About Borates
Small amounts of boron appear all around us. Boron is found in the walls and ceiling of your home, in your bathroom and in your kitchen. It appears outside your home in your driveway, and is fundamental in powering your car. As an essential micronutrient for plants boron is found in much of the food we eat.
What are Borates?
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Borates are naturally-occurring minerals containing boron, the fifth element on the Periodic Table. Boron exists all around us, in rocks, in soil and in water. Plants need boron to grow. People need borates too, as an important part of a healthy diet and an essential ingredient in many products necessary for an acceptable standard of living.
Borates are all around us. They pave the way for everyday living.
Boron Applications & Uses
DETERGENTS
Used as a cleaning and bleaching agent to increase the performance of products.
FLAME RETARDENT
Used in all dry powder fire extinguishers and fire retardant paints.
WOOD TREATMENT
Used in wood as a preservative preventing decay; slows and suppresses the spread of flames if burning occurs.
NUCLEAR REACTORS
Absorbs neutrons increasing nuclear reactor safety.
PERSONAL CARE PRODUCTS
Borate properties control bacteria and fungi in personal care products and significantly improve cleaning action.
GYPSUM
Boron laced Gypsum is used as a micro-nutrient and also widely used in the construction industry to increase strength and enhance fire retardancy.
Boron Applications & Uses
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PERMANENT MAGNETS
Boron laden permanent magnets are used in hundreds of different end-uses and applications.
ELECTRIC VEHICLES
Borates are used in permanent magnets, commonly used magnets in both hybrid and electric vehicles.
WIND TURBINES
Cannot operate without the help of boron laden permanent magnets.
GLASS
Borates modify the configuration of glass to make it resistant to heat or chemical attack. They are importantly used in insulation and textile fiberglass, an array of home use glass cookware and in more recent times solar PV glass. Borate glasses are important components in modern TV, computer, and mobile device display panels.
CERAMIC FRITS, ENAMELS & GLAZES
Enhances the chemical and mechanical strength, helps to form smooth surfaces.
OTHER USES
Borates are used across an wide range of other applications including, Abrasives, Cellulose Insulation, Charcoal Briquettes, Corrosion Inhibitors, as Dyestuffs, Electrolytic Capacitors and Condensers, Fuel Cells, Metal plating, Refractories and Tanning.
Borates Appear All Around Us
paving the way for everyday living
Small amounts of boron appear all around us. Boron is found in the walls and ceiling of your home, in your bathroom and in your kitchen. It appears outside your home in your driveway, and is fundamental in powering your car. As an essential micronutrient for plants boron is found in much of the food we eat.
HOME
Foam insulation, wiring and cables, fiberglass insulation
Foam insulation, wiring and cables, fiberglass insulation
OFFICE
Computers, wood treatment, and smartphone screens
Computers, wood treatment, and smartphone screens
BEDROOM
Wood furniture and carpets
Wood furniture and carpets
BATHROOM
Wood furniture and carpets
Wood furniture and carpets
KITCHEN
Fridges, ceramic tiles, detergents and kitchenware
Fridges, ceramic tiles, detergents and kitchenware
FERTILIZERS
An essential micronutrient for plants, vital to growth and development
An essential micronutrient for plants, vital to growth and development
CAR
Powering magnets in electrical vehicles
Powering magnets in electrical vehicles
Borate Market & Production
duopoly market with very few global sources of borates
THE FORT CADY BORATE PROJECT IN CALIFORNIA
Fort Cady – Strategically located to supply two major markets – China, via the key ports of LA and Long Beach, and the US.
Source: Roskill, Eti Maden, US Borax
Borates By End Use
Source: Eti Maden, US Borax
Future of Borates
urbanisation & agriculture
China is already the biggest consumer of borates. As countries like China and India continue to urbanize and grow they will consume more and more products that use boron.
China is targeted to have over 200 cites with more than 1m people by 2025. (Up from 65 cities today)*
India will have 7 cities with populations of over 10 million people by 2030**
On every continent of the world, crop yields and food quality are diminished due to insufficient boron concentrations in the soil. With a growing population and less arable land available, increasing food yields is vitally important. In India, the use of micronutrients like boron is being supported by government projects and subsidies to ensure the farmers increase productivity**
* www.worldpopulationreview.com
** UN’s 2016 World Cities Report
*** US Borax
Future of Borates
energy and electrifying transport
Boron laden permanent magnets are used in 100’s of different end-uses and applications, many of which we interact with daily.
Mobile phones, disk drives, EV traction motors, wind power generators, and much more, boron laden permanent magnets appear all around us.
As the world adopts greener practices borates will become more widely used in Solar PVs and wind turbines.
ELCTRIFYING TRANSPORT
Borates are uniquely applied in permanent magnets, the most commonly used magnets in hybrid and Electric Vehicles (EV’s).
In 2015, China alone added the equivalent of more than one new wind turbine every hour of every day.*
By 2025 it is expected that 16.5m electric vehicles will be built primarily using boron laden magnets.**
Source: Eti Maden, US Borax
