Jason Ford

Seawater magnesium process promises cheaper lightweight metals

News

A lightweight metal that reduces fuel use in cars and planes could be extracted from the ocean through a process being developed at the US Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.

The process could ultimately make fuel-efficient transportation more affordable and expand the American magnesium market.

PNNL is leading a $2.7m, three-year project to develop a novel method that removes naturally occurring magnesium from seawater. The project was by DOE’s Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E).

‘Demand for lightweight metals such as magnesium is growing, but it’s expensive and energy-intensive to produce them,’ said the project’s lead researcher, PNNL Laboratory Fellow Pete McGrail. ‘We expect our method will be 50 per cent more energy efficient than the United States’ current magnesium production process. This will also decrease carbon emissions and the cost.’

Magnesium is used in alloys that decrease weight and increase strength of parts used in vehicles, airplanes, power generation equipment, industrial processes and buildings. It is, however, about seven times more expensive to produce than the steel traditionally used in those applications. Furthermore, producing lightweight metals also requires a lot of energy.

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