- Uranium looms as big winner among resources under Trump https://www.ft.com/content/8cc71ce0-d802-11e6-944b-e7eb37a6aa8e
- A multinational uranium miner persuaded the federal government to drop a requirement forcing it to show that a mine in outback Western Australiawould not make any species extinct before it could go ahead. Canadian-based Cameco argued in November 2017 the condition proposed by the government for the Yeelirrie uranium mine, in goldfields north of Kalgoorlie, would be too difficult to meet. The mine was approved on 10 April, the day before the federal election was called, with a different set of conditions relating to protecting species. Environmental groups say the approval was politically timed and at odds with a 2016 recommendation by the WA Environmental Protection Authoritythat the mine be blocked due to the risk to about 140 subterranean stygofauna and troglofauna species – tiny animals that live in groundwater and air pockets above the water table.https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/apr/27/uranium-miner-coaxed-government-to-water-down-extinction-safeguards
氦（希臘語：ἥλιος，轉寫：Helios，直譯：太陽；Helium；舊譯作氜） Helium (from Greek: ἥλιος, romanized: Helios, lit. 'Sun') is a chemical element with the symbol He and atomic number 2. It is a colorless, odorless, tasteless, non-toxic, inert, monatomic gas, the first in the noble gas group in the periodic table. Its boiling point is the lowest among all the elements. Helium is the second lightest and second most abundant element in the observable universe (hydrogen is the lightest and most abundant).
- uses
- https://www.bbc.com/news/business-49715838 If you want to buy a helium-filled balloon for a celebration, then it's likely you'll be paying a bit more for the privilege."Prices just keep going up and up," says Steve Durnford, director of family business Balloons of London.It's also important in deep sea diving and in scientific research, as well as for the production of computer chips and liquid crystal displays such as TV screens.There's no central wholesale price for the gas, because it is not traded on global markets.Phil Kornbluth, the founder of Kornbluth Helium Consulting, which advises clients on commercial aspects of the global helium business, says the "price has gone up an awful lot in a short space of time".auction of crude helium in August last year.The national helium reserve is now one of the biggest suppliers of helium. It was originally set up as a strategic store for supplying gas to US airships, but has auctioned its supplies annually to private industry since 2013. However, this was the last such auction until 2021.
- Helium is an inert gas, which means that it does not react with other substances. It has the lowest boiling point of any element at -269C and a low density, which is why it is used to make items float
- It is used in the space industry to keep satellite instruments cool and clean out rocket engines. It was also used to cool the liquid oxygen and hydrogen that powered the Apollo space vehicles
- Helium is used as a cooling medium for the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) and the superconducting magnets in medical MRI scanners
- Helium is often used to fill party balloons, weather balloons and airships because of its low density
- A mixture of 80% helium and 20% oxygen is used by deep-sea divers and others working under pressurised conditions
钒Vanadium is a chemical element with symbol V and atomic number 23. It is a hard, silvery-grey, ductile, and malleable transition metal. The elemental metal is rarely found in nature, but once isolated artificially, the formation of an oxide layer (passivation) somewhat stabilizes the free metal against further oxidation. Andrés Manuel del Río discovered compounds of vanadium in 1801 in Mexico by analyzing a new lead-bearing mineral he called "brown lead", and presumed its qualities were due to the presence of a new element, which he named erythronium (derived from Greek for "red") since, upon heating, most of the salts turned red. Four years later, however, he was (erroneously) convinced by other scientists that erythronium was identical to chromium. Chlorides of vanadium were generated in 1830 by Nils Gabriel Sefström who thereby proved that a new element was involved, which he named "vanadium" after the Scandinavian goddess of beauty and fertility, Vanadís (Freyja). Both names were attributed to the wide range of colors found in vanadium compounds. Del Rio's lead mineral was later renamed vanadinite for its vanadium content. In 1867 Henry Enfield Roscoe obtained the pure element. Vanadium occurs naturally in about 65 minerals and in fossil fuel deposits. It is produced in China and Russia from steel smelter slag; other countries produce it either from magnetite directly, flue dust of heavy oil, or as a byproduct of uranium mining. It is mainly used to produce specialty steel alloys such as high-speed tool steels. The most important industrial vanadium compound, vanadium pentoxide, is used as a catalyst for the production of sulfuric acid.
- https://www.ft.com/content/4f9fddf4-d510-11e8-a854-33d6f82e62f8 Surging prices for vanadium, a niche metal used to harden steel, have been a boon for London-listed Bushveld Minerals this year, helping fuel a share price rally amid a broader industry pullback. Now the South African company wants to target vanadium’s growing use in another industry: batteries, with an ambitious target to manufacture the technology as the country’s electricity grid moves away from coal-powered generation. But Bushveld faces a conundrum: while higher vanadium prices are good for miners, they are detrimental to battery makers, who need to further reduce their costs to make them economic for use on electricity grids. To solve this Bushveld hopes to lease the metal to battery companies as well as assemble the batteries in South Africa. It wants to build a $10m plant to produce battery electrolyte, backed by the state-owned Industrial Development Corporation. Under this model Bushveld guarantees a supply of vanadium at a fixed price in return for an annual fee and smaller upfront payment. When the battery comes to the end of its life after about 20 years, Bushveld receives the vanadium back, which it can then re-sell. The vanadium is completely re-usable, it says.
- china
- 湘西土家族苗族自治州有豐富的山地資源和礦產資源，被譽為 「野生動植物資源天然寶庫」和 「華中動植物基因庫」；錳 礦、鉛鋅礦儲量分別居全國第二、第三，釩礦遍及全州，素有 「錳都釩海」之稱。http://hk.hkcd.com/pdf/202011/1110/HA09B10CZB5_HKCD.pdf
Palladium is a chemical element with symbol Pd and atomic number 46. It is a rare and lustrous silvery-white metal discovered in 1803 by William Hyde Wollaston. He named it after the asteroid Pallas, which was itself named after the epithet of the Greek goddess Athena, acquired by her when she slew Pallas. Palladium, platinum, rhodium, ruthenium, iridium and osmium form a group of elements referred to as the platinum group metals (PGMs). These have similar chemical properties, but palladium has the lowest melting point and is the least dense of them. More than half the supply of palladium and its congener platinum is used in catalytic converters, which convert as much as 90% of the harmful gases in automobile exhaust (hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide, and nitrogen dioxide) into less noxious substances (nitrogen, carbon dioxide and water vapor). Palladium is also used in electronics, dentistry, medicine, hydrogen purification, chemical applications, groundwater treatment, and jewelry. Palladium is a key component of fuel cells, which react hydrogen with oxygen to produce electricity, heat, and water. Ore deposits of palladium and other PGMs are rare. The most extensive deposits have been found in the norite belt of the Bushveld Igneous Complex covering the Transvaal Basin in South Africa; the Stillwater Complex in Montana, United States; the Sudbury Basin and Thunder Bay District of Ontario, Canada; and the Norilsk Complex in Russia. Recycling is also a source, mostly from scrapped catalytic converters. The numerous applications and limited supply sources result in considerable investment interest.
- 鈀金廣泛用於降低汽車廢氣排放的催化器，過去大半年價格不斷攀升，去年十二月更超越黃金，成為價格最高的貴金屬。今年二月鈀金價格首次升穿每安士1,500美元，之後一個月內突破1,600美元，上月廿一日曾高見1,614.88美元。不過，現貨鈀金價格上月底三日之間暴瀉17%，單周跌11%，逾三年最慘，淡友紛紛形容鈀金泡沫終於爆破。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/finance/20190423/00202_006.html- ft 24jan2020 london palladium industry group warns over extremely turbulent trading
銠（舊譯錴） Rhodium (Greek rhodon (ῥόδον) meaning "rose") is a chemical element with the symbol Rh and atomic number 45. It is an ultra-rare, silvery-white, hard, corrosion-resistant, and chemically inert transition metal. It is a noble metal and a member of the platinum group. It has only one naturally occurring isotope, 103Rh. Naturally occurring rhodium is usually found as free metal, as an alloy with similar metals, and rarely as a chemical compound in minerals such as bowieite and rhodplumsite. It is one of the rarest and most valuable precious metals.Rhodium is found in platinum or nickel ores together with the other members of the platinum group metals. It was discovered in 1803 by William Hyde Wollaston in one such ore, and named for the rose color of one of its chlorine compounds.用作高科技仪器的防磨涂料和催化剂、铑铂合金用于生产热电偶。也用于镀在车前灯反射镜、电话中继器、钢笔尖、内燃機車輛的觸媒轉換器及白金首饰等。威爾金森催化劑是一種铑的配合物，可用于烯烃的氢化还原。在核反应中用含铑的探测仪测量中子流水平。还可用于首饰和装饰品以及高級音響用端口的鍍層，一般會先鍍一層銀再鍍一層铑，因铑的惰性能達到防止氧化、抗磨損的效果。电镀镀层铑主要由自然铑提炼而成，是一种稀少的贵金属。颜色为银白色， 金属光泽，不透明。硬度4~4.5，相对密度12.5。熔点高，为1955℃。 化学性质稳定。由于铑金耐腐蚀，而且光泽好，因此主要用于电镀业，将其电镀在其它金属表面，镀层坚固耐磨，反光效果好。
鎢 Tungsten, or wolfram, is a chemical element with symbol W and atomic number 74. The name tungsten comes from the former Swedish name for the tungstatemineral scheelite, tung sten or "heavy stone".[10] Tungsten is a rare metal found naturally on Earth almost exclusively combined with other elements in chemical compounds rather than alone. It was identified as a new element in 1781 and first isolated as a metal in 1783. Its important ores include wolframite and scheelite. The free element is remarkable for its robustness, especially the fact that it has the highest melting point of all the elements discovered, melting at 3422 °C (6192 °F, 3695 K). It also has the highest boiling point, at 5930 °C (10706 °F, 6203 K).[11] Its density is 19.3 times that of water, comparable to that of uranium and gold, and much higher (about 1.7 times) than that of lead.The name "tungsten" (from the Swedish tung sten, "heavy stone") is used in English, French, and many other languages as the name of the element, but not in the Nordic countries. "Tungsten" was the old Swedish name for the mineral scheelite. "Wolfram" (or "volfram") is used in most European (especially Germanic, Spanish and Slavic) languages and is derived from the mineral wolframite, which is the origin of the chemical symbol W. The name "wolframite" is derived from German "wolf rahm" ("wolf soot" or "wolf cream"), the name given to tungsten by Johan Gottschalk Wallerius in 1747. This, in turn, derives from Latin "lupi spuma", the name Georg Agricola used for the element in 1546, which translates into English as "wolf's froth" and is a reference to the large amounts of tin consumed by the mineral during its extraction.
- singtao 21mar19 tsang fan kwong article on the mine in 沙螺灣 related to this metal; Tungsten was discovered in Sha Lo Wan, and its ore was quarried in the area in the 1950s, leading to a population increase, which reached 4,000 in 1971.
titanium
- https://www.quora.com/If-titanium-is-so-strong-why-isnt-it-used-instead-of-steel-for-buildings
Diamond
- undersea mining
- https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/africa/a-new-frontier-for-diamond-mining-the-ocean/2017/07/01/a04d5fbe-0e40-4508-894d-b3456a28f24c_story.html
- http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/09/11/as-the-land-dries-up-diamond-mining-companies-are-turning-their/
- cheap substitute
- Cubic zirconia (CZ) is the cubic crystalline form of zirconium dioxide (ZrO2). The synthesized material is hard, optically flawless and usually colorless, but may be made in a variety of different colors. It should not be confused withzircon, which is a zirconium silicate (ZrSiO4). It is sometimes erroneously called "cubic zirconium". Because of its low cost, durability, and close visual likeness to diamond, synthetic cubic zirconia has remained the most gemologicallyand economically important competitor for diamonds since commercial production began in 1976. Its main competitor as a synthetic gemstone is a more recently cultivated material, synthetic moissanite.
- https://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/de-beers-synthetic-diamonds-how-to-make-sale-announcement-jewellery-a8383716.html
- https://www.ft.com/content/1053ecca-136e-11e9-a581-4ff78404524e The former chief executive of the world’s third-largest diamond miner is launching a company making lab-grown diamonds, in the latest challenge to the mining industry from man-made stones. Patrick Evans, who left Canada’s Dominion Diamond in December, will pick a location in the US with access to cheap solar power to produce lab-grown diamonds targeting the bridal market. The development comes after a decision by the world’s largest diamond miner De Beers to start selling lab-grown diamond jewellery in September for the first time in its 130-year history. The miner is spending $94m on a plant in Oregon to produce the diamonds using cheap hydropower, but is targeting the fashion jewellery market rather than engagement diamonds.
- china daily 29jul19 china's fake diamonds a real threat to mines
- 美國有大學近日研發出一種技術，能夠以很少的能量，將化石燃料中的鑽石類物質轉化成為純鑽石，有望更快和更方便製造人工鑽。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20200229/00180_051.html
- 由澳洲國家大學（ANU）、皇家墨爾本理工大學（RMIT）及美國田納西州的橡樹嶺國家實驗室（ORNL）科研人員組成的團隊，對一種有「新鑽石」之稱的隕石礦物藍絲黛爾石（Lonsdaleite﹚加工。藍絲黛爾石的碳結晶結構有別於一般鑽石，硬度亦高出58%。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20201121/00180_041.html
- 最近全球大型珠寶商潘多拉(Pandora)宣布，將停止 使用開採的天然鑽石來製作珠寶，新產品將改用實驗 室生產的人造鑽石。總部位於丹麥哥本哈根的潘多 拉，生產的珠寶首飾量位列世界前茅，去年生產8500 萬件珠寶，售出5萬顆鑽石。該公司決定棄用天然鑽 石，改用人造鑽石，目標是 「通過可負擔、可持續發 展的產品來改變鑽石珠寶市場」，可說轟動珠寶業 界。 要知道，全球鑽石產業主要掌控在猶太人手上，尤 其受鑽石巨企De Beers左右，很長時間鑽石價格一直 居高不下，但到了上世紀70年代初就發生變化。一位 前蘇聯科學家 V. V. Osiko，在莫斯科列別捷夫物理 研究所發明了用人工合成方法，製造出人造鑽石，在 1976年開始逐步投入商業生產。 鑽石升值有限 由於人造鑽石合成方法，由前蘇聯發明及最先使 用，故人造鑽石又稱為蘇聯石、蘇聯鑽、鋯立晶、方 晶鋯石、高碳鑽、泛美鑽、俄羅斯鑽及碳鑽等。近年 天然鑽石價格升不上去，與人造鑽石的競爭脫不了關 係，據珠寶行業的朋友透露，天然鑽石的成本約相當 於人造鑽石的十倍以上。 必勝有位老友大戶菲立投資珠寶行業多年，經營高 檔品牌天然鑽石生意，他慨嘆道近年人造鑽石越來越 多，生意越來越難撈！菲立提供了一些鑽石行情數據 圖給必勝研究，原來自 2007 年至 2019 年，各類天然 鑽石的價格均從高位反覆回落。同期由於2008年金融 海嘯後，全球央行爭相量化寬鬆，地產、股市及各類 投資產品價格都急升，黃金價格同期升了155%，鑽石 雖然亦有升幅，但升幅普遍低於三四成，明顯跑輸其 他投資產品。由於珠寶業界持有眾多鑽石，庫存沒有 多大升值，當然牙痛咁聲。http://hk.hkcd.com/pdf/202105/0510/HA04510CEMA_HKCD.pdf
- http://www.economist.com/news/international/21717369-production-worlds-most-valuable-gem-may-be-about-peak-report-de-beerss
- The Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS) is the process established in 2003 to prevent "conflict diamonds" from entering the mainstream rough diamondmarket by United Nations General Assembly Resolution 55/56 following recommendations in the Fowler Report. The process was set up "to ensure that diamond purchases were not financing violence by rebel movements and their allies seeking to undermine legitimate governments." The effectiveness of the process has been brought into question by organizations such as Global Witness, which pulled out of the scheme on 5 December 2011, claiming it has failed in its purpose and does not provide markets with assurance that the diamonds are not conflict diamonds.
- canada based nonprofit organisation impact (which until recently was known as partnership africa canada announced it is leaving the scheme (solitaire international jan18 issue)
Gold
- http://sputniknews.com/infographics/20141128/1015281306.html European countries repatriate gold bullion reserves from overseas vault
- reserves held by different countries
- http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20160225/PDF/b2_screen.pdf 印度黃金進口2016年 1月大漲85%。印度人持有約2萬噸黃金，佔全球黃 金約十分一，為目前全球黃金需求的四分一。根據 官方數據，黃金進口升至291億美元，相對一年前 的157億美元為高。根據印度央行，該國外匯儲備 由去年1月至今年1月期間，增加10%。 根據國際貨幣基金資料，部分央行增持黃金， 其中包括哈薩克斯坦和俄羅斯，而減持黃金的有加 拿大央行。哈薩克斯坦的黃金儲備由去年12月份的 710萬盎司，增持至720萬盎司。同期，俄羅斯由 455萬盎司增加至462萬盎司，加拿大則由5萬盎司 減至2萬盎司
- 德國中央銀行擁有僅次於美國的全球第二大黃金儲備，現今價值高達1,170億歐元(約1.12萬億港元)，但因在上世紀冷戰期間擔心前蘇聯發動侵略，以及基於其他歷史原因，這批黃金儲備一直存放於美國聯儲局、英倫銀行及法國央行。由於德國國民要求黃金運返國內的聲音日益高漲，德國央行去年秘密將半數黃金運回德國，並將其中8條金條於錢幣博物館展示，開放予公眾參觀直至9月。http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2018/04/23/a23-0423.pdf
- https://www.ft.com/content/8148a8f0-2479-11e9-8ce6-5db4543da632 Central bank buying of gold reached its highest levels for almost half a century last year as Russia, Turkey and Kazakhstan boosted purchases to shift their reserves away from the US dollar. Central banks bought a net $27bn worth of gold, driven by Russia, whose net purchases were the highest on record, according to the World Gold Council, an industry-backed body. Volumes came to 651.5 tonnes, an increase of 74 per cent on the previous year. The buying reflects continued efforts by emerging market central banks to diversify their large holdings of dollar reserves in the face of rising global trade tensions. The share of central bank currency reserves held in the dollar fell close to a five-year low in the third quarter of 2018, according to the International Monetary Fund.
- ICE gold price fixing
- http://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/finance/20150623/00202_022.html 洲際交易所（ICE）公布，摩根士丹利及渣打（02888）周一起加入其黃金定價機制，令參與的銀行增至十家，建行（00939）亦即將成為中國第二家加入該機制的銀行。ICE負責管理倫敦黃金市場協會（LBMA）基準金價，為全球廣泛採用。
- http://www.chinadailyasia.com/business/2015-06/26/content_15282527.html Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd has become the latest Chinese bank to consider joining the auction process that sets gold prices in London. ICBC may join the London process directly or through its United Kingdom-based Standard Bank Plc unit, Zhou Ming, general manager of the precious metals department at ICBC, told the London Bullion Market Association Conference on Thursday in Shanghai. Bank of China Ltd last week became the first Chinese bank among the 10 participants in the twice-daily auction.
