0:11:47.920 more metallic character you have. And those metallic characters are 0:11:48.360 --> 0:11:51.760 being able to conduct electricity, being able to conduct heat, 0:11:52.240 --> 0:11:53.960 having a luster, so on and so on. 0:11:54.160 --> 0:11:58.319 Yeah, should we rename the periodic table to Beyonce's periodic table? Mm? 0:12:00.920 --> 0:12:04.600 Where would Sasha Fierce be on the day? What happened 0:12:04.640 --> 0:12:12.920 to her? We haven't seen her in san Bring her back? Okay? 0:12:12.960 --> 0:12:14.440 So I feel like we have a really good grasp 0:12:14.480 --> 0:12:16.720 on what metal is and the different kinds of metals. 0:12:17.080 --> 0:12:19.120 So I think what we want to hit now is 0:12:19.160 --> 0:12:20.760 like why should we care? Right? 0:12:21.160 --> 0:12:23.480 Metals are used in every aspect of our lives, Like, 0:12:23.480 --> 0:12:26.800 if you just stop and look around you right now, 0:12:27.120 --> 0:12:30.400 you're likely touching or being touched by metal in some way. 0:12:30.840 --> 0:12:33.280 And metal has the ability to take on so many 0:12:33.400 --> 0:12:36.240 different forms depending on the treatment. So like, you know, 0:12:36.600 --> 0:12:38.680 the metal that you might have in a button on 0:12:38.720 --> 0:12:41.440 your clothes is different from the metal in a soda can, 0:12:41.559 --> 0:12:43.920 or different from the metal that's supporting a bridge, and 0:12:43.960 --> 0:12:49.599 it's all because of whatever chemical processes or heat treatments 0:12:49.960 --> 0:12:52.040 or anything in between that metal is put through to 0:12:52.160 --> 0:12:54.200 give it those specific properties. 0:12:54.480 --> 0:12:58.080 When we think about metals that are important in technology, 0:12:58.400 --> 0:13:02.360 there are lots of different metals that are used in batteries, 0:13:02.400 --> 0:13:05.199 and there's also lots of metals used in catalytic converters 0:13:05.200 --> 0:13:07.720 in cars, and so that's a big push. 0:13:07.960 --> 0:13:11.520 So in your car, a catalytic converter converts toxins into 0:13:11.600 --> 0:13:15.400 less harmful byproducts like water, vapor, and carbon dioxide. And 0:13:15.440 --> 0:13:20.959 catalytic converters actually use three precious metals, platinum, rodium, and palladium, 0:13:21.000 --> 0:13:22.880 which is why a lot of people get their catalytic 0:13:22.880 --> 0:13:26.800 converters stolen from their cars and why they're so expensive 0:13:26.880 --> 0:13:29.800 to replace. One application we want to draw attention to 0:13:30.000 --> 0:13:34.160 is tech because a property unique to metals like zakia 0:13:34.280 --> 0:13:38.320 you mentioned is their electrical conductivity. The reason why metal 0:13:38.360 --> 0:13:41.679 conducts electricity so much better than non metals is because 0:13:41.720 --> 0:13:45.400 their electrons can move freely between atoms. So, if you 0:13:45.440 --> 0:13:48.960 remember from last week's episode, an atom, the nucleus is 0:13:49.000 --> 0:13:52.920 made up of neutrons and protons and then spinning around 0:13:52.960 --> 0:13:57.959 that nucleus is electrons and metals they can move all around, 0:13:58.040 --> 0:14:01.880 and that's exactly what you need to create current, which 0:14:01.920 --> 0:14:05.600 is what we use for electricity. So those electrons are 0:14:05.640 --> 0:14:08.560 moving around and they provide power for light, power, for 0:14:09.000 --> 0:14:13.720 your computer power, for anything that requires electricity. You need 0:14:13.840 --> 0:14:17.400 electrons moving and metals do that really well. And one 0:14:17.400 --> 0:14:19.640 of those metals that's commonly used is copper. 