PLANET BORON

We have only one planet. Resources are finite, and it is our joint responsibility to take action to make the world a better place for future generations. Planet Boron is an initiative by Borates Today to harness the strengths and benefits of one of the world’s most precious resources – BORON – and publish news and events about boron’s availability, applications, benefits for  achieving the collective vision and shared goals as we embrace multiple goals related to four key areas:  Decarbonization; Advanced Energy, Food Security and Micronutrients.

DECARBONIZATION

Boron And Decarbonization

ADVANCED ENERGY

10 Linear Boron Nitride

FOOD SECURITY

13 Boron Natural Food

MICRONUTRIENTS

Pure Boron Seedling
Nissan Advanced Energy
ADVANCED ENERGY, Batteries and Capacitors

Advanced Energy – Nissan EV Battery Move

Nissan is currently the only automaker with a complete lineup of electric vehicles, including full-electric cars, plug-in hybrids, and zero-emission light commercial vehicles. The company’s goal is to be an industry leader in advanced energy and zero-emission mobility by 2030. As a leader in developing new battery technologies to improve efficiency and power for their lineup of vehicles, use of rare earth metals and near rare earth metals such as boron and lithium is at the heart of the battery power program. But batteries have a limited lifespan. Once it comes to recycling, there is too much waste. Nissan is tackling this problem with Waseda University to produce breakthrough innovations in Electric Vehicles technology.

Advanced Materials
ADVANCED ENERGY

Boron Advanced Materials

Boron advanced materials have unique characteristics which make them extremely useful in multiple applications. Boron's many forms include Boron Nitride, a superior heat conductor and insulator, hexagonal boron nitride tubes, a structure with superior tensile strength, stability, and thermal conductivity, and cubic boron nitride, whose hardness characteristics is used for coating cutting tools and as grit for polishing and grinding wheels.

Borates Today Hydrogen Boron Fusion
Energy Management, RESEARCH

Hydrogen Boron Fusion – Creating New Energy

Hydrogen-Boron 11 fusion -Boron Hydrogen Fusion - has always been the ultimate fusion reaction. It does not create radioactive waste and its fuels are both abundant in nature and non-radioactive. Few other researchers had studied this reaction as it was considered scientifically too difficult. The temperatures required to ignite the reaction are more than 100 times higher than that of the sun – a technical hurdle that has held back practical energy generation for decades.

boron solar energy
ADVANCED ENERGY, Efficient Power Sources

Boron in Solar Panels

Boron in solar panels is becoming more important in energy provision for advanced and developing countries. Over the past several decades, solar cell efficiency has steadily increased. This is due in part to the increase in the number of light-absorbing layers in a cell and partly due to boron in solar power working with silicon to optimize the energy generated by sunlight.

Boron Powers Space Exploration
ADVANCED ENERGY

Ammonia Borane Powers Space Exploration

Ammonia Borane is an excellent choice for rocket fuel given its ease of manufacture, availability, and low storage costs. It is also a good additive for jet fuel. Scientists at the University of California Riverside are testing ammonia borane, NH3BH3, as an alternative to traditional carbon-based chemical rocket fuels. This could lead to carbon-free space launches.

Food Hunger and Boron
ADVANCED ENERGY

Food Hunger and Boron

Food Hunger and Boron: In 2020, between 720 and 811 million people faced hunger. In a world of plenty, where enough food is produced to feed everyone on the planet, hunger should be a thing of the past. However, conflict, climate change, disasters, inequality, and – most recently – the COVID-19 pandemic means one in nine people globally is still going to bed hungry, and famine looms for millions, states the World Food Programme (WFP). Boron can help to dramatically improve food yields and is a vital micronutrient in human health.

Fluoride Toxicity
FOOD SECURITY

Fluoride Toxicity With Boron

Fluoride is a toxic chemical that can cause severe health problems despite the best efforts of the WHO to provide recommended levels of fluoride intake by source. Fluoride toxicity is seen in both animals and humans but how can boron help to lower toxicity.

Boron and SOP
ADVANCED ENERGY, Efficient Power Sources, SCIENCE

Boron and SOP

Boron inclusive technology is an excellent example of how we can harness the power from seawater to bring zero-carbon energy worldwide. Decarbonization has been a goal for quite some time, and it seems like this year, governments will finally agree on stricter regulations that would make it possible to achieve this objective by 2050 or sooner if possible.  Boron has been working to bring sustainable energy sources for all, and Boron and Hydropower technology is an excellent example of achieving this goal.

Micronutrients For Soil 1024x576
Agriculture, Crop Management, FOOD SECURITY

Boron in Agriculture

The use of boron is a crucial component to farming success. Because without adequate levels, crops cannot grow or can harvest successfully. Soil with inadequate amounts of elemental boron does not provide enough nutrients that plants need to survive. Thus, it leads them into an unhealthy state which causes their growth rates to decrease immensely. This happens not just when first planted but also during maturity and harvest periods.