- shariah gold standard
- 據路透社報道，工商銀行(1398)已經正式獲准加入倫敦金銀市場協會(LBMA)黃金價格機制，成為LBMA黃金定盤商。http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2016/04/12/b02-0412.pdf
- https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-12-05/gold-standard-approved-for-islamic-finance-opening-new-market-iwbytkoj
- http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/news/article-3736608/Battle-Britain-s-4-trillion-gold-trade-Banks-demand-trading-floor-bullion.html The world's biggest banks are gearing up for a bitter fight to control London's centuries-old gold market worth £4trillion. The way of trading gold has not changed in generations, with the global price set daily and transactions being carried out directly between buyers and sellers. It is only in the last 18 months that this has been done electronically, rather than over the phone.
- scmp 4oct19 gold supply fear brings call for more exploring
- india
- economist 16mar19 "lacklustre" indians may at last be falling out of love with the yellow metal
- http://www.scmp.com/business/money/investment-products/article/1941353/hong-kong-gain-china-streamlines-cross-border Gold trading between Hong Kong and China is expected to rise with the People’s Bank of China announcing on Wednesday a rule change from June 1 to simplify cross-border shipment procedures that would help speed up gold imports into the country. Companies that frequently import and export gold and gold products will be allowed to apply for a single permit that can be used for up to 12 shipments, the central bank said in a statement on its website. China currently has only 15 authorised gold importers, including major banks such ICBC, which need to register every single shipment.
- ft 17sep19 gold moves out of hk to singapore and switzerland
- in arts
- https://www.sothebys.com/en/articles/a-short-history-of-gold-through-the-ages
Orichalcum
- https://www.quora.com/What-were-some-famous-historical-myths-that-turned-out-to-be-true Literally “mountain-copper”, this mysterious metal was said to be easily malleable, durable, non-oxidating, non-perishing and having a beautiful gold-like shine. It is mentioned in several ancient writings, including the story of Atlantis in the Critias of Plato. Within the dialogue, Critias (460 – 403 BC) claims that orichalcum had been considered second only to gold in value and had been found and mined in many parts of Atlantis in ancient times, but that by Critias' own time orichalcum was known only by name.
Aphrodite was said to have ear-rings made of orichalcum. In 2015, a shipwreck was found in the Mediterranean, carrying merchandise and also ingots of metal whose description fit perfectly that of orichalcum.
Silver
- history
- Today jachymov is a small Czech town nestling in a valley on the German border. In 1534, though, it was Joachimsthal, the largest city in Bohemia apart from Prague and home to the almighty thaler—a weighty silver coin that became the de facto currency of Europe and the New World. The thaler lent an English version of its name, “dollar”, to the money of the United States and a score of other jurisdictions. Joachimsthal’s silver rush began in 1512. By the middle of the century the local mines were the most prolific in Europe. Joachimsthal’s mines left another legacy, however: lead. Silver and lead often co-mineralise, and refining silver from its ore releases some of that lead into the atmosphere, where winds can carry it far and wide. Lead transported in this way to the Arctic often ends up trapped in layers of glacial ice. That is where a team of researchers led by Joseph McConnell of the Desert Research Institute, in Reno, Nevada found it, in ice cores pulled from glaciers in Greenland and Siberia. https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/2019/07/11/arctic-lead-levels-shed-new-light-on-europes-history
- 上世紀70、80年代的亨特兄弟（Hunt Brothers）炒銀在商品期貨和現貨史上可謂赫赫有名，他們憑着強大的財力和關係，近乎壟斷了白銀市場，促使銀價飛漲，最終引發監管機構干預，慘淡收場。1970年代初，當白銀價格還在每安士2美元左右徘徊的時候，亨特兄弟已看好白銀在工業上用途廣泛，企圖通過操縱白銀市場獲利。1973年12月，亨特兄弟已經購買了價值2,000萬美元的白銀現貨，並以每安士2.9美元的成本購買了3,500萬安士的白銀期貨，成為全球最大的白銀市場玩家之一。沒想到的是，當時墨西哥政府也囤積了5,000萬安士的白銀，購入成本均在2美元以下，並認為以當時6.7美元的價格利潤已相當可觀，遂沽貨獲利，導致銀價跌回4美元左右。亨特家族雖然沒有虧本，但帳面利潤大減，意識到有需要借助外來的戰略投資者幫忙，並游說沙特阿拉伯政府和王室支持。價格癲升 監管逼平倉亨特兄弟繼續大量吸納白銀現貨和期貨，到了1970年代末期，直接控制的白銀現貨可能達到幾億安士。1979年夏天，亨特兄弟發動攻勢，向紐約和芝加哥的期貨交易所下達了累計逾4,000萬安士的買入指令。人們發現市場上出現了巨額買盤，銀價很快從6美元上升到11美元。有趣的是，當亨特兄弟正在操縱白銀的消息傳開之後，白銀價格反而繼續上漲，許多小投機者湧進了市場，白銀的價格日趨瘋狂，到1979年底突破40美元。1980年1月，白銀漲至歷史盤中高位的50.35美元。在短短12個月內，銀價上漲了8倍；從此前10年算起，銀價更漲了25倍。面對銀價急漲，聯儲局、紐約商品期交所（COMEX）和商品期貨交易委員會（CFTC）終於出招，迫使亨特兄弟平倉，銀價亦在短時間內從高峰急瀉。銀市崩潰，亨特兄弟最終於1988年9月宣布破產，二人其後被控操縱白銀市場，被罰款及禁止再涉足商品市場交易。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/finance/20210202/00202_003.html
- http://www.scmp.com/business/commodities/article/1574143/silver-market-sets-scene-new-benchmarking-electronic-era
- http://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/finance/20160309/00202_019.html 建行（00939）成為倫敦金銀市場協會白銀機制（LBMA Silver Price）的新成員，為首家參與倫敦白銀定價的中資銀行。
-market players
- 投資白銀逾20年、現年58歲的卡普蘭透過投資公司Electrum Group，持有多家開採白銀的礦企，坐擁達10億安士未經開採的白銀。他的一隻銀礦股Gatos Silver，本月1日股價曾爆升82%，一度令Electrum帳面勁賺2.65億美元（約20.67億港元）。卡普蘭表示，巴菲特當年炒銀間接令他發迹，之後他轉炒其他商品如白金、天然氣及黃金，並成立Electrum，獲阿布扎比及科威特的主權財富基金入股。旗下銀礦部署上市他最近10多年一直唱好白銀，但卻遭市場冷落，銀價自2012年起表現呆滯，但Electrum仍悄悄地建立白銀礦企王國，等待銀價反彈時機。其中，在墨西哥擁有兩億安士白銀儲備的Gatos，去年10月紐約掛牌上市，集資1.5億美元，而位於美國愛達荷州的Sunshine銀礦數年內亦有類似的上市計劃。他又透露公司正計發展墨西哥另一個名為Celaya銀礦，蘊藏量至少8億安士，為全球其中一個最大私人擁有銀礦。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/finance/20210217/00202_013.html
- usa
- 美國最大貴金屬零售商之一JM Bullion也打算於今年6月，在達拉斯啟用面積達2.5萬平方呎的倉庫，以儲存白銀和其他貴金屬。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/finance/20210413/00202_006.html
- [tr berg] silver mine at kongsberg was one of the largest forest owners
- singapore
- https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/finance/20210413/00202_006.html新加坡交易商Silver Bullion正在當地樟宜國際機場附近建造一座超級倉庫，預計明年上半年竣工後，可存放1.5萬噸實物白銀。該倉庫現時僅能儲存約400噸，未來充裕的空間反映交易商押注白銀打後數年可能迎來價量齊升的榮景。
iron
- ft 25jun19 supply squeeze in iron ore fuels a red-hot run for prices
- An embattled Israeli diamond tycoon, Beny Steinmetz, surrendered his claims to Simandou in February, after ten years of legal battles with Guinea’s government and Rio Tinto, an Anglo-Australian mining giant. Simandou North was put up for tender. Last month the winner was announced: smb, a joint-venture owned by a consortium which includes Winning Shipping, a Singaporean maritime firm, ums, a Guinean-French logistics company, and Shandong Weiqiao, a big Chinese aluminium producer. The entity, in which Guinea’s government holds a 10% stake, will pay $15bn to develop the site, build a new deepwater port and a 650km railway to link the two. Guinea’s parliament is expected to wave the deal through in the coming weeks.The successful bid is a coup for smb, which is barely known outside the west African nation. It is also a departure from smb’s previous business—bauxite. The firm was founded in 2014 to meet China’s voracious demand for the ore, from which aluminium is smelted. Guinea has a quarter of the world’s proven reserves of the stuff. In 2018 smb exported 36m tonnes of it, worth around $2.1bn, mostly to China, which imports about half its bauxite from smb. Winning’s vessels ferry about 200 shiploads a year to Chinese ports. The private joint-venture keeps its finances close to its chest but Bob Adam, an expert on mining in Guinea, reckons that after taxes, royalties and operating costs smb is making about $800m profit a year. “They are now the most significant economic enterprise in Guinea,” he says—and the only one among the world’s biggest bauxite producers with a direct link to China.
A shift into iron ore presents challenges. Building a port and a railway through the country’s malaria-infested forest will take years and could cost much more than the estimated $10bn. smb will have to co-ordinate with Rio Tinto and Chalco, a Hong Kong-listed company controlled by Chinalco, a Chinese state-run firm, which jointly control Simandou’s southern blocks. The Boké region (the b in the firm’s name) has been plagued by riots. Many local residents are angered by lack of access to clean water or health care. But China is keen on Simandou’s high-grade iron ore, which emits less pollution when processed, says Eric Humphery-Smith from Verisk Maplecroft, a risk consultancy. It also wants to lock in supply. And it can afford to wait.
- Australia’s share of China’s iron ore imports may be at risk following the opening of four new ports that can operate berths for extra-large ships, opening up new possibilities for greater imports from Brazil and Africa.Very large ore carriers (VLOC) are bigger than many skyscrapers and can carry more than twice the cargo of normal iron ore transport ships, up to 400,000 tonnes, meaning they reduce transport costs and delivery time. This will increase competition for Australian mines, which have so far benefited from their closer proximity, with China accounting for nearly 90 per cent of all of Australia’s iron ore exports so far this year. The four new VLOC terminals approved by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) are in Rizhao, Yantai and Lanshan in Shandong province, and Sanduao in Fujian province, according to Chinese metals market data specialist Mysteel Global, and add to seven already operating in China.But despite the tensions, Australia’s iron ore trade with China continues to expand in tandem with China’s rising demand for steel to supply the new infrastructure projects that are part of the government’s stimulus plan to support the economy.Australian iron ore exports to China rose 8 per cent to A$9.92 billion (US$7 billion) in June, the highest monthly export value on record, according to preliminary data released on Friday by the Australia Bureau of Statistics.The total value of all Australian iron ore exports in the fiscal year to June 2020 rose to over A$100 billion (US$71 billion), representing more than a quarter of Australia’s total goods exported.Brazil mining giant Vale, the third largest diversified miner and one of the top iron producers globally, were behind the orders for the original VLOC carriers and so are often called Valemax ships. As of March, there were 66 Valemax carriers in operation and two under construction.The use of the large ore vessels not only allows the shipment of larger amounts of iron ore, therefore lowering logistics costs, but enables Vale to speed up the delivery of iron ore to steel mill customers in China and also increases its ability to blend different grades of iron ore in China instead of in Brazil to meet customer demand, Mysteel senior analyst Hongmei Li said.Other iron miners with long routes, including those in Africa, would also benefit from the VLOC terminals, Mysteel said, but cautioned that as such miners were a small group, there would not be a sudden flood of iron ore exports to China. But, according to Mysteel, while Vale and Chinese producers in Africa are set to benefit from the increase in VLOC capacity, they are unlikely to overtake the world’s top producers in Australia including BHP, Rio Tinto and Fortescue Metals. Vale’s iron ore production is around 400 million tonnes a year, while BHP, Rio Tinto and
Fortescue together produce over 800 million tonnes a year.https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3094610/australias-spot-chinas-top-source-iron-ore-under-threat-new
rare earth
- https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3011108/explainer-used-iphones-guided-missiles-does-chinas-dominance Rare earth materials are a group of 17 elements on the periodic table: cerium (Ce), dysprosium (Dy), erbium (Er), europium (Eu), gadolinium (Gd), holmium (Ho), lanthanum (La), lutetium (Lu), neodymium (Nd), praseodymium (Pr), promethium (Pm), samarium (Sm), scandium (Sc), terbium (Tb), thulium (Tm), ytterbium (Yb), and yttrium (Y).The materials are found in a variety of high-tech devices, such as mobile phones, windmills and hybrid vehicles.Rare earths are actually more plentiful in the earth’s crust than precious metals such as gold and platinum, but they are “rare” because they usually exist in nature as compounds fused with other metals. Refining and extracting them in commercially viable quantities are expensive endeavours, especially in jurisdictions with strict environmental and effluent standards. That makes them scarce, and therefore rare. Rare earth deposits exist in China, California, Australia, Brazil, Burundi, India, Malaysia, Myanmar, Russia, Thailand and Vietnam, with global deposit reserves estimated at 120 million tonnes. The US was the world’s largest producer of rare earths for decades, until the 1980s. Since the Chinese government undertook a concerted effort to exploit the country’s reserves of rare earths - mined and processed in Inner Mongolia, Jiangxi, Shandong, Sichuan, Guangdong, Fujian, Hunan, Yunnan and Guangxi - China has accounted for more than 90 per cent of the world’s production, according to the US Geological Survey. Last year, China mined about 120,000 tonnes of rare earth elements, or about 71 per cent of global output, following an increase in production in the US, according to the Geological Survey.
- minerals
- cerium oxide, bastnasite concentrate scmp 17jun19
- https://www.ft.com/content/2c3dea3e-3fc2-11e7-82b6-896b95f30f58 A battle is heating up for control of a bankrupt mine that is the only significant US source of the rare earth elements used in advanced electronics and some defence applications. A group led by a former nursing home operator and Switzerland-based private equity fund will vie with a team of US hedge funds and a Chinese rare earths company in an auction set to decide the fate of the bankrupt Molycorp-owned mine on June 14. At stake is whether the US can successfully mine its own resources of rare earths, which are increasingly being used in electric vehicle magnets as well as wind turbines — and end its reliance on Chinese supplies.
- Rare earths demand vaults ahead fuelled by cars ft 12jun17
- 美國、澳洲日前達成共識，雙方同意在礦產資源、包括稀土的勘探和開採方面加強合作。分析普遍認為，美國此舉是為了擺脫在重要戰略資源上為中國所「控制」。http://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20180226/00192_001.html
- 中國科考隊員近日在東南太平洋海域首次發現大面積富稀土沉積。這一發現刷新了中國和國際上深海稀土資源調查研究的新紀錄。科考隊已在東南太平洋深海盆地內初步劃分出了面積約150萬平方公里的富稀土沉積區。http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2018/04/01/a09-0401.pdf
- 日本海洋研究開發機構和東京大學的團隊周二宣布，發現在太平洋南鳥島近海的五千米深海底，埋藏逾一千六百萬噸稀土資源，可供全球使用數百年。http://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20180412/00180_027.html
- 日本海洋研究開發機構和東京大學的團隊周二宣布，發現在太平洋南鳥島近海的五千米深海底，埋藏逾一千六百萬噸稀土資源，可供全球使用數百年。http://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20180412/00180_027.html
- 與此同時日媒報道，中國未經日方同意，多次派遣海洋調查船進入日本專屬經濟區，以海底調查為名，疑偷挖海底熱水礦床、稀土、捕撈稀有深海生物。http://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20180416/00178_013.html
- https://hk.lifestyle.appledaily.com/lifestyle/columnist/%E5%B7%A6%E4%B8%81%E5%B1%B1/daily/article/20190521/20683154 稀土作武器
- 美媒引述官員消息，國防部已與非洲馬拉維的礦產公司「Mkango Resources Ltd」會談，國防後勤局（DLA）的材料工程師賈森‧尼表示：「我們希望稀土供應多元化，而不是單一供應來源。」DLA也有與布隆迪稀土供應商開會。美國80%稀土進口來自中國。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20190607/00180_002.html
- The United States will team up with Canada and Australia to help countries around the world develop their reserves of minerals like lithium, copper and cobalt, the US State Department said on Tuesday, part of a multipronged strategy to reduce global reliance on China for materials crucial to hi-tech industries.https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3014111/reduce-reliance-china-us-will-team-canada-and-australia-boost-output-key
- 6月18日，河北省稀土功能材料製造業創新中心成立大會在北京舉行，該中心落戶在河北雄安新區，將打造以京津冀為核心，輻射全國的世界級稀土先進製造業集群。目前，中心專家委員會擁有21名兩院院士，其創新聯盟涵蓋稀土領域70%國家級研發平台，將致力於突破產業發展急需的短板和弱項，加強創新成果工程化能力，努力升級為國家稀土功能材料製造業創新中心，推動中國從稀土資源優勢向產業優勢最終向戰略優勢轉化。自6月10起，由發改委、工信部、自然資源部分別帶隊，赴多地調研稀土等礦產資源。調研前，國家發展改革委連續召開三場座談會，就推動中國稀土產業高質量發展聽取意見建議。http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20190620/PDF/a17_screen.pdf
- 澳洲防長雷諾茲周一宣布，與美國和英國討論後，澳洲將增加稀土等軍用金屬產量，令盟友可從中國以外獲得礦物。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20190813/00180_007.html
-?! ft 20aug19 us enticed by greenland's rare earth resources
- scmp 26aug19 exports of rare earth magnets to us rise
- https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3024249/trumps-military-rare-earths-drive-opens-doors-new-us-mines-amid-threats “We think our deposit can satisfy to a significant degree defence needs that would involve rare earths,” said Dan McGroarty, head of government affairs of USA Rare Earth – one of the firms vying for government orders and potential funding – in a phone interview.“You will see in the US other companies working to reconstitute [the US’s rare earth] metals making capability.”His company is developing a mining and ore processing project called Round Top in the state of Texas that could produce 15 of the 17 rare earth elements besides almost 9,000 tonnes of lithium a year, according to a preliminary economic study. On July 22, Trump invoked the Defence Production Act prompting the Department of Defence to initiate policies to encourage domestic production of rare earth magnets.The US was the world leader in rare earth production from the mid-1960s to the mid-1990s, after which development of a major project in northern China flooded the international market. Combined with tougher regulation on rare earth processing in the US, the mainstay Mountain Pass mine in California was forced to shut down in 1998.
- https://www.ft.com/content/fc43a3c6-ce0f-11e9-99a4-b5ded7a7fe3f Canberra has identified 15 rare earth and critical mineral projects it aims to champion as part of joint Australia-US efforts to challenge China’s dominance in the supply of materials commonly used in the defence and high-tech industries. A government report published on Tuesday detailed the projects, which have been proposed by more than a dozen mining and metals companies and would require A$5.7bn to develop. They cover critical minerals including rare earths, antimony, magnesium and tungsten — the global processing and supply chains for which are all controlled by China.