0:14:19.920 --> 0:14:22.440 And we know that copper is used for all sorts 0:14:22.480 --> 0:14:27.760 of things in copper wire and for transport of electronics 0:14:27.760 --> 0:14:30.480 sort of stuff, and so those are really important in 0:14:30.760 --> 0:14:34.520 technology in ways that I very rarely think about. 0:14:34.880 --> 0:14:37.440 Also, aluminum and nickel are used in a lot of 0:14:37.480 --> 0:14:41.000 semiconductor chips and batteries. Now that dural cell copper top 0:14:41.040 --> 0:14:43.160 makes sense exactly. 0:14:43.600 --> 0:14:45.840 There's another part of the periodic table that we didn't 0:14:45.880 --> 0:14:48.320 talk about yet, but it's a great time to bring 0:14:48.360 --> 0:14:50.920 it back up. So okay, go back to your tab 0:14:51.040 --> 0:14:53.600 that has the periodic table, and if you look at 0:14:53.640 --> 0:14:56.360 the bottom, you should see two rows that are detached 0:14:56.400 --> 0:14:59.040 from the rest of the table. And those are called 0:14:59.320 --> 0:15:03.600 rare earth metals. And they're called this not just because 0:15:03.640 --> 0:15:06.320 there isn't a lot of them, but because they're extremely 0:15:06.400 --> 0:15:09.840 difficult to mind. But they're really great to use because 0:15:09.840 --> 0:15:13.040 they have these really great properties, Like they are used 0:15:13.040 --> 0:15:16.280 as catalysts, they're used in a lot of electrical and 0:15:16.360 --> 0:15:18.640 magnetic and luminescent devices. 0:15:18.880 --> 0:15:21.440 All those properties sound great and we've been using them 0:15:21.440 --> 0:15:25.040 tt So when we think about the explosion of technology 0:15:25.040 --> 0:15:27.840 in general, the invention of the cell phone, the computer, 0:15:28.080 --> 0:15:31.040 laptops over the last twenty years, I'm sure with that 0:15:31.160 --> 0:15:34.160 explosion of products, there has to have been an increasing 0:15:34.360 --> 0:15:39.400 demand on those elements exactly. And then rechargeable batteries that's 0:15:39.480 --> 0:15:42.920 like a new thing relatively to you know, our world. 0:15:43.240 --> 0:15:47.360 Rechargeable batteries are new and they are made with rare 0:15:47.440 --> 0:15:51.920 earth compounds, and so the demand for batteries that recharge 0:15:52.000 --> 0:15:53.920 goes up, like as we have these. 0:15:53.800 --> 0:15:56.040 New inventions like the cell phone and the computer, and 0:15:56.160 --> 0:16:01.720 also with electrical vehicles. So you know, now electric cars 0:16:01.760 --> 0:16:03.600 are becoming more and more of a thing. I've been 0:16:03.640 --> 0:16:06.520 seeing a lot more teslas, a lot more hybrid cars 0:16:06.520 --> 0:16:10.640 on the road. Those batteries that are powering those electric 0:16:10.720 --> 0:16:15.000 cars are made of a lot of rare earth and nickel, 0:16:15.320 --> 0:16:17.720 and so they're super important to keep pushing us into 0:16:17.760 --> 0:16:20.720 this technological age pushing us forward so we can move 0:16:20.760 --> 0:16:24.400 away from fossil fuels and use electricity to power our lives. 0:16:25.280 --> 0:16:27.760 This is such a good point because now you know, 0:16:28.040 --> 0:16:30.400 it makes me think about this tradeoff. Just last week 0:16:30.440 --> 0:16:33.360 we talked about nuclear energy with doctor Snowden, and this 0:16:33.440 --> 0:16:35.960 is a perfect example of these types of trade offs. 0:16:36.160 --> 0:16:39.800 So on one hand, you're reducing the use of non 0:16:39.920 --> 0:16:44.080 renewables like gas, right and oil, but on the other hand, 0:16:44.200 --> 0:16:47.840 you're increasing the demand for rare earth metals to build 0:16:47.960 --> 0:16:51.440 the electric cars that we think are solving the other problem. Yeah, 0:16:51.920 --> 0:16:53.000 vicious vicious cycle. 