CARBON-FREE ENERGY TECHNOLOGIES
DECARBONIZATION

Carbon-free Energy Technologies

Carbon Emission and The Greenhouse Effect Fossil fuels, including coal, natural gas, and oil, have fueled the modernization of global economies. While being the fundamental energy drivers for all developed and developing nations over the last century, they have...

boron renewable energy
DECARBONIZATION

Boron Renewable Energy

Boron is an essential element of renewable energy. The use of other materials in the production process is reduced. Carbon emissions are decreased by using borates for insulation or fire-retardant purposes. Boron has many properties which make it a good candidate for this purpose. It plays a prominent role as we work to reduce our dependency on traditional methods like fossil fuels.

boron thermal conductivity
Energy Management, RESEARCH

Boron Nitride Powers Thermal Conductivity

Boron nitride, also known as "white graphite," is a semiconductor material that conducts electricity. It is chemically inert and electrically insulating with no bandgap in the bulk phase that would allow it to emit light when excited by an energy source. Because of its excellent thermal conductivity properties, layers of boron nitride are often added onto other materials like silicon carbide (SiC) for use in high-efficiency power devices like thermoelectric cooler packages (TECs).

decarbonization rio tinto - boron
DECARBONIZATION, MINING

Rio Tinto Decarbonization

Rio Tinto announced a $7.5 billion plan to reduce carbon emissions to 50% by 2030 in October 2021. Rio Tinto stated that it aimed to reduce carbon emissions by half by 2020 as steel and iron ore producers push for compliance with international climate commitments. Rio pushed forward its 2020 target for a 15% reduction of emissions from 2018, five years earlier than it had previously planned.

Carbon Capture Funding and Boron
Carbon Cycle, DECARBONIZATION

Carbon Capture Funding and Boron

Carbon capture technology has been developed for coal-fired power plants with FECM support for over two decades. Over 20 successful pilot-scale projects have been implemented including a showcase demonstration project which captures and stores over one million metric tons of carbon dioxide per year.

Renewable Energies and Boron
ADVANCED ENERGY

U.S. Renewable Energies Strategy to Benefit Boron and Lithium

U.S. Government Doubles Down on Renewable Energies Strategy to Secure Boron, Lithium MetalThe U.S. Government continues to assure mining producers that it is determined to secure strategic minerals such as Boron and Lithium for EV production and other advanced energy needs as these sectors are poised to grow significantly in the coming decade. The Biden administration is looking even more closely at approving domestic sources of electric battery vehicle metals such as boron and lithium.

Pomegranate Fruit
Agriculture, Crop Management

Pomegranate Fruit and Boron

Pomegranate fruit is an excellent source of vitamins C and K, antioxidants, and other minerals. However, the fruit may lose its quality due to fruit cracking. This is due to inadequate water management or lacking essential micronutrients such as boron and calcium.

Porous-boron-Nitride--Oil-Spill-Cleanup
Carbon Cycle, DECARBONIZATION, Environmental Protection

Porous Boron Nitride

The formation and applications of porous Boron Nitride have been the subject of popular research lately. Its high porosity and thermal stability will help pave the way for improving large-scale industrial gas and liquid separations, such as those used in carbon capture or water treatment processes by reducing the amount of energy required.

Industrial Boron Decarbonization
DECARBONIZATION, PODCASTS

Podcast – Boron and Decarbonization in the Chemicals Industry

Boron and Decarbonization: To reduce their carbon footprint and make the world cleaner, many chemical industry companies are embracing decarbonization strategies. What can the chemical sector do to contribute significantly to climate change by reducing greenhouse gases from the chemicals manufactured using fossil fuels?

Today, we will review current practices and regulations in an industry-wide drive to meet goals and look at how the latest technological breakthroughs play a pivotal role in shifting toward more sustainable and eco-friendly infrastructure.

apple
ADVANCED ENERGY, INDUSTRY SECTORS

Boron and U.S. Rare Earths

The U.S. is boosting the stockpile of its rare earth minerals such as cobalt and lithium. Why? Partly to reduce dependence on China and partly to have a strategic policy towards rare earth sourcing and distribution. Rare earths are valuable resources used in E.V. batteries and decarbonization. What is the stance on boron and U.S. rare earths as a critical mineral?

Food Security
FOOD SECURITY

What is Food Security

"Food security is a condition that exists when all people have, at all times, physical, social, and economic access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life." The Rome Declaration on World Food Security and the World Food Summit Plan of Action.

Boron Environment Micronutrient 1024x576
BENEFITS, FOOD SECURITY, Human Health

Boron Protects your Body and the Environment

Micronutrients are substances that are needed in small amounts to aid the body's functions and maintain health. These micronutrients not only help protect our bodies from disease but also play an important role in environmental protection. mainly, the role of micronutrients in plant growth and productivity influences its intensity to protect the environment.

Boron Nanotubes BNNT Stability for Electronics

Boron Nanotubes BNNT Stability for Electronics

The Boron Nitrate Nanotube is a novel material with unique properties, including high thermal conductivity and chemical stability. It has been used in many applications such as heat transfer fluids, lubricants, coatings for semiconductors, catalysts, etc., but its use in batteries was not explored until recently. The first report of the application of BNNTs in Li-ion batteries appeared only in 2020.

9 Key Future Technologies Boron and Borates

9 Key Future Technologies Boron and Borates

Borates are ubiquitous, in that they exist all over the world. It is not unusual to find them anywhere from natural waters and soils on earth where plants grow. For most plant life cannot survive without boron, it's important for humans as well to take care of this element by regulating their use of fertilizers with potassium or sodium nitrate which can affect soil pH levels. Borates are also essential to a vast array of products we use on an everyday basis.

Fluids, Fuel, Lubricants and Additives

Fluids, Fuel, Lubricants and Additives

Fluids, Fuel, Lubricants and Additives - Boron has been proven to be an excellent lubricant for engine components. University of Utah researchers found that parts coated with boron had 50% less friction than others. This may result in significant fuel savings and increased engine durability. Boron should become an essential ingredient in fuels and engine technology once its potential benefits are further clarified.