- https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3036266/malaysia-signs-new-rare-earths-deal-australian-miner-lynas Australian rare earth mining company Lynas on Monday received a further stamp of approval from Malaysia despite environmental concerns over its operations there, when a government agency inked a deal with the firm to cooperate on more projects. Under the agreement, Lynas, the largest rare earths producer outside China, will work with state agency Mara Corporation to attract downstream rare earth customers to Malaysia and commercialise certain waste residues from Lynas’ plant in Kuantan for use in agriculture.
- 中國工業和信息化部、自然資源部上周五下達稀土開採、冶煉分離總量及鎢礦開採的新指標，強調稀土和鎢是國家嚴格實行生產總量控制管理的產品，任何單位、個人均不得無計劃和超額生產，另外不准採購非法稀土礦產品，使用境外稀土資源需提供完整進口手續。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20191110/00178_004.html
- 美國加強確保稀土供應的穩定。英媒周三報道，美國陸軍計劃出資在國內興建稀土加工廠，作為生產武器的原料。若果成事，這將是自第二次世界大戰研製原子彈後，美軍首次投資在商業規模的稀土生產。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20191212/00180_020.html
- 中國科學院稀 土研究院昨日在江西省贛州市掛牌成立。根據江西省人民政 府與中國科學院雙方協定，中科院稀土研究院籌建周期為 3 年，規劃用地 1,000畝，其中一期建設用地 400畝，建築面 積約 20萬平方米。預計 2021年 12月底前將建成投入使用， 到 2022年人員數量規模將達到 600人至 1,000人。「江西南大門」贛州市稀土資源豐富，素有「稀土王國」之美譽。該市離子型稀土資源儲量佔中國同類稀土資源保有儲量60%以上，在國內外同類型礦種中位居第一。經過幾十年發展，贛州已形成了集礦山採選、分離、冶煉、深加工及應用、資源回收利用、礦山環境治理，以及產品檢測、研發設計、教育培訓等為一體的完整稀土產業體系。但當地稀土創新能力弱、產業層次與稀土資源地位不匹配、生態歷史欠賬較多等問題仍較突出。據介紹，中國科學院稀土研究院將圍繞國家稀土資源發展戰略，加強基礎性研究，突破稀土綠色、高效、高值化利用的科技瓶頸，解決中國在稀土研究領域的重大科學需求；攻克稀土產業關鍵應用技術，加強稀土新材料和高端應用產品研發，延伸產業鏈；擁抱國內外先進科學技術，吸引凝聚優秀創新人才，將該院建成集創新研究、人才培養、產業應用為一體的新型國際研發平台。http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2020/01/11/a13-0111.pdf
- 美國國防部日前決定投資加州一座稀土礦場，尋求減少在稀土加工方面對中國的依賴。稀土礦物是武器系統中電子、激光、磁鐵及其他重要應用所需物料，開採後需要特殊工藝加工。由於美國沒有加工設施，目前只能依賴中國，華府對此表示擔憂。加州的Mountain Pass礦場是美國境內唯一的稀土礦物來源，在此進行開採工作的MP物料公司則是美國唯一的稀土礦企。《華爾街日報》26日報道稱，五角大樓正出資幫助其開發相關加工設施。此外，五角大樓還向澳洲礦企Lynas及其合作夥伴美國化工企業Blue Line撥款，幫助它們在得州建造工廠。相關公司並未透露具體撥款金額，但據報道有資料顯示，五角大樓最多會提供4000萬美元。值得注意的是，MP物料公司近十分之一為中國投資者所有，每年運送超過5萬噸濃縮稀土到中國加工處理。路透社22日報道稱，美國能源部曾以此為理由，要求政府科學家不要與該公司合作。http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20200428/PDF/a24_screen.pdf
- 美媒引述官員消息，國防部已與非洲馬拉維的礦產公司「Mkango Resources Ltd」會談，國防後勤局（DLA）的材料工程師賈森‧尼表示：「我們希望稀土供應多元化，而不是單一供應來源。」DLA也有與布隆迪稀土供應商開會。美國80%稀土進口來自中國。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20190607/00180_002.html
- The United States will team up with Canada and Australia to help countries around the world develop their reserves of minerals like lithium, copper and cobalt, the US State Department said on Tuesday, part of a multipronged strategy to reduce global reliance on China for materials crucial to hi-tech industries.https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3014111/reduce-reliance-china-us-will-team-canada-and-australia-boost-output-key
- 6月18日，河北省稀土功能材料製造業創新中心成立大會在北京舉行，該中心落戶在河北雄安新區，將打造以京津冀為核心，輻射全國的世界級稀土先進製造業集群。目前，中心專家委員會擁有21名兩院院士，其創新聯盟涵蓋稀土領域70%國家級研發平台，將致力於突破產業發展急需的短板和弱項，加強創新成果工程化能力，努力升級為國家稀土功能材料製造業創新中心，推動中國從稀土資源優勢向產業優勢最終向戰略優勢轉化。自6月10起，由發改委、工信部、自然資源部分別帶隊，赴多地調研稀土等礦產資源。調研前，國家發展改革委連續召開三場座談會，就推動中國稀土產業高質量發展聽取意見建議。http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20190620/PDF/a17_screen.pdf
- 澳洲防長雷諾茲周一宣布，與美國和英國討論後，澳洲將增加稀土等軍用金屬產量，令盟友可從中國以外獲得礦物。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20190813/00180_007.html
-?! ft 20aug19 us enticed by greenland's rare earth resources
- scmp 26aug19 exports of rare earth magnets to us rise
- https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3024249/trumps-military-rare-earths-drive-opens-doors-new-us-mines-amid-threats “We think our deposit can satisfy to a significant degree defence needs that would involve rare earths,” said Dan McGroarty, head of government affairs of USA Rare Earth – one of the firms vying for government orders and potential funding – in a phone interview.“You will see in the US other companies working to reconstitute [the US’s rare earth] metals making capability.”His company is developing a mining and ore processing project called Round Top in the state of Texas that could produce 15 of the 17 rare earth elements besides almost 9,000 tonnes of lithium a year, according to a preliminary economic study. On July 22, Trump invoked the Defence Production Act prompting the Department of Defence to initiate policies to encourage domestic production of rare earth magnets.The US was the world leader in rare earth production from the mid-1960s to the mid-1990s, after which development of a major project in northern China flooded the international market. Combined with tougher regulation on rare earth processing in the US, the mainstay Mountain Pass mine in California was forced to shut down in 1998.
- https://www.ft.com/content/fc43a3c6-ce0f-11e9-99a4-b5ded7a7fe3f Canberra has identified 15 rare earth and critical mineral projects it aims to champion as part of joint Australia-US efforts to challenge China’s dominance in the supply of materials commonly used in the defence and high-tech industries. A government report published on Tuesday detailed the projects, which have been proposed by more than a dozen mining and metals companies and would require A$5.7bn to develop. They cover critical minerals including rare earths, antimony, magnesium and tungsten — the global processing and supply chains for which are all controlled by China.
- https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3036266/malaysia-signs-new-rare-earths-deal-australian-miner-lynas Australian rare earth mining company Lynas on Monday received a further stamp of approval from Malaysia despite environmental concerns over its operations there, when a government agency inked a deal with the firm to cooperate on more projects. Under the agreement, Lynas, the largest rare earths producer outside China, will work with state agency Mara Corporation to attract downstream rare earth customers to Malaysia and commercialise certain waste residues from Lynas’ plant in Kuantan for use in agriculture.
- 中國工業和信息化部、自然資源部上周五下達稀土開採、冶煉分離總量及鎢礦開採的新指標，強調稀土和鎢是國家嚴格實行生產總量控制管理的產品，任何單位、個人均不得無計劃和超額生產，另外不准採購非法稀土礦產品，使用境外稀土資源需提供完整進口手續。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20191110/00178_004.html
- 美國加強確保稀土供應的穩定。英媒周三報道，美國陸軍計劃出資在國內興建稀土加工廠，作為生產武器的原料。若果成事，這將是自第二次世界大戰研製原子彈後，美軍首次投資在商業規模的稀土生產。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20191212/00180_020.html
- 中國科學院稀 土研究院昨日在江西省贛州市掛牌成立。根據江西省人民政 府與中國科學院雙方協定，中科院稀土研究院籌建周期為 3 年，規劃用地 1,000畝，其中一期建設用地 400畝，建築面 積約 20萬平方米。預計 2021年 12月底前將建成投入使用， 到 2022年人員數量規模將達到 600人至 1,000人。「江西南大門」贛州市稀土資源豐富，素有「稀土王國」之美譽。該市離子型稀土資源儲量佔中國同類稀土資源保有儲量60%以上，在國內外同類型礦種中位居第一。經過幾十年發展，贛州已形成了集礦山採選、分離、冶煉、深加工及應用、資源回收利用、礦山環境治理，以及產品檢測、研發設計、教育培訓等為一體的完整稀土產業體系。但當地稀土創新能力弱、產業層次與稀土資源地位不匹配、生態歷史欠賬較多等問題仍較突出。據介紹，中國科學院稀土研究院將圍繞國家稀土資源發展戰略，加強基礎性研究，突破稀土綠色、高效、高值化利用的科技瓶頸，解決中國在稀土研究領域的重大科學需求；攻克稀土產業關鍵應用技術，加強稀土新材料和高端應用產品研發，延伸產業鏈；擁抱國內外先進科學技術，吸引凝聚優秀創新人才，將該院建成集創新研究、人才培養、產業應用為一體的新型國際研發平台。http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2020/01/11/a13-0111.pdf
- 美國國防部日前決定投資加州一座稀土礦場，尋求減少在稀土加工方面對中國的依賴。稀土礦物是武器系統中電子、激光、磁鐵及其他重要應用所需物料，開採後需要特殊工藝加工。由於美國沒有加工設施，目前只能依賴中國，華府對此表示擔憂。加州的Mountain Pass礦場是美國境內唯一的稀土礦物來源，在此進行開採工作的MP物料公司則是美國唯一的稀土礦企。《華爾街日報》26日報道稱，五角大樓正出資幫助其開發相關加工設施。此外，五角大樓還向澳洲礦企Lynas及其合作夥伴美國化工企業Blue Line撥款，幫助它們在得州建造工廠。相關公司並未透露具體撥款金額，但據報道有資料顯示，五角大樓最多會提供4000萬美元。值得注意的是，MP物料公司近十分之一為中國投資者所有，每年運送超過5萬噸濃縮稀土到中國加工處理。路透社22日報道稱，美國能源部曾以此為理由，要求政府科學家不要與該公司合作。http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20200428/PDF/a24_screen.pdf
- Among the largest and most promising US mining operations is California’s Mountain Pass, the global leader until China started dominating in the late 1980s. After its 2015 bankruptcy, Washington rather inexplicably opened the door to Chinese investors.In 2017, the US government committee that reviews national security deals approved a US$20.5 million sale to MP Materials, an investment consortium including the co-chairman James Litinsky, a financier; some New York investors; and the Chinese state-controlled Shenghe Rare Earth Shareholding Company, which holds a 9.9 per cent stake.“[Chinese] ownership is maybe 9.9 per cent. But in terms of MP’s revenue, 100 per cent of their revenues are coming from the Chinese side,” said Daniel McGroarty, an advisory board member with USA Rare Earth, which controls the Round Top Mountain mine in far west Texas. Kruemmer put it more colourfully: “If China doesn’t buy Litinsky’s stuff, he can stir it into his morning coffee.”China’s dominance in processing – which tends to create cancer-causing material and often radioactive waste as by-products – is bolstered by a reported 23,000 US patents pending or realised. “People were more than happy to have China do all the dirty work,” Rasser said. “But now China has control of the market.”Mining groups, attracted by growing political tailwinds and the lure of Pentagon largesse, are struggling to build more “secure” rare earth supply chains, even as they acknowledge that US autonomy is a long way off. Althaus, of USA Rare Earth, said it will take the US “decades to get even close to where China is today”.USA Rare Earth announced last month that it had secured permit approval for a pilot processing plant in Colorado. Meanwhile, Mountain Pass plans to restart processing facilities that had been shuttered for financial reasons years ago. A US-Australia venture with ties to Malaysia has proposed a processing plant in Texas. And mining interests in Alaska and Wyoming are plugging their potential. But the sums in direct and indirect government subsidies required to build a full and viable US supply chain from ore to oxide are daunting, analysts say.https://www.scmp.com/tech/article/3092565/digging-rare-earth-next-front-us-supply-chain-war-china
- scmp 10mar2021 australia-listed blackearth and german partner luxcarbon joins european alliance as us reviews sources of criticial rare earth elements
- 丹麥自治領地格陵蘭將於明日舉行議會選舉，結果將 關乎到當地是否准許外國企業開採天然資源，包括科技 產品重要原材料稀土。近年美國不斷在全球各地爭奪稀 土資源，目標之一就是格陵蘭，與此同時中國近年亦積 極參與格陵蘭基建及能源開發，因此格陵蘭是否開放採 挖稀土，將成為未來稀土市場發展的關鍵。http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2021/04/05/a18-0405.pdf
锰结核，亦称为多金属结核（Polymetallic nodules）Polymetallic nodules, also called manganese nodules, are rock concretions on the sea bottom formed of concentric layers of iron and manganese hydroxides around a core. As nodules can be found in vast quantities, and contain valuable metals, deposits have been identified as having economic interest.Nodules lie on the seabed sediment, often partly or completely buried. They vary greatly in abundance, in some cases touching one another and covering more than 70% of the sea floor. The total amount of polymetallic nodules on the sea floor was estimated at 500 billion tons by Alan A. Archer of the London Geological Museum in 1981.
- 中华民国国家科学委员会海洋研究船九连号,曾于1973年在4500米深海底成功采集锰结核。
- china daily 5mar19 - on 5mar1991, china became the fifth country to search the seabed in pacific ocean for polymetallic nodules
Cupronickel (also known as copper-nickel) is an alloy of copper that contains nickel and strengthening elements, such as iron and manganese. Despite its high copper content, cupronickel is silver in colour. Due to the specific properties of nickel and copper alloys, they are applied in various domains of industry e.g. mint industry, armaments industry, desalination industry, marine engineering, extensively used in the chemical, petrochemical and electrical industries. Cupronickel is highly resistant to corrosion in seawater because its electrode potential is adjusted to be neutral with regard to seawater. For this reason, it is used for piping, heat exchangers and condensers in seawater systems, marine hardware, and sometimes for the propellers, crankshafts and hulls of premium tugboats, fishing boats and other working boats.Aside from the terms cupronickel and copper-nickel, several other terms have been used to describe the material: the tradenames Alpaka or Alpacca, Argentan Minargent, and the French term cuivre blanc ("white copper") are still registered; cupronickel is also occasionally referred to as hotel silver, plata alemana (Spanish for "German silver"), German silver, and Chinese silver.Cupronickel alloys are used for marine applications due to their resistance to seawater corrosion, good fabricability, and their effectiveness in lowering macrofouling levels. The successful use of cupronickel in coinage is due to its corrosion resistance, electrical conductivity, durability, malleability, low allergy risk, ease of stamping (metalworking), antimicrobial properties and recyclability.
- Cupronickel alloys were known as "white copper" to the Chinese since about the third century BCE. Some weapons made during the Warring States period were made with Cu-Ni alloys. The theory of Chinese origins of Bactrian cupronickel was suggested in 1868 by Flight, who found that the coins considered the oldest cupronickel coins yet discovered were of a very similar alloy to Chinese paktong. The author-scholar, Ho Wei, precisely described the process of making cupronickel in about 1095 CE. The paktong alloy was described as being made by adding small pills of naturally occurring yunnan ore to a bath of molten copper. When a crust of slag formed, saltpeter was added, the alloy was stirred and the ingot was immediately cast. Zinc is mentioned as an ingredient but there are no details about when it was added. Joseph Needham et al. argue that cupronickel was at least known as a unique alloy by the Chinese during the reign of Liu An in 120 BCE in Yunnan. Moreover, the Yunnanese State of Tien was founded in 334 BCE as a colony of the Chu. Most likely, modern paktong was unknown to Chinese of the day – but the naturally occurring Yunnan ore cupronickel alloy was likely a valuable internal trade commodity.白銅最早產於雲南古堂琅縣。後來在中亞的大夏曾用其鑄造錢幣，被認為是中國和大夏的交流產物
tin
- Cassiterite is a tin oxide mineral, SnO2. It is generally opaque, but it is translucent in thin crystals. Its luster and multiple crystal faces produce a desirable gem. Cassiterite has been the chief tin ore throughout ancient history and remains the most important source of tin today.錫石（すずいし、cassiterite）は、鉱物（酸化鉱物）の一種。化学組成は酸化スズ(IV) （SnO2）で、スズの重要な鉱石鉱物。金紅石（ルチル、TiO2）と同じ結晶構造を持ち、しばしば複雑に双晶する。熱水鉱脈、ペグマタイトなどに産する。風化に強くて比重が大きいため、砂礫中に砂錫（さすず）として産することもある。また、珪化木のような木目模様を持つ木錫（もくしゃく）としても産する。産地としては、イギリスのコーンウォール、ボリビア、マレー半島などが有名。日本では明延（あけのべ）鉱山（兵庫県）、木浦鉱山（大分県）、錫山鉱山（鹿児島県）などが挙げられる。また、国内の砂錫産地としては岐阜県の恵那・中津川地方で明治～昭和初期まで採掘されていた。
carbon fibre
- 碳纖維具有重量輕、強度高、耐腐蝕等優異性能，重量不足鋼的1/4，強度卻是鋼的7到10倍，被稱為「新材料之王」，被廣泛應用於航空航天、新能源汽車、風力發電、體育器材等領域。南寶樹脂集團大陸區董事長孫德聰解釋，很多領域早就應用碳纖維，之所以無法普及，乃工藝使然。http://www.takungpao.com.hk/news/232108/2020/0430/443431.html
鋁土礦 Bauxite is a sedimentary rock with a relatively high aluminium content. It is the world's main source of aluminium. Bauxite consists mostly of the aluminium minerals gibbsite (Al(OH)3), boehmite (γ-AlO(OH)) and diaspore (α-AlO(OH)), mixed with the two iron oxidesgoethite (FeO(OH)) and haematite (Fe2O3), the aluminium clay mineral kaolinite (Al2Si2O5(OH)) and small amounts of anatase (TiO2) and ilmenite (FeTiO3 or FeO.TiO2). In 1821 the French geologist Pierre Berthier discovered bauxite near the village of Les Baux in Provence, southern France.
-Weipa /ˈwiːpə/ is a coastal mining town in the local government area of Weipa Town in Queensland, Australia.[4] It is the largest town on the Cape York Peninsula. It exists because of the enormous bauxite deposits along the coast. The Port of Weipa is mainly involved in exports of bauxite.
- 氧化鋁（Aluminium oxide）是白色固體，是鋁和氧的化合物，分子式為Al2O3。在礦業、製陶業和材料科學上又稱為礬土。常見純度為99.5%和96%。1961年，奇異（GE）生產出了「Lucalox」，一種用於鈉燈中的透明礬土。Aluminium hydroxide minerals are the main component of bauxite, the principal ore of aluminium.