0:16:53.240 --> 0:16:58.200 Yeah, such a good point. Another downside to rare earth 0:16:58.280 --> 0:17:01.200 metals is that it's really difficult to get rare earths 0:17:01.240 --> 0:17:03.560 out of the Earth, and so it costs a lot 0:17:03.560 --> 0:17:06.720 of money, and it's inefficient, and some of the byproducts 0:17:06.760 --> 0:17:10.960 of mining rare earth are toxic materials because you're also 0:17:11.240 --> 0:17:14.200 pulling up uranium as you're pulling up these rare earth 0:17:14.200 --> 0:17:16.000 metals that we want to use, and as we know 0:17:16.080 --> 0:17:18.800 from the nuclear episode, uranium is not something you really 0:17:18.840 --> 0:17:21.320 want to be around like that. Another issue with rare 0:17:21.359 --> 0:17:24.639 earth is that they're not only not abundant in the 0:17:24.640 --> 0:17:28.760 Earth's crust, but it's not like there's an even distribution 0:17:28.840 --> 0:17:32.240 of rare earths all over the Earth. Most rare earths 0:17:32.320 --> 0:17:36.439 are in China, and China produces about ninety percent of 0:17:36.480 --> 0:17:40.359 the supply, which means that they control the industry. 0:17:41.160 --> 0:17:43.439 So basically, there's no free lunch when it comes to 0:17:43.480 --> 0:17:46.240 earth metals. They have all these great properties, but there 0:17:46.240 --> 0:17:48.200 are a lot of other aspects to kind of wade 0:17:48.240 --> 0:17:50.200 through when we're considering how we get them. 0:17:50.400 --> 0:17:52.359 It goes back to what doctor Snowden was saying in 0:17:52.400 --> 0:17:55.639 the last episode, is that there are risks to everything, 0:17:55.720 --> 0:17:57.720 and those are things you just have to weigh out 0:17:57.840 --> 0:18:00.000 because it will help us if we're able to move 0:18:00.040 --> 0:18:03.720 move towards using electricity to power our lives. But there 0:18:03.760 --> 0:18:06.760 are some trade offs that we're trying to reconcile so 0:18:06.800 --> 0:18:09.280 that we can make sure that the advances that we're 0:18:09.280 --> 0:18:12.320 making aren't biting us in the butt later. 0:18:12.560 --> 0:18:17.440 So, considering the uneven distribution of metals, I would imagine 0:18:17.440 --> 0:18:20.840 that that uneven distribution is subject to a lot of 0:18:20.840 --> 0:18:24.919 our geopolitical influences right in the world right now. And 0:18:24.960 --> 0:18:26.640 so I know recently I've been seeing a lot about 0:18:26.640 --> 0:18:29.040 a nickel shortage in the news as we consider the 0:18:29.040 --> 0:18:31.919 war between Russia and Ukraine. So we asked Kate to 0:18:31.960 --> 0:18:34.280 tell us what we need to know about nickel. 0:18:34.520 --> 0:18:37.520 I think the thing that loss of nickel is most 0:18:37.600 --> 0:18:41.200 worried about because it's used in batteries. Nickel hydride batteries 0:18:41.240 --> 0:18:44.399 are used in cars, and so I think that's where 0:18:44.560 --> 0:18:48.680 the biggest worry comes from with a run on nickel supplies. 0:18:49.200 --> 0:18:53.440 There are lots of different places where there are nickel minds. 0:18:53.359 --> 0:18:57.760 Right, So nickel is really really important when we're thinking 0:18:57.800 --> 0:19:02.080 about batteries for electric vehicles and pretty much all batteries 0:19:02.080 --> 0:19:06.040 that are rechargeable. As the battery research advances, they want 0:19:06.200 --> 0:19:09.360 more and more nickel. In batteries. You have a cathode 0:19:09.359 --> 0:19:11.919 and an anode, and the cathode at this point is 0:19:11.920 --> 0:19:15.959 about eighty percent nickel, and so we need nickel very badly. 