重晶石 Baryte or barite (UK: /ˈbærʌɪt/[6][7], /ˈbɛəraɪt/[citation needed]) is a mineral consisting of barium sulfate (BaSO4).[2] Baryte is generally white or colorless, and is the main source of barium. The name baryte is derived from the Ancient Greek: βαρύς, romanized: barús, 'heavy'. The American spelling is barite. The International Mineralogical Association initially adopted "barite" as the official spelling, but recommended adopting the older "baryte" spelling later. This move was controversial and was notably ignored by American mineralogists.Other names have been used for baryte, including barytine,[11] barytite,[11] barytes,[12] heavy spar,[2] tiff,[3] and blanc fixe.
- Baryte is used in added-value applications which include filler in paint and plastics, sound reduction in engine compartments, coat of automobile finishes for smoothness and corrosion resistance, friction products for automobiles and trucks, radiation-shielding cement, glass ceramics, and medical applications (for example, a barium meal before a contrast CT scan). Baryte is supplied in a variety of forms and the price depends on the amount of processing; filler applications commanding higher prices following intense physical processing by grinding and micronising, and there are further premiums for whiteness and brightness and color.[9] It is also used to produce other barium chemicals, notably barium carbonate which is used for the manufacture of LED glass for television and computer screens (historically in cathode ray tubes); and for dielectrics.Historically, baryte was used for the production of barium hydroxide for sugar refining, and as a white pigment for textiles, paper, and paint.
- india
- [mea booklet distributed at 2019 smartbiz expo] india has large reserves of baryte
- shiga japan https://www.jetro.go.jp/ttppoas/anken/0001169000/1169316_e.html
Amber
- http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20160929/PDF/b15_screen.pdf 琥珀珠有很多品種，也有不同品質與級數，主要因產地（地質不一樣）和年代等等因素而定。像「金珀」，明瑩如黃水晶，色金黃帶些桔紅，均潤真純，是為上品，價值不菲。色紅而鮮黃的「明珀」和散發香氣的「香珀」，完好者亦屬收藏家覬覦的對象。波羅的海產的「水珀」，也甚清澈，含「琥珀酸」較少 ，內藏氣泡也極少；可媲美羅馬尼亞、多米尼加及緬甸出產的上等貨色。目前 ，世界各地充斥極多人工合成的「壓製琥珀」（亦稱「再生琥珀」）， 尤以歐美為多。有些更加 入 近 代「生 珂 巴」新 樹 脂（RAW COPAL）， 過濾與攪勻後，加熱至攝氏二百多度，清除大部分氣泡 ，即施高壓入模，變成接合物質；甚至混入近似松香氣味的人造香料 ，冒充「香珀」
- 昨日，成都市錦江區摩根中心的懿水堂琥珀博物館正式開幕。作為內地首家非營利性專業琥珀博物館，它收藏了包括波羅的海琥珀、緬甸琥珀，以及禁止出口的多米尼亞琥珀原石及飾品。「中國發現最早的琥珀就在川西壩子，這裡有着厚重的歷史文化底蘊。」 懿水堂創始人何小蘭說，這是她將琥珀博物館引入成都錦江的重要原因。http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2017/02/21/a17-0221.pdf
-附圖的清代作品《母子卧羊》，構圖獨特，刀工出色。琥珀的摩氏硬度十分低（多米尼加琥珀甚至僅為兩度），不同於新疆白玉和緬甸翡翠般堅結（二者優質品種高至六度至七度），故不易着刀，稍一不慎或用力失當，即會崩缺或內部結構脆裂；日久表層又容易氧化。根據考古學家發現，證實我國舊石器時代（一萬多年前），先民已發掘出深藏土層下的琥珀和蜜蠟，用磨利的尖石粗略雕刻，作為飾物。漢高祖十分重視琥珀，當時宮中兩根玉柱頂端，分別鑲上琥珀和水晶，代表日和月。古人認為琥珀是「虎睛所化」，亦稱蜜蠟為「遺玉」。高古的雕件，幾已蕩然無存；現今能遇見明、清二代的精品，也不容易，而且早於明代時期，坊間已有染色品。明代宋應星《天工開物》指出：「偽造者唯琥珀易假，高者煮化硫磺，低者以殷紅汁料煮入牛羊明角。」曾有收藏界友人購得一件這類古代染色貨；我們在強光或聚光電筒照射下，可見其內部結構顯得渾濁不自然，甚至有朦朧感，並不清澈晶瑩，更乏寶光，折射較差。由於經煮化，靠熱力逼入染色液，故色不均勻，難渾成一體，同時會有氣泡、漩渦紋、「蜘蛛爪」幼流紋或凹凸不平的現象。清代也有一些色質差的下等琥珀雕件，乃經人工染色；其雕工絕大多數粗劣，因為當時名家及雕刻高手，若非遇見上等原色優質的琥珀，就不肯着刀。 上述的染色貨，價值不高；有些人貪其年份尚算久遠，但就忽視其質料的品級和雕藝的高低了。購藏琥珀或蜜蠟雕件，一定要求其純正、天然、原色和質佳，真古者必在外層四周形成天然的細網狀風化紋，是日久慢慢地氧化所致。現代偽造者，竟然用人工合成的「壓製琥珀」（材料為質素混雜參差的琥珀碎粒和粉末，施高熱高壓，混入亞麻仁油加色），倒模製成，並非人手雕刻，價值極低。其實，一八八○年始，一些先進的歐洲國家，已有奸商懂得以這類入模製成的人工合成品魚目混珠。http://www.takungpao.com.hk/culture/237141/2021/0219/553528.html
-真蜜蜡，大多数色泽似蜜（其实也有一些因在地层中形成时，天然长久渗进不同矿物质和元素，呈黑、红、蓝、绿、橙、褐、白或粉红等颜色），质感似蜡（但有些晶蜡透明度较高），才冠以“蜜蜡”的名称；若叫作“蜜珀”，似较贴切。事实上，蜜蜡或蜜珀仅属琥珀（AMBER）的其中一个品类，不少人皆混淆不清。 研究古老珠子的一位权威锺伊莉辰女士，所著的代表作《宇宙之珠子》，就述及一则真实的有趣故事，指出十九世纪时，一些德国奸商为了骗取非洲土著的钻石、黄金和象牙等值钱物品，特别利用塑胶和人工合成树脂，伪造了不少假蜜珀（即蜜蜡），作为交换的“珍贵”货品。尼日利亚、索马里和摩洛哥等非洲国家，自十六世纪以来，土著就酷爱琥珀和蜜珀，不但视之如珠如宝，还奉作辟邪护体的吉祥饰物，日夕随身佩带，也作为身份的象征。他们迷信，亦谫陋，根本上不懂得鉴别，所以很容易受愚。早期的塑料，大多为电木（BAKELITE）、安全赛璐珞（CELLULOID）和酪素（CASEIN），价值极低。怎料一百多年后，古稀蜜珀珠子在欧洲各地流行，异常珍贵；德国和欧洲人士以为在非洲可以蒐得http://www.takungpao.com/culture/237141/2021/0312/561935.html
Malachite is a copper carbonate hydroxide mineral, with the formula Cu2CO3(OH)2. This opaque, green banded mineral crystallizes in the monoclinic crystal system, and most often forms botryoidal, fibrous, or stalagmitic masses, in fractures and spaces, deep underground, where the water table and hydrothermal fluids provide the means for chemical precipitation. Individual crystals are rare but do occur as slender to acicular prisms. Pseudomorphs after more tabular or blocky azurite crystals also occur.The stone's name derives (via Latin: molochītis, Middle French: melochite, and Middle English melochites) from Greek Μολοχίτης λίθος molochitis lithos, "mallow-green stone", from μολόχη molōchē, variant of μαλάχη malāchē, "mallow".[5] The mineral was given this name due to its resemblance to the leaves of the mallow plant. Malachite was extensively mined at the Greate Orme mines in the Britain 3,800 years ago using stone and bone tools. Acheological evidence indicates that mining activity ended around 600 B.C.E with up to 1,760 tonnes of copper being produced from the mined Malachite. Archeological evidence indicates that the mineral has been mined and smelted to obtain copper at Timna Valley in Israel for over 3,000 years. Since then, malachite has been used as both an ornamental stone and as a gemstone. In ancient Egypt the colour green (wadj) was associated with death and the power of resurrection as well as new life and fertility. They believed that the afterlife contained an eternal paradise which resembled their lives but with no pain or suffering, and referred to this place as the ‘Field of Malachite’.
白堊，又名白土粉、白土子、白埴土、白善、白墡、白墠，是一種非晶質石灰岩，泥質石灰岩未固結前的樣態，呈白色，主要成分為碳酸鈣，多為紅藻類化石所化成。 Chalk is a soft, white, porous, sedimentary carbonate rock, a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite. Calcite is an ionic salt called calcium carbonate or CaCO3. It forms under reasonably deep marine conditions from the gradual accumulation of minute calcite shells (coccoliths) shed from micro-organisms called coccolithophores. Flint (a type of chert) is very common as bands parallel to the bedding or as nodules embedded in chalk. It is probably derived from sponge spicules or other siliceous organisms as water is expelled upwards during compaction. Flint is often deposited around larger fossils such as Echinoideawhich may be silicified (i.e. replaced molecule by molecule by flint).
- 粉筆最早的記錄是在中世紀時，人們開始發現用石灰加水，可以做成塊狀的物體，可以用類似木炭筆的方法，去記錄在深色或者是堅硬的表面。當時粉筆的生產成本遠比紙張為低，而且沒有碳筆刻在木板岩石上，字跡模糊的問題。
- 英國皇家藝術學院一名女生，把製造芝士和奶油後剩下的牛奶副產品混入白堊岩粉末，製成名為「Chalk Cheese」的牛奶黏土。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20200224/00180_023.html
- Last week, a delegation from India arrived in Jakarta to discuss the sale of raw sugar to Indonesia. The negotiation followed President Joko Widodo’s announcement last month that he would raise Indonesia’s sugar import quotas to stabilise prices. Keeping food prices low is critical for voter support ahead of April’s presidential election, where Jokowi, as the incumbent is popularly known, hopes to win a second term. But the country is also home to a vocal contingent of sugar farmers who want to sell to the domestic market for higher prices.https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/2178680/how-price-sugar-could-swing-indonesian-election-and-its
cane sugar
- 蔗糖源自东南亚，12世纪传至欧洲，18世纪再被哥伦布带到美洲。之后，欧洲的资本家挖了非洲的奴隶到美洲进行甘蔗种植活动，再把甘蔗製成的甜味运回欧洲 当做奢侈品销售。桑巴特在《奢侈与资本主义》里提到，那段时期，挥霍无度和追求奢侈的风气刺激了资本主义的发展，而其中最放肆的一个体现就是“极具戏剧性 的对蔗糖的消费”。http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20180128/PDF/a9_screen.pdf
Malachite is a copper carbonate hydroxide mineral, with the formula Cu2CO3(OH)2. This opaque, green banded mineral crystallizes in the monoclinic crystal system, and most often forms botryoidal, fibrous, or stalagmitic masses, in fractures and spaces, deep underground, where the water table and hydrothermal fluids provide the means for chemical precipitation. Individual crystals are rare but do occur as slender to acicular prisms. Pseudomorphs after more tabular or blocky azurite crystals also occur.The stone's name derives (via Latin: molochītis, Middle French: melochite, and Middle English melochites) from Greek Μολοχίτης λίθος molochitis lithos, "mallow-green stone", from μολόχη molōchē, variant of μαλάχη malāchē, "mallow".[5] The mineral was given this name due to its resemblance to the leaves of the mallow plant. Malachite was extensively mined at the Greate Orme mines in the Britain 3,800 years ago using stone and bone tools. Acheological evidence indicates that mining activity ended around 600 B.C.E with up to 1,760 tonnes of copper being produced from the mined Malachite. Archeological evidence indicates that the mineral has been mined and smelted to obtain copper at Timna Valley in Israel for over 3,000 years. Since then, malachite has been used as both an ornamental stone and as a gemstone. In ancient Egypt the colour green (wadj) was associated with death and the power of resurrection as well as new life and fertility. They believed that the afterlife contained an eternal paradise which resembled their lives but with no pain or suffering, and referred to this place as the ‘Field of Malachite’.
白堊，又名白土粉、白土子、白埴土、白善、白墡、白墠，是一種非晶質石灰岩，泥質石灰岩未固結前的樣態，呈白色，主要成分為碳酸鈣，多為紅藻類化石所化成。 Chalk is a soft, white, porous, sedimentary carbonate rock, a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite. Calcite is an ionic salt called calcium carbonate or CaCO3. It forms under reasonably deep marine conditions from the gradual accumulation of minute calcite shells (coccoliths) shed from micro-organisms called coccolithophores. Flint (a type of chert) is very common as bands parallel to the bedding or as nodules embedded in chalk. It is probably derived from sponge spicules or other siliceous organisms as water is expelled upwards during compaction. Flint is often deposited around larger fossils such as Echinoideawhich may be silicified (i.e. replaced molecule by molecule by flint).
- 粉筆最早的記錄是在中世紀時，人們開始發現用石灰加水，可以做成塊狀的物體，可以用類似木炭筆的方法，去記錄在深色或者是堅硬的表面。當時粉筆的生產成本遠比紙張為低，而且沒有碳筆刻在木板岩石上，字跡模糊的問題。
- 英國皇家藝術學院一名女生，把製造芝士和奶油後剩下的牛奶副產品混入白堊岩粉末，製成名為「Chalk Cheese」的牛奶黏土。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20200224/00180_023.html
Calcite is a carbonate mineral and the most stable polymorph of calcium carbonate (CaCO3). The Mohs scale of mineral hardness, based on scratch hardness comparison, defines value 3 as "calcite". Other polymorphs of calcium carbonate are the minerals aragonite and vaterite. Aragonite will change to calcite over timescales of days or less at temperatures exceeding 300 °C, and vaterite is even less stable.Calcite is derived from the German Calcit, a term coined in the 19th century from the Latin word for lime, calx (genitive calcis) with the suffix -ite used to name minerals. It is thus etymologically related to chalk.Ancient Egyptians carved many items out of calcite, relating it to their goddess Bast, whose name contributed to the term alabaster because of the close association. Many other cultures have used the material for similar carved objects and applications. High-grade optical calcite was used in World War II for gun sights, specifically in bomb sights and anti-aircraft weaponry.[13] Also, experiments have been conducted to use calcite for a cloak of invisibility. Calcite is a common constituent of sedimentary rocks, limestone in particular, much of which is formed from the shells of dead marine organisms. Approximately 10% of sedimentary rock is limestone. It is the primary mineral in metamorphic marble. It also occurs in deposits from hot springs as a vein mineral; in caverns as stalactites and stalagmites; and in volcanic or mantle-derived rocks such as carbonatites, kimberlites, or rarely in peridotites. Calcite is often the primary constituent of the shells of marine organisms, e.g., plankton (such as coccoliths and planktic foraminifera), the hard parts of red algae, some sponges, brachiopods, echinoderms, some serpulids, most bryozoa, and parts of the shells of some bivalves (such as oysters and rudists). Calcite is found in spectacular form in the Snowy River Cave of New Mexico as mentioned above, where microorganisms are credited with natural formations. Trilobites, which became extinct a quarter billion years ago, had unique compound eyes that used clear calcite crystals to form the lenses.方解石在冶金工业上用做熔剂，在建筑工业方面用来生产水泥、石灰。 玻璃生产中加入方解石成份，生成的玻璃会变得半透明，适用于做玻璃灯罩。方解石还可入药，有清热利湿；通脉解毒等功效，可治疗胸中留热结气，黄疸等。相信矿石疗法认为，方解石有稳定情绪的作用，还有人相信方解石球有聚财的功效[7]。
– mineral consisting of calcium carbonate (CaCO
3); archaeologists and stone trade professionals, unlike mineralogists, call one variety of calcite "alabaster"El yeso, piedra de yeso, yeso crudo, yeso natural o aljez Gypsum – mineral composed of calcium sulfate dihydrate (CaSO
4·2H
2O); alabaster is one of its varieties
Fengite – translucent sheets of marble or alabaster used during the Early Middle Ages for windows instead of glass
- usa
- cyprus
vanilla
- 香草是一種多年生熱帶藤本植物，原產於 墨西哥，現在全世界公認的最優質產地已經變 成了馬達加斯加。真正的香草從視覺上說只是 瘦弱修長的黑色豆莢，要被放在密閉的容器裏 出售，香草的香味來源於豆莢裏又小又黑的香 草籽，一直以來都被認為是甜點界高貴的象徵 。而我們平時所吃的香草味，幾乎都是來源於 合成香料，而不是真正的香草莢，也可以說， 香草香精的出現讓它徹底變成了 「大路貨」 ， 也成為後來人們誤解的源頭。 至於為什麼矜貴，因為它是地球上勞動最 密集的產品之一，從收穫到製成幾乎全由人手。香草莢的 「本家」 香草蘭一年只開一次花，需要三年才能結成豆莢 ，因為對授粉的蜜蜂種類有獨特要求，往往需要人工授粉 來提高產量，而授粉後孕育的豆莢又要等上九個月才會成 熟。這還沒結束，剛採收的香草莢並無獨特味道，香草味 的形成需要一個過程，除去中間水煮、日曬、翻攪的繁複 勞作不說，最短也要再有四個月才會成香。這也是為什麼 它跟同樣勞動密集型的藏紅花一起，被稱為最珍貴的植物 香料。http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20191105/PDF/b5_screen.pdf
4·2H
2O); alabaster is one of its varieties
- Anhydrite – a mineral closely related to gypsum
- Calcium sulfate – the main inorganic compound (CaSO
4) of gypsum
The word gypsum is derived from the Greek word γύψος (gypsos), "plaster".[4] Because the quarries of the Montmartre district of Paris have long furnished burnt gypsum (calcined gypsum) used for various purposes, this dehydrated gypsum became known as plaster of Paris. Upon addition of water, after a few tens of minutes plaster of Paris becomes regular gypsum (dihydrate) again, causing the material to harden or "set" in ways that are useful for casting and construction. Gypsum was known in Old English as spærstān, "spear stone", referring to its crystalline projections. (Thus, the word spar in mineralogy is by way of comparison to gypsum, referring to any non-ore mineral or crystal that forms in spearlike projections). In the mid-18th century, the German clergyman and agriculturalist Johann Friderich Mayer investigated and publicized gypsum's use as a fertilizer. Gypsum may act as a source of sulfur for plant growth, and in the early 19th century, it was regarded as an almost miraculous fertilizer. American farmers were so anxious to acquire it that a lively smuggling trade with Nova Scotia evolved, resulting in the so-called "Plaster War" of 1820.[6] In the 19th century, it was also known as lime sulfate or sulfate of lime.石膏又稱作白虎、冰石、細理石。產於中國大陸新疆、山東、廣西、廣東、雲南、湖北、安徽、四川、河南、甘肅。中药采用纤维状生石膏生用或炮製後入药[3]。性味归经：辛、甘，大寒归肺、胃经[4]。功效：清热泻火，除烦止渴，收敛生肌。
- Gypsum is used in a wide variety of applications:
- Gypsum board[20] is primarily used as a finish for walls and ceilings, and is known in construction as drywall, wallboard, sheetrock or plasterboard.
- Gypsum blocks are used like concrete blocks in building construction.
- Gypsum mortar is an ancient mortar used in building construction.
- Plaster ingredients are used in surgical splints, casting moulds and modeling.
- Fertilizer and soil conditioner: In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, Nova Scotia gypsum, often referred to as plaster, was a highly sought fertilizer for wheat fields in the United States. It is also used in ameliorating high-sodium soils,[21] such as in the Zuiderzee Works.
- A binder in fast-dry tennis court clay
- As alabaster, a material for sculpture, it was used especially in the ancient world before steel was developed, when its relative softness made it much easier to carve.
- A wood substitute in the ancient world: For example, when wood became scarce due to deforestation on Bronze Age Crete, gypsum was employed in building construction at locations where wood was previously used.
- A tofu (soy bean curd) coagulant, making it ultimately a major source of dietary calcium, especially in Asian cultures which traditionally use few dairy products
- Adding hardness to water used for brewing
- Used in baking as a dough conditioner, reducing stickiness, and as a baked-goods source of dietary calcium.[25] The primary component of mineral yeast food.
- A component of Portland cement used to prevent flash setting of concrete
- Soil/water potential monitoring (soil moisture)
- A common ingredient in making mead
- In the medieval period, scribes and illuminators mixed it with lead carbonate (powdered white lead) to make gesso, which was applied to illuminated letters and gilded with gold in illuminated manuscripts.
- In foot creams, shampoos and many other hair products
- A medicinal agent in traditional Chinese medicine called shi gao
- Impression plasters in dentistry
- Used in mushroom cultivation to stop grains from clumping together
- Tests have shown that gypsum can be used to remove pollutants such as lead[27] or arsenic[28][29] from contaminated waters.
水泥
- 內地今年發生多宗塌橋塌樓事故，亦有多個新樓盤爆出豆腐渣醜聞，有分析指與國內水泥價格高企有關。官媒報道，隨着各省市的建設項目進入施工高峰期，華北、華東和華南地區的水泥近月均出現漲價，個別地區漲幅更達每噸二百元人民幣（約二百二十六港元）。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20191230/00178_017.htmlFengite – translucent sheets of marble or alabaster used during the Early Middle Ages for windows instead of glass
云母 The mica group of sheet silicate (phyllosilicate) minerals includes several closely related materials having nearly perfect basal cleavage. All are monoclinic, with a tendency towards pseudohexagonal crystals, and are similar in chemical composition. The nearly perfect cleavage, which is the most prominent characteristic of mica, is explained by the hexagonal sheet-like arrangement of its atoms. The word mica is derived from the Latin word mica, meaning a crumb, and probably influenced by micare, to glitter.
- !!!!!!!China Crystal New Material Holdings Co.,Ltd. is a Korea-based company mainly engaged in manufacturing mica products. The Company's product portfolio consists of synthetic mica powder used for pearl pigment and insulating compound, synthetic mica flake used for mica paper and mica tape, natural mica tape, mixed mica tape and calcined mica tape.https://www.reuters.com/finance/stocks/company-profile/900250.KQ
- china daily 14may19
- usa
- 強生發言人表示，有問題的爽身粉批次生產編號為「#22318RB」，均於去年在美國生產和出貨。FDA較早前從網上商店購入一支嬰兒爽身粉，化驗後證實含有不多於0.00002%的白石棉（chrysotile asbestos）。強生稱暫未知該樣本是否交叉污染、產品封口是否完好無損，也未確認FDA買到的是否正貨，但為安全計決定回收。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20191020/00180_022.html
- cyprus
- old asbestos mine (amiantos mine) in troodos geopark
vanilla
- 香草是一種多年生熱帶藤本植物，原產於 墨西哥，現在全世界公認的最優質產地已經變 成了馬達加斯加。真正的香草從視覺上說只是 瘦弱修長的黑色豆莢，要被放在密閉的容器裏 出售，香草的香味來源於豆莢裏又小又黑的香 草籽，一直以來都被認為是甜點界高貴的象徵 。而我們平時所吃的香草味，幾乎都是來源於 合成香料，而不是真正的香草莢，也可以說， 香草香精的出現讓它徹底變成了 「大路貨」 ， 也成為後來人們誤解的源頭。 至於為什麼矜貴，因為它是地球上勞動最 密集的產品之一，從收穫到製成幾乎全由人手。香草莢的 「本家」 香草蘭一年只開一次花，需要三年才能結成豆莢 ，因為對授粉的蜜蜂種類有獨特要求，往往需要人工授粉 來提高產量，而授粉後孕育的豆莢又要等上九個月才會成 熟。這還沒結束，剛採收的香草莢並無獨特味道，香草味 的形成需要一個過程，除去中間水煮、日曬、翻攪的繁複 勞作不說，最短也要再有四個月才會成香。這也是為什麼 它跟同樣勞動密集型的藏紅花一起，被稱為最珍貴的植物 香料。http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20191105/PDF/b5_screen.pdf
-這種原產於墨西哥的香料因為花期短、對生長環境要求高，是名副其實的矜貴，天然的香草身價僅次於藏紅花，從一開始被發現，就跟可可一起成為供奉給神的禮物。那麼問題來了，如此價值不菲的香草，為何能有今天普天之下皆可見的「盛況」？是生存條件、栽培技術更好？非也，是貪吃的化學家「公器私用」，長期不懈鑽研的結果。 香草之所以百搭，是香味本身由四百餘種不同的有機成分構成。如此複雜和微妙，到人類嘴裏才能神奇統一，跟其他味道混合時也才不會有衝突。於是化學家們幾經周折，在一個半世紀前成功合成了其中的重要組成：香蘭素，也是第一種人工合成的香精。這個里程碑式的發現打開了後人的思路，一代代的香草控們不僅發明出更簡單的合成方法，還從其他植物身上找到了替代品，比如苜蓿，就是傳說當中幸運的代言四葉草，只不過多數只會見到三葉。它價格便宜，提取的香味不刺激，口感上還能最大限度還原，自然備受推崇。所以下次接近香草時，我們也大可暢想一下，自己原來是把四葉草吞進了肚子裏。http://www.takungpao.com.hk/culture/237141/2021/0127/546138.html
- madagascar - world's top grower
The cocoa bean or simply cocoa (/ˈkoʊ.koʊ/), which is also called the cacao bean or cacao (/kəˈkaʊ/),[1] is the dried and fully fermented seed of Theobroma cacao, from which cocoa solids (a mixture of nonfat substances) and cocoa butter (the fat) can be extracted. Cocoa beans are the basis of chocolate, and Mesoamerican foods including tejate, a pre-Hispanic drink that also includes maize.The word "cocoa" comes from the Spanish word cacao, which is derived from the Nahuatl word cacahuatl.[2][3] The Nahuatl word, in turn, ultimately derives from the reconstructed Proto Mije-Sokean word kakawa.
- history
- http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-06-19/plantation-groups-see-opportunity-in-cocoa-with-strong-demand.html Agro-industrial firms are seeking to expand into cocoa as global chocolate demand rises at a faster pace than production on the smallholder farms that grow most of the world’s supply, according to Hardman & Co.
- madagascar - world's top grower
Dipteryx odorata (commonly known as "cumaru" or "kumaru") is a species of flowering tree in the pea family, Fabaceae. The tree is native to Central America and northern South America.[1] Its seeds are known as tonka beans (sometimes tonkin beans or tonquin beans). They are black and wrinkled and have a smooth, brown interior. They have a strong fragrance similar to sweet woodruff (Galium odoratum) due to their high content of coumarin. The word "tonka" is taken from the Galibi (Carib) tongue spoken by natives of French Guiana; it also appears in Tupi, another language of the same region, as the name of the tree. The old genus name, Coumarouna, was formed from another Tupi name for tree, kumarú.
- Tonka beans had been used as a vanilla substitute, as a perfume, and in tobacco before being banned in some countries. They are used in some French cuisine (particularly, in desserts and stews) and in perfumes. Its use in food industry is regulated/restricted in the United States by the Food and Drug Administration.[5] Many anticoagulant prescription drugs, such as warfarin, are based on 4-hydroxycoumarin, a chemical derivative of coumarin initially isolated from this bean. Coumarin, however, does not have anticoagulant properties. There have been calls for removing the restrictions on the use of tonka beans in food in the United States. The regulations are criticized as unreasonable due to the unlikelihood of consuming enough coumarin to cause ill effects and due to the presence of coumarin in unregulated foods. The beans were formerly also spelled "tonquin" and "tonkin", although it has no connection with Tonkin, now part of Vietnam. Tonquin is still used today to flavor some pipe tobaccos, such as Samuel Gawith "1792 Flake." Cumaru, also known as Brazilian teak, is an increasingly popular hardwood used for flooring in the United States. It has a very appealing natural color variation and is considered quite durable as it has a 3540 rating on the Janka hardness scale.
The cocoa bean or simply cocoa (/ˈkoʊ.koʊ/), which is also called the cacao bean or cacao (/kəˈkaʊ/),[1] is the dried and fully fermented seed of Theobroma cacao, from which cocoa solids (a mixture of nonfat substances) and cocoa butter (the fat) can be extracted. Cocoa beans are the basis of chocolate, and Mesoamerican foods including tejate, a pre-Hispanic drink that also includes maize.The word "cocoa" comes from the Spanish word cacao, which is derived from the Nahuatl word cacahuatl.[2][3] The Nahuatl word, in turn, ultimately derives from the reconstructed Proto Mije-Sokean word kakawa.
- history
- [k pomeranz, s topik] olmec people first used cocoa as food, use then spreaded to maya people, and further to teotihuacan and aztec. Cocoa drinks used to be consumed only by religious leaders and nobles in aztec empire. When popularised (by sufi and buddhist monks), way of consumption has changed. Originally, no sugar was added (pepper, or pizle seeds, or corn, or 石灰水 was added instead, arabians added 豆蔻or 肉豆寇), a lot of addictives are added nowadays and the original flavour cannot recognised.
- http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-06-19/plantation-groups-see-opportunity-in-cocoa-with-strong-demand.html Agro-industrial firms are seeking to expand into cocoa as global chocolate demand rises at a faster pace than production on the smallholder farms that grow most of the world’s supply, according to Hardman & Co.
-scmp 24mar2021 Nestle launches plain chocolate bar sweetened with cocoa fruit pulp
- indonesia
Coffee
- https://www.ft.com/content/803c52d4-9602-11e6-a1dc-bdf38d484582 Hipster coffee boom sends buyers to conflict zones Roasters turn to war-torn regions such as South Sudan for unique flavours and stories
- ft 21may19 "coffee's pricing puzzle"
salt
- in 1790, the national assembly of france abolishes the salt tax, la gabelle
Sugar
- name in different world languages https://www.quora.com/Which-word-is-exactly-the-same-in-the-most-languages
- Jaggery is a traditional non-centrifugal cane sugar consumed in South Asia, Southeast Asia and some other countries in Asia and the Americas. It is a concentrated product of cane juice and often date or palm sap (see: palm sugar) without separation of the molasses and crystals, and can vary from golden brown to dark brown in colour. It contains up to 50% sucrose, up to 20% invert sugars, and up to 20% moisture, with the remainder made up of other insoluble matter, such as wood ash, proteins, and bagasse fibres. Ancient scriptures on Ayurveda mention various medicinal uses based on method of preparation and age. Unrefined, it is known by various names, including "panela", in other parts of the world.
- indonesia
- scmp 21apr19 "chocolate dream"
Coffee
- https://www.ft.com/content/803c52d4-9602-11e6-a1dc-bdf38d484582 Hipster coffee boom sends buyers to conflict zones Roasters turn to war-torn regions such as South Sudan for unique flavours and stories
- ft 21may19 "coffee's pricing puzzle"
Potash (/ˈpɒtæʃ/) includes various mined and manufactured salts that contain potassium in water-soluble form. The name derives from pot ash, which refers to plant ashes soaked in water in a pot, the primary means of manufacturing the product before the industrial era. The word potassium is derived from potash.Potash is produced worldwide at amounts exceeding 90 million tonnes (40 million tonnes K2O equivalent) per year, mostly for use in manufacturing. Various types of fertilizer-potash constitute the single largest industrial use of the element potassium in the world. Potassium was first derived in 1807 by electrolysis of caustic potash (potassium hydroxide).钾盐是指含钾的矿物，分为可溶性钾盐矿物和不可溶性含钾的铝硅酸盐矿物。世界上95%的钾盐产品用作肥料，5%用于工业。
- Potash (especially potassium carbonate) has been used in bleaching textiles, making glass, and making soap, since about AD 500. Potash was principally obtained by leaching the ashes of land and sea plants. Beginning in the 14th century potash was mined in Ethiopia. One of the world's largest deposits, 140 to 150 million tons, is located in the Tigray's Dallol area.[16] Potash was one of the most important industrial chemicals. It was refined from the ashes of broadleaved trees and produced primarily in the forested areas of Europe, Russia, and North America. The first U.S. patent of any kind was issued in 1790 to Samuel Hopkins for an improvement "in the making of Pot ash and Pearl ash by a new Apparatus and Process".[17] Pearl ash was a purer quality made by calcination of potash in a reverberatory furnace or kiln. Potash pits were once used in England to produce potash that was used in making soap for the preparation of wool for yarn production.1839年前，主要靠淋滤草木灰等制成各种钾化合物，或从洞穴堆积、建筑废墟中淋取KNO3以供制造黑火药之用。1839年4月，德国钻探盐矿时发现了钾盐矿床。后来，德国发展钾盐工业，使钾肥的施用量迅速增加。从此结束了人类使用草木灰作钾盐的时代。1904年，德国人在上莱茵发现钾盐矿床。1910年、1915年德国和法国的两个钾盐矿床开始生产。在一战前，德国几乎控制了世界的钾盐市场。20世纪初，死海的矿盐在以色列南方被开采[1]。1956年，从死海的矿盐生产钾盐的阿拉伯鉀鹽公司成立。1958年，約旦王國授予该公司开采、生产、推销死海的矿物的一百年独家经营权[2][3]。salt
- in 1790, the national assembly of france abolishes the salt tax, la gabelle
Sugar
- name in different world languages https://www.quora.com/Which-word-is-exactly-the-same-in-the-most-languages
- Jaggery is a traditional non-centrifugal cane sugar consumed in South Asia, Southeast Asia and some other countries in Asia and the Americas. It is a concentrated product of cane juice and often date or palm sap (see: palm sugar) without separation of the molasses and crystals, and can vary from golden brown to dark brown in colour. It contains up to 50% sucrose, up to 20% invert sugars, and up to 20% moisture, with the remainder made up of other insoluble matter, such as wood ash, proteins, and bagasse fibres. Ancient scriptures on Ayurveda mention various medicinal uses based on method of preparation and age. Unrefined, it is known by various names, including "panela", in other parts of the world.
- The word "jaggery" comes from Portuguese, ultimately from the Sanskrit शर्करा (śarkarā), the root of the word "sugar" itself. Other uses include jaggery toffees and jaggery cake made with pumpkin preserve, cashew nuts, peanuts and spices. Jaggery may be used in the creation of alcoholic beverages such as palm wine. Besides being a food, jaggery may be used (mixed in an emulsion with buttermilk and mustard oil) to season the inside of tandoor ovens. Jaggery is used in natural dying of fabric. It is also used in hookahs in rural areas of Pakistan and India. 石蜜又称崖蜜、岩蜜，现在常称为片糖梵文śarkarā又有“石”的含义。印度的“石”糖在汉代传入中国，汉代文献中的“石蜜”、“西极石蜜”、“西国石蜜”，指由西域入口的“石”糖；其中“西国”、“西极”正是梵文śarkarā的对音，而“石蜜”是梵文śarkarā的意译。現在用於烹調的片糖，就是古時的「石蜜」。杜甫有《發秦州》詩：「充腸多薯蕷，崖蜜亦易求。」北宋唐慎微《證類本草》石蜜條：「石蜜，乳糖也，味甘寒，無毒，主心腹熱脹，口乾渴」。又：「石蜜療口瘡」。
- The International Commission for Uniform Methods of Sugar Analysis (ICUMSA) is an international standards body, founded in 1897, that publishes detailed laboratory procedures for the analysis of sugar. The ICUMSA Methods Book[3] contains detailed instructions for analyzing raw, cane, white, beet, molasses, plantation white and specialty sugars. Among these are methods for determination of dry solids content by polarimetry, densimetry and refractometry, color (extinction coefficient at 420 nm), reducing sugars, and the presence of metals such as arsenicand copper. The Methods Book also contains polynomials and tables (derived from the polynomials)[4] which relate the refractive index of solutions of pure sucrose, glucose, fructoseand invert sugar to the strength of those solutions.
- Julius Caesar Czarnikow (1838 – 17 April 1909) was a German-born, London-based sugar broker and investor. Julius Caesar Czarnikow was born in 1838 in Sondershausen, Germany. He was of Polish Jewish descent. His father was Moritz Czarnikow and his mother, Johanne Bar.Czarnikow founded a sugar brokerage firm, Czarnikow & Co., in 1861, which now trades as Czarnikow Group Ltd. Its first office was at 18 Philpot Lane, London, and the compant later had offices in Liverpool, Glasgow and New York City.[2] He partnered with Manuel Rionda of Cuba, who admitted to Czarnikow in 1909 that he struggled to find the right chemist for sugar manufacturing.Czarnikow was an investor in a sugar shipping company from the West Indies to Central Europe. By 1872, he was also the largest investor in the South Carolina Phosphate Company. Additionally, by 1888 he was an investor in the London Produce Clearing House,[1] and he served as its deputy chairman.Czarnikow died on 17 April 1909 in London. By the time of his death, "he was said to be the biggest sugar broker in the world".Manuel Rionda était de son côté le co-fondateur de la « Cuba Cane Sugar Company ». L'association avec Czarnikow l'amène à contrôler 80 % des récoltes dominicaines et portoricaines de sucre et 100 % de celle de Cuba pendant la Première Guerre mondiale7 puis à nouveau 30 % du sucre cubain à l'aube des années 1930.