0:19:16.240 --> 0:19:18.360 If you lose a significant percentage of that, then it's 0:19:18.359 --> 0:19:21.520 going to be a lot harder to keep making nickel 0:19:21.560 --> 0:19:24.560 hydride batteries at the level that's needed to keep producing cars. 0:19:24.840 --> 0:19:28.240 And this is a problem because Russia produces twenty percent 0:19:28.359 --> 0:19:31.159 of the world's highest purity nickel. 0:19:31.480 --> 0:19:34.919 So Russia invaded Ukraine on February twenty fourth, twenty twenty two, 0:19:35.400 --> 0:19:37.680 and on that day the cost of nickel per ton 0:19:37.880 --> 0:19:40.880 was twenty four thousand, seven hundred and sixteen dollars. Now 0:19:40.960 --> 0:19:43.280 that's twenty four thousand, seven hundred and sixteen dollars. Stay 0:19:43.359 --> 0:19:46.560 with me on March eighth, and remember February only had 0:19:46.560 --> 0:19:49.760 twenty eight days. Baby on March eighth, twenty twenty two, 0:19:50.359 --> 0:19:53.520 nickel was eighty thousand dollars per ton. That's a big 0:19:53.560 --> 0:19:56.960 deal because as we advance with technology and the needs 0:19:56.960 --> 0:20:00.040 for electric vehicles, more and more nickel is required. So 0:20:00.119 --> 0:20:02.040 if the cost of nicolas so high, it may mean 0:20:02.040 --> 0:20:04.320 that the cost to manufacturer the battery is super high. 0:20:04.440 --> 0:20:08.080 So now we're looking at access to electric vehicles, which 0:20:08.119 --> 0:20:11.040 can reduce other costs and can reduce other impacts being 0:20:11.080 --> 0:20:14.720 cost prohibitive, even more cost prohibitive than they already are. Right, 0:20:14.800 --> 0:20:16.960 so that electric car goes from being just a little 0:20:17.000 --> 0:20:20.000 bit expensive to only Bill Gates can afford it. Okay, 0:20:20.240 --> 0:20:24.240 So doctor Buttner has taken us through what metals are, 0:20:24.840 --> 0:20:27.840 where they are, and what they're used for in tech. 0:20:27.920 --> 0:20:29.680 But when we come back, we're going to talk about 0:20:29.800 --> 0:20:31.959 metals in the biological space. 0:20:51.960 --> 0:20:52.520 We're back. 0:20:52.840 --> 0:20:55.520 We're talking to doctor Kate Butner all about metals. But 0:20:55.640 --> 0:20:58.960 before we jump in next week, we're talking to you 0:20:59.000 --> 0:21:01.280 about maternal health with Simon Taate. 0:21:01.840 --> 0:21:04.240 Let's get back to the lab. Now that we have 0:21:04.359 --> 0:21:08.240 gotten the load down on metals in tech, Zekiah, you're 0:21:08.240 --> 0:21:11.360 gonna have to hold my hand through metals in biology. 0:21:11.520 --> 0:21:14.840 You know this is so interesting because when I think 0:21:14.880 --> 0:21:16.959 about this, you know, you blew my mind. You said, Hey, 0:21:17.000 --> 0:21:20.120 did you know sodium in potasium were metals? And I'm like, uh, 0:21:20.160 --> 0:21:24.480 I think about sodium potassium so much from a biological perspective, 0:21:24.760 --> 0:21:27.560 and I think we have to level set first. Everybody 0:21:27.600 --> 0:21:30.240 should know we need metals in our body to live. 0:21:30.560 --> 0:21:32.879 And if you're a Dope Labs listener, you already know this. 0:21:33.160 --> 0:21:35.320 If we think back to our lab with doctor Alice 0:21:35.320 --> 0:21:38.800 Lichtenstein where she talked about nutrition and the vitamin and 0:21:38.920 --> 0:21:43.520 micronutrient requirements, we already knew that metals were important. So 0:21:44.040 --> 0:21:46.800 I think the first thing is understanding that sometimes metals 0:21:46.800 --> 0:21:51.280 get a bad rep in the biological context. And there's 0:21:51.320 --> 0:21:53.960