- Last week, a delegation from India arrived in Jakarta to discuss the sale of raw sugar to Indonesia. The negotiation followed President Joko Widodo’s announcement last month that he would raise Indonesia’s sugar import quotas to stabilise prices. Keeping food prices low is critical for voter support ahead of April’s presidential election, where Jokowi, as the incumbent is popularly known, hopes to win a second term. But the country is also home to a vocal contingent of sugar farmers who want to sell to the domestic market for higher prices.https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/2178680/how-price-sugar-could-swing-indonesian-election-and-its
cane sugar
- according to 食落肚 係 gum 造, sugar cane was first planted in papua new guinea as food from 8000BC
-甘蔗，是熱帶和亞熱帶草本植物。了解甘蔗生長習性的朋友都知道，通常甘蔗的宿根，壽命僅3到6年。上年甘蔗砍伐後，留在地裏的蔗蔸，在適宜的溫度和濕度等環境條件下萌出新芽，再長成蔗株，稱為宿根蔗。據悉，古巴有16年宿根蔗，斯里蘭卡有25年宿根蔗，而在福建省南平市松溪縣萬前村，卻有一片難得一見、宿根近300年的「百年蔗」，成為當今世界上名副其實的最長壽甘蔗。萬前村，三面背山，一面環水，地理位置閉塞，交通頗為不便。此前很長時間，村民出入村莊，必須憑藉渡船。由於交通不便，加上村民自覺，得以保住百年「寶貝」。據史料記載，「百年蔗」為清朝雍正四年（1726），萬前村農民魏世早祖上栽種，並作為「風水蔗」，世代保留下來。「養在深閨」的萬前村「百年蔗」，於1956年被發現。1958年8月8日，《福建日報》首次披露了「百年蔗」的消息，引起福建省農業部門科技人員的重視。我國已故著名甘蔗專家、原福建農學院副院長周可湧教授，於1959年5月實地考察了「百年蔗」。同年11月，福建農學院、松溪縣農業局和縣農科所等單位，成立聯合調查組，對「百年蔗」進行專門調查。調查組通過察看萬前村魏姓族譜和全面分析，證實了「百年蔗」二百多年來一直未曾換過種，每年都萌發新株，每年都有新收成。之後，眾多專家、教授慕名紛至遝來，開展考察研究。甘蔗原產於印度。種植面積較大的國家，有泰國、墨西哥、澳大利亞、美國、古巴等；種植面積最大的國家是巴西，印度名列第二，中國位居第三。中國的主產蔗區，主要分布在北緯24度以南的熱帶、亞熱帶地區，包括廣東、廣西、福建、台灣、四川、雲南、江西、貴州、湖南、浙江、海南等南方10多個省、自治區。我的少年時代是在福建莆田度過的。莆田地多田少。地裏所種農作物，除了地瓜、大豆、花生、麥子，便是甘蔗。甘蔗，桿莖粗壯發達，高度可達3-5米，通常有20-40節。甘蔗，不單有節，而且很甜，民間素有「倒吃甘蔗節節甜」之說。古往今來，人們在甘蔗身上，寄託着美好的願望。迄今為止，莆田城鄉居民，每逢新春佳節到來之際，都要或挖或買幾株連根帶葉的甘蔗，紮以紅繩，置於門後，藉此祈福祝願--日子節節高、生活節節甜。史料記載，中國是世界上最早製糖的國家之一。早在西元前4世紀的戰國時期，就已有對甘蔗初步加工的記載。屈原的《楚辭．招魂》中有這樣的詩句：「胹鱉炮羔，有柘漿些」。這裏的「柘」，就是甘蔗。「柘漿」，指從甘蔗中搾取的汁。說明戰國時代，楚國已能對甘蔗進行原始加工。糖，既可以滿足人們的「口福」，又是人類獲取能量最經濟、最主要的來源。糖類在人體內消化後，主要以葡萄糖的形式被吸收。但凡上了年紀的人，都記得「古巴糖」。甘蔗是古巴的主要農產品，種植面積佔耕地總面積的55%以上，是著名的「世界糖罐」。1960年11月，古巴領導人格瓦拉率領古巴經濟代表團訪問中國，為了支援社會主義陣營國家的經濟建設，同時滿足國內食糖供應需求，中國與古巴簽訂協定，每年進口40萬噸古巴糖。從那時開始，古巴糖走進了億萬中國人的生活。當年，在糧食緊缺的困難時期，正是幾十畝「百年蔗」，救活了萬前村全村人--村民們用甘蔗做成紅糖，兌大米、換食油，度過艱難的日子，保住寶貴的生命。從那時起，村民都把「百年蔗」視同風水蔗、救命蔗。「百年蔗」，與老絕緣，青春永駐。每年清明前後萌發新芽，小雪前後砍伐收穫。近年來，松溪縣與福建農林大學國家甘蔗工程技術研究中心、省農科院等相關科研院所，以及各級農業部門合作，着力在栽培、生產前端上實現破題，探索「百年蔗」擴種的方法與要訣。據悉，松溪適合種植百年蔗的土地面積約3萬畝，在國家甘蔗技術工程中心的「擴繁指導」下，爭取小步快走、逐年擴種，逐步形成規模化科學種植。2018年，國家甘蔗工程技術中心鄧祖福研究員、陳傑博教授，在民盛公司組建6人「科特派團」，加大百年蔗的擴繁進度、擴大科學種植面積、提高甘蔗產量、降低病蟲害，使百年蔗畝產由先前的3,000公斤上下，提高到2020年的5,000公斤左右。http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2021/01/05/a18-0105.pdf
- https://business.inquirer.net/315286/ph-descent-from-sugar-exporter-to-importer-what-happened
- Muscovado, also khandsari and khand, is a type of partially refined to unrefined sugar with a strong molasses content and flavour. It is technically considered either a non-centrifugal cane sugar or a centrifuged, partially refined sugar according to the process used by the manufacturer. Muscovado contains higher levels of various minerals than processed white sugar, and is considered by some to be healthier.[3][4][5] Its main uses are in food and confectionery, and the manufacture of rum and other forms of alcohol. The largest producer and consumer of muscovado is India.The English name "muscovado" is derived from a corruption of Portuguese açúcar mascavado and Spanish azúcar mascabado (unrefined sugar). The Indian English names for this type of sugar are khandsari and khand (sometimes spelt khaand). There is no legal definition of muscovado, and no international standards for it such as Codex Alimentarius or Protected Designation of Origin. This has led to manufacturers calling various sugar products "muscovado", and has led to confusion between muscovado and brown sugar, and even with jaggery.The earliest known production of crystalline sugar began in northern India, after the introduction of sugarcane by Austronesian traders from Island Southeast Asia at around 1000 BCE. However, the exact date of the first cane sugar production is unclear.[10] The earliest evidence of sugar production comes from ancient Sanskrit and Pali texts.[11] Around the 8th century, Muslim and Arab traders introduced sugar from medieval India to the other parts of the Abbasid Caliphate in the Mediterranean, Mesopotamia, Egypt, North Africa, and Andalusia. By the 10th century, sources state that every village in Mesopotamia grew sugarcane. Muscovado is made from the juice of sugar cane that is evaporated until crystallisation occurs. The viscous suspension of crystals and mother liquor (molasses) is called massecuite.黒砂糖（くろざとう）または黒糖（こくとう）は、サトウキビの絞り汁を煮詰めて作る黒褐色の砂糖（含蜜糖）で、甘味料として用いる。brown sugarは黒砂糖の英訳だが、日本語でのブラウン・シュガー（茶色の砂糖の総称）とは異なる。日本では沖縄県や鹿児島県（奄美地方）の特産品として作られている。日本国外では、バルバドス、フィリピン、ベトナム、フィジーなどが著名な産地であり、英語ではBarbados sugar（バルバドスシュガー）との呼び名もある。台湾もかつては大量に製造し、輸出していたが、近年は衰退している。
Palm sugar is a sweetener derived from any variety of palm tree. Palm sugar is sometimes qualified by the type of palm, as in coconut palm sugar. While sugars from different palms may have slightly different compositions, all are processed similarly and can be used interchangeably. The predominant sources of palm sugar are the Palmyra, date, nipa, sugar and coconutpalms.Gula melaka is a type of palm sugar made from the sap of flower buds from the coconut palm or, less commonly, other palms. It can be dense and sticky. It is known in English as "malacca sugar", probably because it originated in the state of Malacca, Malaysia, which is called "Melaka" in Malay. Traditionally, gula melaka is made by first extracting the sap from the flower bud of a coconut tree.
palm oil
-油棕属 Elaeis (from Greek, meaning 'oil') is a genus of palms containing two species, called oil palms. They are used in commercial agriculture in the production of palm oil. The African oil palm Elaeis guineensis (the species name guineensis referring to its country of origin) is the principal source of palm oil. It is native to west and southwest Africa, occurring between Angola and Gambia. The American oil palm Elaeis oleifera (from Latin oleifer, meaning 'oil-producing') is native to tropical Central and South America,[3] and is used locally for oil production. 本属已知有两种：一种是原产于西非的油棕（E. guineensis，又称非洲油棕），分布于安哥拉至冈比亚的西非地区，被引入至马来西亚和印度尼西亚，属于产油经济作物；另一种是中美洲和南美洲北部的美洲油棕（E. oleifera，又称黑果棕）。
- https://www.ft.com/content/019a7c68-c8b8-11e8-ba8f-ee390057b8c9 Nestlé is to blacklist palm oil suppliers that do not comply with its responsible sourcing policy as it turns to satellite technology to help identify corporate culprits behind the destruction of rainforests linked to the commodity. The Swiss food group behind KitKat and Nescafé said it would publish a full list of companies in its supply chain and their compliance with its no-deforestation policies from next March. Those that fail to adhere to its guidelines would be axed. Nestlé in May blacklisted 10 companies that supply it directly or indirectly with palm oil, including Daewoo Posco, Noble and Korindo, accounting for about 5 per cent of its procurement volumes.
- price
- https://www.reuters.com/article/indonesia-malaysia-eu-palmoil/update-2-indonesia-malaysia-mount-protest-to-eu-over-palm-curbs-idUSL3N21Q25E Indonesian President Joko Widodo and Malaysian Prime Minister Mahatir Mohamad have signed a joint letter of objection to the European Union over its plan to phase out the use of palm oil in renewable fuel, and sent delegations to complain in Brussels.The letter was sent to the EU over the weekend, said Luhut Pandjaitan, coordinating minister for maritime affairs, who also oversees natural resources issues. He declined on Monday to disclose the content of the letter.Indonesia and Malaysia, the world’s top producers of the vegetable oil, have both threatened a World Trade Organization challenge against the EU over its plan to phase out the use of palm oil by 2030 in renewable transport fuel.
rubber
- []韋克姆smuggled seeds from santarem, brazil to uk in 1876. Seeds were planted in kew gardens, and some of the 橡膠樹were then introduced to malaysia.
- Muscovado, also khandsari and khand, is a type of partially refined to unrefined sugar with a strong molasses content and flavour. It is technically considered either a non-centrifugal cane sugar or a centrifuged, partially refined sugar according to the process used by the manufacturer. Muscovado contains higher levels of various minerals than processed white sugar, and is considered by some to be healthier.[3][4][5] Its main uses are in food and confectionery, and the manufacture of rum and other forms of alcohol. The largest producer and consumer of muscovado is India.The English name "muscovado" is derived from a corruption of Portuguese açúcar mascavado and Spanish azúcar mascabado (unrefined sugar). The Indian English names for this type of sugar are khandsari and khand (sometimes spelt khaand). There is no legal definition of muscovado, and no international standards for it such as Codex Alimentarius or Protected Designation of Origin. This has led to manufacturers calling various sugar products "muscovado", and has led to confusion between muscovado and brown sugar, and even with jaggery.The earliest known production of crystalline sugar began in northern India, after the introduction of sugarcane by Austronesian traders from Island Southeast Asia at around 1000 BCE. However, the exact date of the first cane sugar production is unclear.[10] The earliest evidence of sugar production comes from ancient Sanskrit and Pali texts.[11] Around the 8th century, Muslim and Arab traders introduced sugar from medieval India to the other parts of the Abbasid Caliphate in the Mediterranean, Mesopotamia, Egypt, North Africa, and Andalusia. By the 10th century, sources state that every village in Mesopotamia grew sugarcane. Muscovado is made from the juice of sugar cane that is evaporated until crystallisation occurs. The viscous suspension of crystals and mother liquor (molasses) is called massecuite.黒砂糖（くろざとう）または黒糖（こくとう）は、サトウキビの絞り汁を煮詰めて作る黒褐色の砂糖（含蜜糖）で、甘味料として用いる。brown sugarは黒砂糖の英訳だが、日本語でのブラウン・シュガー（茶色の砂糖の総称）とは異なる。日本では沖縄県や鹿児島県（奄美地方）の特産品として作られている。日本国外では、バルバドス、フィリピン、ベトナム、フィジーなどが著名な産地であり、英語ではBarbados sugar（バルバドスシュガー）との呼び名もある。台湾もかつては大量に製造し、輸出していたが、近年は衰退している。
- japan
- 琉球王国では、1623年（元和9年、琉球王朝尚豊3年）に、中国福州へ人を送って製糖法を習得させた儀間真常によって初めて黒糖が生産された[8][9]。以後、黒糖は、沖縄の生活や文化、農業や経済と深くかかわりながら普及した。1609年の薩摩藩の琉球侵攻によって薩摩藩に直轄されることとなった奄美群島では、1690年に薩摩藩によって琉球から製糖業が導入され、黒糖が薩摩藩の有力な財源となった。1747年には年貢を米に代えて黒糖で納めることとされ、サトウキビの栽培が優先された結果、島民は日常の食料にも事欠くこととなり、その状況は「黒糖地獄」と呼ばれた[10][11]。現在では、沖縄県と鹿児島県の離島で生産され、特産品となっている。黒糖（甘蔗糖のうち含蜜糖）の2017年-2018年期の国内生産量は10,350tであるが、このうち沖縄県が9,642t、鹿児島県が708tを占める[12]。黒糖は、沖縄県では伊江島、粟国島、伊平屋島、多良間島、小浜島、与那国島、西表島、波照間島の8つの離島の製糖工場で生産されている[13]。一方、鹿児島県では徳之島、喜界島、奄美大島、種子島等の離島において、作業所のような小規模な施設で生産されている[14][15]。
Palm sugar is a sweetener derived from any variety of palm tree. Palm sugar is sometimes qualified by the type of palm, as in coconut palm sugar. While sugars from different palms may have slightly different compositions, all are processed similarly and can be used interchangeably. The predominant sources of palm sugar are the Palmyra, date, nipa, sugar and coconutpalms.Gula melaka is a type of palm sugar made from the sap of flower buds from the coconut palm or, less commonly, other palms. It can be dense and sticky. It is known in English as "malacca sugar", probably because it originated in the state of Malacca, Malaysia, which is called "Melaka" in Malay. Traditionally, gula melaka is made by first extracting the sap from the flower bud of a coconut tree.
palm oil
-油棕属 Elaeis (from Greek, meaning 'oil') is a genus of palms containing two species, called oil palms. They are used in commercial agriculture in the production of palm oil. The African oil palm Elaeis guineensis (the species name guineensis referring to its country of origin) is the principal source of palm oil. It is native to west and southwest Africa, occurring between Angola and Gambia. The American oil palm Elaeis oleifera (from Latin oleifer, meaning 'oil-producing') is native to tropical Central and South America,[3] and is used locally for oil production. 本属已知有两种：一种是原产于西非的油棕（E. guineensis，又称非洲油棕），分布于安哥拉至冈比亚的西非地区，被引入至马来西亚和印度尼西亚，属于产油经济作物；另一种是中美洲和南美洲北部的美洲油棕（E. oleifera，又称黑果棕）。
- https://www.ft.com/content/019a7c68-c8b8-11e8-ba8f-ee390057b8c9 Nestlé is to blacklist palm oil suppliers that do not comply with its responsible sourcing policy as it turns to satellite technology to help identify corporate culprits behind the destruction of rainforests linked to the commodity. The Swiss food group behind KitKat and Nescafé said it would publish a full list of companies in its supply chain and their compliance with its no-deforestation policies from next March. Those that fail to adhere to its guidelines would be axed. Nestlé in May blacklisted 10 companies that supply it directly or indirectly with palm oil, including Daewoo Posco, Noble and Korindo, accounting for about 5 per cent of its procurement volumes.
- price
- economist 9mar19 "a pale shade of green" falling prices of palm oil and wet weather mask the flaws in a booming industry's efforts to curb forestation
- ft 6nov19 palm oil soars as jakarta prepares to increase use of biodiesel
- https://www.reuters.com/article/indonesia-malaysia-eu-palmoil/update-2-indonesia-malaysia-mount-protest-to-eu-over-palm-curbs-idUSL3N21Q25E Indonesian President Joko Widodo and Malaysian Prime Minister Mahatir Mohamad have signed a joint letter of objection to the European Union over its plan to phase out the use of palm oil in renewable fuel, and sent delegations to complain in Brussels.The letter was sent to the EU over the weekend, said Luhut Pandjaitan, coordinating minister for maritime affairs, who also oversees natural resources issues. He declined on Monday to disclose the content of the letter.Indonesia and Malaysia, the world’s top producers of the vegetable oil, have both threatened a World Trade Organization challenge against the EU over its plan to phase out the use of palm oil by 2030 in renewable transport fuel.
- ft 3jul19 EU palm oil use for biodiesel vehicles soar
rubber
- []韋克姆smuggled seeds from santarem, brazil to uk in 1876. Seeds were planted in kew gardens, and some of the 橡膠樹were then introduced to malaysia.
- 彈性體是一類具有粘彈性的聚合物。與其它材料相比，彈性體一般具有較低的楊氏模量和較高的破壞應變。這個詞經常與橡膠混用。構成彈性體的單體一般是含有 碳，氫，氧 與（或） 矽的化合物。在玻璃轉化溫度以上，彈性體為無定形體，鏈節運動變得容易。在常溫下，橡膠一般較軟（E~3MPa）且容易變形。彈性體主要用於製造黏合劑、密封部件、輪胎、鞋底等。An Elastomer is a polymer with viscoelasticity (i.e., both viscosity and elasticity) and has very weak intermolecular forces, generally low Young's modulus and high failure strain compared with other materials.[1] The term, a portmanteau of elastic polymer,[2] is often used interchangeably with rubber, although the latter is preferred when referring to vulcanisates.
stevia
- 欧美徵糖税 冷了蔗糖火了甜叶菊http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20180604/PDF/a19_screen.pdf
Corn
- Beijing granted export permits in September to at least two companies, including state grain concern Cofco. Some 2 million tons are expected to be shipped out for the time being.Chinese exports will likely benefit Japan, which relies mainly on imports for corn used in feed and food. Shipments from the U.S., a major grower, take a month to reach Japan, and only large ports can accommodate the 60,000-ton vessels used. Exports from China take just two to three days, and its roughly 3,000-ton vessels can enter smaller ports. http://asia.nikkei.com/Markets/Commodities/China-set-to-export-corn-as-inventory-swells
wood
- Dalbergia odorifera, or fragrant rosewood (降香黄檀; pinyin: jiàngxiāng huángtán; literally: "drooping fragrant dalbergia"), is a species of legume in the Fabaceae family. It is a small or medium-sized tree, 10–15 metres (33–49 ft) tall. It is endemic to China and occurs in Fujian, Hainan, Zhejiang, and Guangdong.It is used as a wood product and in folk medicine. This valuable wood is known in China as Huali and Huanghuali. Higher quality furniture from the late Ming and early Qing dynasties were made of this wood.
bamboo
- International Network for Bamboo and Rattan (INBAR) is an independent intergovernmental organization [3] established in 1997 to develop and promote innovative solutions to poverty and environmental sustainability using bamboo and rattan.INBAR evolved from an informal network of bamboo and rattan researchers set up in 1984 by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) of Canada. In 1993 the network was formalized under its present name but remained a project of IDRC. Work to launch INBAR as an independent organization started in 1995, and was completed in 1997 when INBAR became an independent organization with its headquarters in Beijing, China – the first intergovernmental organization to be headquartered in the People's Republic.
stevia
- 欧美徵糖税 冷了蔗糖火了甜叶菊http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20180604/PDF/a19_screen.pdf
Corn
- Beijing granted export permits in September to at least two companies, including state grain concern Cofco. Some 2 million tons are expected to be shipped out for the time being.Chinese exports will likely benefit Japan, which relies mainly on imports for corn used in feed and food. Shipments from the U.S., a major grower, take a month to reach Japan, and only large ports can accommodate the 60,000-ton vessels used. Exports from China take just two to three days, and its roughly 3,000-ton vessels can enter smaller ports. http://asia.nikkei.com/Markets/Commodities/China-set-to-export-corn-as-inventory-swells
- http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2017-01/12/content_27932283.htm China will further encourage the use of corn to make ethanol this year amid efforts to reduce its huge grain stocks, as authorities mull adjustments to the floor prices for wheat and rice this year. Xu Shaoshi, head of the National Development and Reform Commission, told an annual work conference on grain circulation recently that the top economic planner will allow a moderate increase in corn-based ethanol and expand its use in other areas to help absorb the corn stocks. "Instead of subsidizing the storage facilities, it is better to use the grain to subsidize processing enterprises, which will also alleviate the pressure on warehousing," he said.
- https://www.economist.com/news/united-states/21740449-worlds-biggest-exporter-maize-finds-itself-importing-stuff-corn-beef
- https://www.economist.com/news/middle-east-and-africa/21740461-relying-maize-half-ones-calories-riskyand-makes-boring many africans rely on a single crop
-阿根廷是全球第三大玉米出口國，惟周三宣布將暫停玉米出口到今年2月底，以確保當地糧食供應充足，刺激玉米期貨價格再創6年半新高玉米出現產量落差的原因之一是惡劣天氣令巴西玉米播種期延後，令產量下降。巴西玉米通常會在2月開始播種，除玉米外，南美各地也普遍延遲大豆播種，將引發連鎖反應，影響2021年第二季玉米產量。Teucrium Trading行政總裁Sal Gilbertie說：「南美大豆收成延遲，意味第二季玉米產量將進一步受影響。」據美國農業部估計，巴西減產是個大問題，因當地是全球第三大玉米生產國，佔全球產量約10%；前兩大分別是美國和中國。再者，全球農民選擇種植何種農作物，也決定大豆和玉米價格。目前大豆價格遠高於玉米，給予農民種植的動力。Gilbertie表示，大豆和玉米可以說是競爭關係，由於目前大豆價格較高，故將獲農民青睞。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/finance/20210102/00202_005.html
- https://www.economist.com/news/united-states/21740449-worlds-biggest-exporter-maize-finds-itself-importing-stuff-corn-beef
- https://www.economist.com/news/middle-east-and-africa/21740461-relying-maize-half-ones-calories-riskyand-makes-boring many africans rely on a single crop
-阿根廷是全球第三大玉米出口國，惟周三宣布將暫停玉米出口到今年2月底，以確保當地糧食供應充足，刺激玉米期貨價格再創6年半新高玉米出現產量落差的原因之一是惡劣天氣令巴西玉米播種期延後，令產量下降。巴西玉米通常會在2月開始播種，除玉米外，南美各地也普遍延遲大豆播種，將引發連鎖反應，影響2021年第二季玉米產量。Teucrium Trading行政總裁Sal Gilbertie說：「南美大豆收成延遲，意味第二季玉米產量將進一步受影響。」據美國農業部估計，巴西減產是個大問題，因當地是全球第三大玉米生產國，佔全球產量約10%；前兩大分別是美國和中國。再者，全球農民選擇種植何種農作物，也決定大豆和玉米價格。目前大豆價格遠高於玉米，給予農民種植的動力。Gilbertie表示，大豆和玉米可以說是競爭關係，由於目前大豆價格較高，故將獲農民青睞。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/finance/20210102/00202_005.html
- 吳總邊開車邊解釋在沿途高速上都會有這種味道，原來這片地帶是中國黃金玉米帶，緯度最適合種玉米，加上同緯度的美國中部和烏克蘭，就是世界三大黃金玉米帶。接着在東北生活的德總補充，玉米是國家戰略級別的糧食安全保障。http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2021/01/30/b07-0130.pdf
soyabean
- Why soyabeans are the crop of the century ft 21jun17
- https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trade-china-soybean/china-says-new-animal-feed-standards-will-cut-chunk-out-of-appetite-for-soy-idUSKCN1N30GO?il=0 China’s Feed Industry Association on Friday approved new standards for feed for pigs and chickens, lowering the protein levels in pig feed by 1.5 percentage points and those for chickens by one percentage point, the agriculture ministry said in a statement that day. The standards are only guidelines and the ministry did not say when they would take effect, with traders saying that prices would continue to be the key focus for soymeal consumers. “The new standards are not enforceable (as they are based on guidelines),” said a soybean trader in China, declining to be identified due to the sensitivity of the matter. Another trader, based in Beijing, said that most big feed mills were already using less soymeal than last year because prices had risen versus 2017. The most actively traded soymeal contract on the Dalian Commodity Exchange DSMcv1 has climbed 20 percent since the start of the year to record levels of more than 3,300 yuan ($474.37) per ton.
- 俄羅斯遠東地區600多萬平方公里，佔俄聯邦總面積近36%，一直以來被視為世界未曾開發的資源寶庫之一。近年，隨着越來越多的中國企業和農民赴俄羅斯開墾農場，產自俄羅斯的大豆回運中國的數量，也因此連年攀升。哈爾濱海關最新統計顯示，2018年黑龍江省9個進境糧食口岸共進口俄羅斯大豆80.3萬噸，同比增長60.1%，創歷史新高。 http://paper.wenweipo.com/2019/02/10/CN1902100010.htm
- 據騰訊新聞客戶端自媒體報道，美國大豆出口協會8月將在美國舉行為期一周的貿易交流會，其間計劃接待一個由中國買家組成的代表團。來自中國的買家將與來自其他幾十個國家的買家一起參觀伊利諾伊州的穀物農場，並在芝加哥一家歷史悠久的酒店參加會議，其中包括旨在讓美國大豆出口商與潛在客戶相匹配的會議。http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2019/07/07/a09-0707.pdf
- 中國作為全球兩大的大豆消費國，對進口大豆有着高度依靠。針對有關情況，中國科學院近日成功研發出新品種大豆「合農71」（Henong71），該種大豆不單有更佳的適應性，其產能更是普通大豆的四倍，料大量投產後有助加強國內市場的自給自足。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20191007/00178_017.html
- Why soyabeans are the crop of the century ft 21jun17
- https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trade-china-soybean/china-says-new-animal-feed-standards-will-cut-chunk-out-of-appetite-for-soy-idUSKCN1N30GO?il=0 China’s Feed Industry Association on Friday approved new standards for feed for pigs and chickens, lowering the protein levels in pig feed by 1.5 percentage points and those for chickens by one percentage point, the agriculture ministry said in a statement that day. The standards are only guidelines and the ministry did not say when they would take effect, with traders saying that prices would continue to be the key focus for soymeal consumers. “The new standards are not enforceable (as they are based on guidelines),” said a soybean trader in China, declining to be identified due to the sensitivity of the matter. Another trader, based in Beijing, said that most big feed mills were already using less soymeal than last year because prices had risen versus 2017. The most actively traded soymeal contract on the Dalian Commodity Exchange DSMcv1 has climbed 20 percent since the start of the year to record levels of more than 3,300 yuan ($474.37) per ton.
- 俄羅斯遠東地區600多萬平方公里，佔俄聯邦總面積近36%，一直以來被視為世界未曾開發的資源寶庫之一。近年，隨着越來越多的中國企業和農民赴俄羅斯開墾農場，產自俄羅斯的大豆回運中國的數量，也因此連年攀升。哈爾濱海關最新統計顯示，2018年黑龍江省9個進境糧食口岸共進口俄羅斯大豆80.3萬噸，同比增長60.1%，創歷史新高。 http://paper.wenweipo.com/2019/02/10/CN1902100010.htm
- 據騰訊新聞客戶端自媒體報道，美國大豆出口協會8月將在美國舉行為期一周的貿易交流會，其間計劃接待一個由中國買家組成的代表團。來自中國的買家將與來自其他幾十個國家的買家一起參觀伊利諾伊州的穀物農場，並在芝加哥一家歷史悠久的酒店參加會議，其中包括旨在讓美國大豆出口商與潛在客戶相匹配的會議。http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2019/07/07/a09-0707.pdf
- 中國作為全球兩大的大豆消費國，對進口大豆有着高度依靠。針對有關情況，中國科學院近日成功研發出新品種大豆「合農71」（Henong71），該種大豆不單有更佳的適應性，其產能更是普通大豆的四倍，料大量投產後有助加強國內市場的自給自足。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20191007/00178_017.html
- china daily 29oct2020 china's search for new sources of soybeans leads to tanzania
- genetically modified
yellow peas
- ft 4jul19 plant based meat craze heats up demand for yellow peas
eggs
- 台灣近日出現雞蛋荒，部分地區缺貨，價格不斷上升。對於外界盛傳雞隻患禽流感導致蛋量大減，台灣的農委會澄清，主要是近日溫差較大令雞蛋產量減少，與禽流感無關。業界預計雞蛋在未來一段時間仍會缺貨，農曆新年前後更可能大幅漲價。http://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20190110/00178_029.html
Poultry
- genetically modified
- https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3031579/new-soybean-could-make-china-more-self-reliant-during-trade-war A new hybrid species of soybean could help China get around the higher cost of importing them during its trade war with the US – despite a domestic ban on the high-yield GM crops that dominate the market.Trials of a soybean in Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, in western China, have achieved a record yield after scientists from the country’s northeast created a hybrid species that grew extra pods and was more resistant to harsh weather.Henong-71 seeds produced nearly four times the average yield for soybeans grown in China, according to the Ministry of Science and Technology last week.
yellow peas
- ft 4jul19 plant based meat craze heats up demand for yellow peas
eggs
- 台灣近日出現雞蛋荒，部分地區缺貨，價格不斷上升。對於外界盛傳雞隻患禽流感導致蛋量大減，台灣的農委會澄清，主要是近日溫差較大令雞蛋產量減少，與禽流感無關。業界預計雞蛋在未來一段時間仍會缺貨，農曆新年前後更可能大幅漲價。http://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20190110/00178_029.html
Poultry
-縱使內地生豬供應有回穩迹象，但由於飲食習慣差異，加上疫情衝擊，美國豬肉產量正在下降，預示一旦非洲豬瘟等瘟疫重臨，全球豬肉供應必然受重擊！綜合外國媒體報道，由於新冠肺炎疫情導致美國豬肉加工廠關閉，加上當地餐廳限制營業，導致豬肉需求大減，價格也隨之下滑。報道指出，美國繁殖用的母豬群數量下降至近3年以來最低，明年整體豬群亦將持續減少，意味一旦全球需求驟增，美國將無法大量出口。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/finance/20201226/00202_012.html
Aluminium
- The metal was originally named aluminum by Humphrey Davy in 1812. This, however, upset some other scientists of the time who thought it should use the -ium ending, like sodium, calcium, magnesium etc. (and some who thought it should be called alumina).https://www.quora.com/Is-it-aluminum-or-aluminium-and-why-are-there-two-spellings
- http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/bda6c72c-70ab-11e4-9129-00144feabdc0.html#axzz3K3E5zpwg
EU energy costs turn up heat on aluminium sector
- 黑龍江、吉林兩省今年將擴大大豆種植面積。相關知情人士表示，黑龍江省農業委員會日前召開專題會議，向省內各市下達了2018年全省擴種大豆及新增耕地輪作試點任務表。具體擴種面積官方尚未公佈。http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2018/05/04/a07-0504.pdf
alumina
- ft 12sep18 alumina posed for another record high as supply tightens
fossil fuels
- https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/jul/12/ireland-becomes-worlds-first-country-to-divest-from-fossil-fuels The Republic of Ireland will become the world’s first country to sell off its investments in fossil fuel companies, after a bill was passed with all-party support in the lower house of parliament. The state’s €8bn national investment fund will be required to sell all investments in coal, oil, gas and peat “as soon as is practicable”, which is expected to mean within five years. Norway’s huge $1tn sovereign wealth fund has only partially divested from fossil fuels, targeting some coal companies, and is still considering its oil and gas holdings. The fossil fuel divestment movement has grown rapidly and trillions of dollars of investment funds have been divested, including large pension funds and insurers, cities such as New York, churches and universities.
coal
- called 石涅 in 山海經
- Anthracite, often referred to as hard coal, is a hard, compact variety of coal that has a submetallic luster. It has the highest carbon content, the fewest impurities, and the highest energy density of all types of coal except for graphite and is the highest ranking of coal. Anthracite is the most metamorphosed type of coal (but still represents low-grade metamorphism), in which the carbon content is between 92% and 98%. The term is applied to those varieties of coal which do not give off tarry or other hydrocarbon vapours when heated below their point of ignition.[3] Anthracite ignites with difficulty and burns with a short, blue, and smokeless flame. Anthracite is categorized into standard grade, which is used mainly in power generation, and high grade (HG) and ultra high grade (UHG), the principal uses of which are in the metallurgy sector. Anthracite accounts for about 1% of global coal reserves,[4] and is mined in only a few countries around the world. China accounts for the majority of global production; other producers are Russia, Ukraine, North Korea, South Africa, Vietnam, the UK, Australia, Canada and the US.無煙炭（むえんたん）とは最も炭化度の進んだ石炭。炭素含有量90%以上。石炭化度が高く、他の石炭類と比較し燃焼時の煤煙や臭いが非常に少ない。比重は1.32-1.7。硬度は2-2.5。家庭用の練炭の原料やカーバイドの原料、粉鉄鉱石を塊状に焼結する焼結炉に使われる。煙が少なく発熱量が高いため（ただし揮発分が少なく、着火性に劣る）、隠密性と機動性が求められる軍艦艇の蒸気機関燃料として向いており、昭和の前半に海軍燃料の中心が石油へ転換するまでは重要だった。その後、煤煙が問題視されていた蒸気機関車用燃料としても多く活用された。焼結に使用可能な低燐のものは原料炭の一種として高価格で取引される。
- At least 15 countries have joined an international alliance to phase out coal from power generation before 2030, delegates at U.N. climate talks in Bonn said on Thursday. Britain, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Italy, France, the Netherlands, Portugal, Belgium, Switzerland, New Zealand, Ethiopia, Mexico and the Marshall Islands have joined the Powering Past Coal Alliance, delegates said. The alliance aims to have 50 members by the next U.N. climate summit in 2018 to be held in Poland’s Katowice, one of Europe’s most polluted cities. But some of the world’s biggest coal users, such as China, the United States, Germany and Russia, have not signed up.https://www.reuters.com/article/us-climatechange-accord-coal/at-least-15-states-join-global-alliance-to-phase-out-coal-by-2030-idUSKBN1DG1AI
- ft 29aug18 "coal industry's leavers and remainders at odds"
- Australia became the largest exporter of coking coal to China in the first half of the year due to a strong rebound in steel production used to supply the country’s post-Coronavirus infrastructure and property building boom. Pandemic restrictions during the spring held back shipments from Mongolia, previously China’s top source of the commodity. In addition, China imported more thermal coal – used in power plants to generate electricity – despite rumours that Chinese companies had been told not to buy Australian coal because of strained diplomatic ties between Beijing and Canberra.https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3095211/australia-becomes-chinas-top-source-coking-coal-stimulus
- uk
- germany
Aluminium
- The metal was originally named aluminum by Humphrey Davy in 1812. This, however, upset some other scientists of the time who thought it should use the -ium ending, like sodium, calcium, magnesium etc. (and some who thought it should be called alumina).https://www.quora.com/Is-it-aluminum-or-aluminium-and-why-are-there-two-spellings
- http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/bda6c72c-70ab-11e4-9129-00144feabdc0.html#axzz3K3E5zpwg
EU energy costs turn up heat on aluminium sector
- 黑龍江、吉林兩省今年將擴大大豆種植面積。相關知情人士表示，黑龍江省農業委員會日前召開專題會議，向省內各市下達了2018年全省擴種大豆及新增耕地輪作試點任務表。具體擴種面積官方尚未公佈。http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2018/05/04/a07-0504.pdf
alumina
- ft 12sep18 alumina posed for another record high as supply tightens
fossil fuels
- https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/jul/12/ireland-becomes-worlds-first-country-to-divest-from-fossil-fuels The Republic of Ireland will become the world’s first country to sell off its investments in fossil fuel companies, after a bill was passed with all-party support in the lower house of parliament. The state’s €8bn national investment fund will be required to sell all investments in coal, oil, gas and peat “as soon as is practicable”, which is expected to mean within five years. Norway’s huge $1tn sovereign wealth fund has only partially divested from fossil fuels, targeting some coal companies, and is still considering its oil and gas holdings. The fossil fuel divestment movement has grown rapidly and trillions of dollars of investment funds have been divested, including large pension funds and insurers, cities such as New York, churches and universities.
coal
- called 石涅 in 山海經
- Anthracite, often referred to as hard coal, is a hard, compact variety of coal that has a submetallic luster. It has the highest carbon content, the fewest impurities, and the highest energy density of all types of coal except for graphite and is the highest ranking of coal. Anthracite is the most metamorphosed type of coal (but still represents low-grade metamorphism), in which the carbon content is between 92% and 98%. The term is applied to those varieties of coal which do not give off tarry or other hydrocarbon vapours when heated below their point of ignition.[3] Anthracite ignites with difficulty and burns with a short, blue, and smokeless flame. Anthracite is categorized into standard grade, which is used mainly in power generation, and high grade (HG) and ultra high grade (UHG), the principal uses of which are in the metallurgy sector. Anthracite accounts for about 1% of global coal reserves,[4] and is mined in only a few countries around the world. China accounts for the majority of global production; other producers are Russia, Ukraine, North Korea, South Africa, Vietnam, the UK, Australia, Canada and the US.無煙炭（むえんたん）とは最も炭化度の進んだ石炭。炭素含有量90%以上。石炭化度が高く、他の石炭類と比較し燃焼時の煤煙や臭いが非常に少ない。比重は1.32-1.7。硬度は2-2.5。家庭用の練炭の原料やカーバイドの原料、粉鉄鉱石を塊状に焼結する焼結炉に使われる。煙が少なく発熱量が高いため（ただし揮発分が少なく、着火性に劣る）、隠密性と機動性が求められる軍艦艇の蒸気機関燃料として向いており、昭和の前半に海軍燃料の中心が石油へ転換するまでは重要だった。その後、煤煙が問題視されていた蒸気機関車用燃料としても多く活用された。焼結に使用可能な低燐のものは原料炭の一種として高価格で取引される。
その他、電極原料などにも使用される。
- A briquette (or briquet) is a compressed block of coal dust or other combustible biomass material such as charcoal, sawdust, wood chips, peat, or paper used for fuel and kindling to start a fire. The term comes from the French language and is related to brick.Coal briquettes have long been produced as a means of using up 'small coal', the finely broken coal inevitably produced during the mining process. Otherwise this is difficult to burn as it is both hard to arrange adequate airflow through a fire of these small pieces, also it tended to be drawn up and out of the chimney by the draught, giving visible black smoke.
- Binchō-tan (Japanese: 備長炭), also called white charcoal or binchō-zumi, is a type of charcoal traditionally used in Japanese cooking. Its use dates to the Edo period, when during the Genroku era, a craftsman named Bichū-ya Chōzaemon (備中屋 長左衛門) began to produce it in Tanabe, Wakayama. The raw material is oak, specifically ubame oak (Quercus phillyraeoides), now the official tree of Wakayama Prefecture. Wakayama continues to be a major producer of high-quality charcoal, with the town of Minabe, Wakayama producing more binchō-tan than any other town in Japan. Binchōtan is a type of lump charcoal or hardwood charcoal. The fineness and high quality of binchō-tan are attributed to steaming at high temperatures (about 1000 degrees Celsius). Because it does not release unpleasant odours, it is a favorite of unagi (freshwater eel) and yakitori (skewered chicken) cooks. Due to difficulties in identifying the producing region, the name binchō-tan has come into broader use to designate white charcoal generally, and even products from outside Japan, as well as those made of other species, have come to use the name. To differentiate the aforementioned "non-pure" products, there is a movement to call binchō-tan produced in Wakayama Kishū binchō-tan (紀州備長炭), Kishū being the old name of Wakayama. Binchō-tan is harder than black charcoal, and rings with a metallic sound when struck. Wind chimes and a musical instrument, the tankin ("charcoal-xylophone") have been made from it.
- A briquette (or briquet) is a compressed block of coal dust or other combustible biomass material such as charcoal, sawdust, wood chips, peat, or paper used for fuel and kindling to start a fire. The term comes from the French language and is related to brick.Coal briquettes have long been produced as a means of using up 'small coal', the finely broken coal inevitably produced during the mining process. Otherwise this is difficult to burn as it is both hard to arrange adequate airflow through a fire of these small pieces, also it tended to be drawn up and out of the chimney by the draught, giving visible black smoke.
- Binchō-tan (Japanese: 備長炭), also called white charcoal or binchō-zumi, is a type of charcoal traditionally used in Japanese cooking. Its use dates to the Edo period, when during the Genroku era, a craftsman named Bichū-ya Chōzaemon (備中屋 長左衛門) began to produce it in Tanabe, Wakayama. The raw material is oak, specifically ubame oak (Quercus phillyraeoides), now the official tree of Wakayama Prefecture. Wakayama continues to be a major producer of high-quality charcoal, with the town of Minabe, Wakayama producing more binchō-tan than any other town in Japan. Binchōtan is a type of lump charcoal or hardwood charcoal. The fineness and high quality of binchō-tan are attributed to steaming at high temperatures (about 1000 degrees Celsius). Because it does not release unpleasant odours, it is a favorite of unagi (freshwater eel) and yakitori (skewered chicken) cooks. Due to difficulties in identifying the producing region, the name binchō-tan has come into broader use to designate white charcoal generally, and even products from outside Japan, as well as those made of other species, have come to use the name. To differentiate the aforementioned "non-pure" products, there is a movement to call binchō-tan produced in Wakayama Kishū binchō-tan (紀州備長炭), Kishū being the old name of Wakayama. Binchō-tan is harder than black charcoal, and rings with a metallic sound when struck. Wind chimes and a musical instrument, the tankin ("charcoal-xylophone") have been made from it.
- 煙煤是一種相對軟的煤，包含類似焦油的瀝青物質。質量優於褐煤但低於無煙煤。一般為褐色，有的為暗褐色，經常有亮-暗相間的材質。Bituminous coal or black coal is a relatively soft coal containing a tarlike substance called bitumen or asphalt. It is of higher quality than lignite coal but of poorer quality than anthracite. Formation is usually the result of high pressure being exerted on lignite. Its coloration can be black or sometimes dark brown; often there are well-defined bands of bright and dull material within the seams. These distinctive sequences, which are classified according to either "dull, bright-banded" or "bright, dull-banded", is how bituminous coals are stratigraphically identified.Within the coal mining industry, this type of coal is known for releasing the largest amounts of firedamp, a dangerous mixture of gases that can cause underground explosions. Extraction of bituminous coal demands the highest safety procedures involving attentive gas monitoring, good ventilation and vigilant site management.
- El coque 焦炭Coke is a grey, hard, and porous fuel with a high carbon content and few impurities, made by heating coal or oil in the absence of air—a destructive distillation process. It is an important industrial product, used mainly in iron ore smelting, but also as a fuel in stoves and forges when air pollution is a concern.The unqualified term "coke" usually refers to the product derived from low-ash and low-sulphur bituminous coal by a process called coking. A similar product called petroleum coke, or pet coke, is obtained from crude oil in oil refineries. Coke may also be formed naturally by geologic processes.Historical sources dating to the 4th century describe the production of coke in ancient China.[2] The Chinese first used coke for heating and cooking no later than the ninth century.[citation needed] By the first decades of the eleventh century, Chinese ironworkers in the Yellow River valley began to fuel their furnaces with coke, solving their fuel problem in that tree-sparse region.China is the largest producer and exporter of coke today.[4] China produces 60% of the world's coke. Concerns about air pollution have motivated technological changes in the coke industry by elimination of outdated coking technologies that are not energy efficient.In 1589, a patent was granted to Thomas Proctor and William Peterson for making iron and steel and melting lead with "earth-coal, sea-coal, turf, and peat". The patent contains a distinct allusion to the preparation of coal by "cooking". In 1590, a patent was granted to the Dean of York to "purify pit-coal and free it from its offensive smell".[6] In 1620, a patent was granted to a company composed of William St. John and other knights, mentioning the use of coke in smelting ores and manufacturing metals. In 1627, a patent was granted to Sir John Hacket and Octavius de Strada for a method of rendering sea-coal and pit-coal as useful as charcoal for burning in houses, without offence by smell or smoke.In 1603, Hugh Plat suggested that coal might be charred in a manner analogous to the way charcoal is produced from wood. This process was not employed until 1642, when coke was used for roasting malt in Derbyshire; previously, brewers had used wood, as uncoked coal cannot be used in brewing because its sulphurous fumes would impart a foul taste to the beer.[8] It was considered an improvement in quality, and brought about an "alteration which all England admired"—the coke process allowed for a lighter roast of the malt, leading to the creation of what by the end of the 17th century was called pale ale.In 1709, Abraham Darby I established a coke-fired blast furnace to produce cast iron. Coke's superior crushing strength allowed blast furnaces to become taller and larger. The ensuing availability of inexpensive iron was one of the factors leading to the Industrial Revolution. 1961年，在中國廣東新會發掘南宋末年（大約1270年前後）煉鐵遺址時，除找到爐渣、石灰石、鐵礦石外，還找到了焦炭。目前所知，這是世界上冶鐵用焦炭的最早實例。
- http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/e9d773ac-86dd-11e5-9f8c-a8d619fa707c.html The embattled coal industry is facing a fresh onslaught as rich nations consider a bold plan to scale back the billions of dollars of support they pour into coal power plants worldwide. Documents seen by the Financial Times show the US has struck a deal with Japan that would rein in export credit agency financing for coal, a leading source of the greenhouse gas emissions responsible for climate change.
- http://www.chinadailyasia.com/business/2017-03/20/content_15588464.html China has opened the world's first production line that converts coal into ethanol, the main chemical ingredient in alcohol, the Chinese Academy of Sciences has announced. The facility in Xingping, Shaanxi province, which went into service in January, was developed by the academy's Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics and the State-owned Shaanxi Yanchang Petroleum Group.- At least 15 countries have joined an international alliance to phase out coal from power generation before 2030, delegates at U.N. climate talks in Bonn said on Thursday. Britain, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Italy, France, the Netherlands, Portugal, Belgium, Switzerland, New Zealand, Ethiopia, Mexico and the Marshall Islands have joined the Powering Past Coal Alliance, delegates said. The alliance aims to have 50 members by the next U.N. climate summit in 2018 to be held in Poland’s Katowice, one of Europe’s most polluted cities. But some of the world’s biggest coal users, such as China, the United States, Germany and Russia, have not signed up.https://www.reuters.com/article/us-climatechange-accord-coal/at-least-15-states-join-global-alliance-to-phase-out-coal-by-2030-idUSKBN1DG1AI
- ft 29aug18 "coal industry's leavers and remainders at odds"
- Australia became the largest exporter of coking coal to China in the first half of the year due to a strong rebound in steel production used to supply the country’s post-Coronavirus infrastructure and property building boom. Pandemic restrictions during the spring held back shipments from Mongolia, previously China’s top source of the commodity. In addition, China imported more thermal coal – used in power plants to generate electricity – despite rumours that Chinese companies had been told not to buy Australian coal because of strained diplomatic ties between Beijing and Canberra.https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3095211/australia-becomes-chinas-top-source-coking-coal-stimulus
- uk
- ft 21jan2020 britain to end investment in thermal coal
- germany
- https://www.ft.com/content/897922e2-129b-11e9-a581-4ff78404524e Germany has mined and burnt lignite for hundreds of years and has the physical scars to show for it. From the Rhineland in the west to the Lausitz in the east, the landscape is pockmarked by vast open-pit mines, empty save for colossal excavators burrowing ever deeper into the ground. But a government-appointed task force is set on February 1 to release a plan on ending the use of lignite, or brown coal, in a crucial decision for Germany’s energy industry and its standing in the fight against climate change. Lignite — one of the dirtiest sources of energy — accounts for almost a quarter of electricity generated in Europe’s largest economy and 20,000 jobs. But Germany’s reliance on the cheap fuel is seen as a key reason why it has fallen behind its climate change goals.
- ft 1jul19 chubb to ban cover for coal companies
- 中澳關係緊張，日前50多艘載滿澳洲煤炭貨船，傳在中國港口未能清關。中國駐印尼大使館近日指中國與印尼在上周三舉行的煤炭採購對接會上，敲定明年起向印尼增購價值近15億美元（約117億港元）的「動力煤」，擬為填補停止入口澳洲煤的缺口。
- Dalbergia odorifera, or fragrant rosewood (降香黄檀; pinyin: jiàngxiāng huángtán; literally: "drooping fragrant dalbergia"), is a species of legume in the Fabaceae family. It is a small or medium-sized tree, 10–15 metres (33–49 ft) tall. It is endemic to China and occurs in Fujian, Hainan, Zhejiang, and Guangdong.It is used as a wood product and in folk medicine. This valuable wood is known in China as Huali and Huanghuali. Higher quality furniture from the late Ming and early Qing dynasties were made of this wood.
bamboo
- International Network for Bamboo and Rattan (INBAR) is an independent intergovernmental organization [3] established in 1997 to develop and promote innovative solutions to poverty and environmental sustainability using bamboo and rattan.INBAR evolved from an informal network of bamboo and rattan researchers set up in 1984 by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) of Canada. In 1993 the network was formalized under its present name but remained a project of IDRC. Work to launch INBAR as an independent organization started in 1995, and was completed in 1997 when INBAR became an independent organization with its headquarters in Beijing, China – the first intergovernmental organization to be headquartered in the People's Republic.
Cotton
- history
- cause of world wide conflict hket 29 and 30 mar 2021 fung article
- 偉大的思想家馬克思曾說， 「沒有奴隸制就沒有棉花；沒有棉花現代工 業就不可設想」 ，當北美黑奴們採摘的棉花 源源不斷地運往歐洲，一張由非洲提供勞動 力、美國出產原棉、以英國為主進行棉紡織 加工的全球貿易網絡便應運而生。據史料記 載，十八世紀末，英國從美國進口的棉花為 二千二百萬磅，到十九世紀初已上升至近九 千萬磅，佔英國當年棉花進口總額的百分之 七十五，以曼徹斯特為例，生產的布匹大部 分都是黑奴們種植的棉花織出來的。再至十 九世紀中期，英國總共消費了八億磅棉花， 其中有近百分之八十來自美國。美國詩人約 翰．格林里夫．惠蒂埃形容此時期的棉花繁 榮是 「西方的大麻」 ，利益共有者們構築出 一個充滿黑人的、舒適耕耘地的天堂。http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20210401/PDF/a36_screen.pdf
- Samuel Slater (June 9, 1768 – April 21, 1835) was an early English-American industrialist known as the "Father of the American Industrial Revolution" (a phrase coined by Andrew Jackson) and the "Father of the American Factory System". In the UK, he was called "Slater the Traitor" because he brought British textile technology to America, modifying it for United States use. He stole the textile factory machinery designs as an apprentice to a pioneer in the British industry before migrating to the United States at the age of 21. He designed the first textile mills in the US and later went into business for himself, developing a family business with his sons. He eventually owned thirteen spinning mills and had developed tenant farms and company towns around his textile mills, such as Slatersville, Rhode Island.Samuel Slater was born in Belper, Derbyshire, England, to William and Elizabeth Slater, on June 9, 1768, the fifth son in a farming family of eight children. He received a basic education, perhaps at a school run by Thomas Jackson.[2] At age ten, he began work at the cotton mill opened that year by Jedediah Strutt using the water frame pioneered by Richard Arkwright at nearby Cromford Mill. In 1782, his father died, and his family indentured Samuel as an apprentice to Strutt.[3] Slater was well trained by Strutt and, by age 21, he had gained a thorough knowledge of the organization and practice of cotton spinning.He learned of the American interest in developing similar machines, and he was also aware of British law against exporting the designs. He therefore memorized as much as he could and departed for New York in 1789. Some people of Belper called him "Slater the Traitor", as they considered his move a betrayal of the town where many earned their living at Strutt's mills.
- india
- 印度財政部長尼瑪拉．西塔拉曼說，將對棉花徵收 10%進口稅，以 幫助農民。印度對棉花進口徵稅可能支持本地棉花價格，避免在國內 棉花增長下，棉農銷售面臨困難。到目前為止，印度沒有對棉花進口 徵稅。 http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2021/03/08/b06-0308.pdf
- china
- http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/cndy/2015-09/11/content_21842522.htm Islamic State militants have taken control of a significant portion of Syrian cottonproduction, worrying some textile manufacturers, although there appears little riskthat IS-linked clothing will end up on the catwalk or in customers' closets. After seizing oil and grain fields to fund their offensive, jihadists also assumedcontrol of "three-quarters of the production of cotton" in Syria, which was arelatively important exporter before the war, said Jean-Charles Brisard, a specialiston the financing of extremist groups. Syrian cotton is an issue at the vaunted fashion houses in Paris. A buyer for hautecouture collections at a top label said on condition of anonymity that they havebecome more vigilant over the origin of their fabrics. "Our regular supplier sent us bolts of cloth without a tag of origin, and we asked ourworkshops not to touch them until we had all the required certificates," the buyersaid. Companies are keenly aware of the impact of a public relations disaster in theclothing industry after the Rana Plaza factory in Bangladesh collapsed, killing 1,138people. Foreign labels that had subcontracted work were accused of failing to pushfor safe labor conditionsThe key concern with Syrian "conflict cotton" is that it couldmake its way to international markets via Turkish wholesalers,who would buy the cotton at cut-rate prices from IS fightersdesperate for cash.
- http://www.chinadailyasia.com/business/2015-06/12/content_15276120.html China said on Thursday it will start selling its massive cotton stockpiles this year, in a move likely to depress demand as the country's mills hold off buying in anticipation of sales of discounted fiber. Market rumours have swirled for weeks that China was preparing to release some of its holdings, which have swelled to around 10 million tons - more than 40 percent of world stocks. China, the world's top consumer of the fiber, would issue detailed sale plans in the next 10 days, Yin Jian, an official at the National Development and Reform Commission, told an industry conference.
- https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-01-29/china-s-cotton-lust-sparks-near-record-bull-bet-for-hedge-funds China’s voracious demand for cotton is sparking the fiber’s best rally in six months. Chinese buyers have committed to purchasing almost five times more American cotton than at this time last year, the U.S. government said in a re8port this month. The price of the commodity is heading for its biggest monthly advance since July. Hedge funds are positioned for more gains, holding the second-most bullish wager ever.
- 166萬平方公里的新疆是世界知名的「中國棉花之鄉」，這裏的棉花產量佔全國棉花總產量的87.3%，單產、種植面積、商品調撥量也連續26年位居全國第一。而作為「先進生產力和先進文化示範區」的新疆生產建設兵團，在棉花產業現代化方面更是走在前列。2019年，兵團機採棉面積達到1,080.40萬畝，棉花機採率82%。http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2021/02/17/a08-0217.pdf
- http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20210328/PDF/a8_screen.pdf隨着「互聯網＋農業」模式興起，新疆棉花機收水平由2016年的20.71%升至去年的69.83%，基本實現完全機械化生產。智慧農業的應用，不僅進一步提升新疆棉花的產量和質量，同時亦讓棉農持續增收。一位新疆棉農表示，借助自動化智能化機器，一個人種幾百畝甚至上千畝棉花都是常事。近二十年，新疆農業科學院經濟作物研究所副所長、研究員艾先濤帶領團隊，先後選育出早熟、高產、優質、適宜機採多類型棉花新品種11個，推廣面積超1000萬畝。 1983年起，新疆農業科學院經濟作物研究所用5年時間培育出長絨棉新海5號、6號，新陸中1號、2號四個新品種，並編寫出《新疆棉花品種資源志》，共收入405份陸地棉、長絨棉、中棉、草棉、野生棉資料。40年來，科技人員先後培育出棉花新品種200多個，使新疆棉花品種加快更新換代步伐，也為新疆棉花高產高效提供品種支持。 由於機採棉對育種提出更高要求，2010年起，艾先濤團隊大規模開展機採棉育種研究，目前最新培育的「源棉11號」，在改進配套機採綜合性狀上有了更突出表現。經軋花廠加工後，品質依然能達到「雙31」水準（即纖維絨長31毫米、比強度31cN/tex），遠超一般棉花。艾先濤指出，纖維絨長的意義主要體現在紡織上，纖維長度每增加1毫米，可織更高支數的紗，一般棉花紡織在40支以下，「源棉11號」可達到60支以上，織出的衣服面料會更細更好。他和團隊培育推廣的多個棉花品種，都已經過香港溢達等知名紡織企業的嚴格鑒定和廣泛認可。國家統計局數據顯示，2020年新疆棉花播種面積為2501.9千公頃，較2019年同比下降1.52%；2020年新疆棉花產量為516.2萬噸，同比增長3.20%。種植面積下降，但產量反而增加，這都得益於科技支撐等手段的助推。 據了解，去年新疆維吾爾自治區科技廳啟動「棉花優質高產高效標準化生產技術集成示範項目」，針對新疆棉花優質高產高效標準化生產和農業水資源安全供給的科技需求，投資3100萬元人民幣開展技術創新和集成應用，以形成在南疆地區可複製、可推廣的棉花生產優質高產高效經驗。 據新疆農業科技工作人員介紹，新疆自然條件得天獨厚，得益於獨特的光熱條件，新疆長絨棉柔軟度、光澤度、親膚度、透氣性、彈力等指標均遠超普通棉。同時，新疆創製一批耐高溫、耐鹽鹼、耐寒、適宜機採的優異種質資源，攻克多環節關鍵技術難題，不僅極大提升棉花品質，也使得棉花種植多項技術國際領先。
- http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/cndy/2015-09/11/content_21842522.htm Islamic State militants have taken control of a significant portion of Syrian cottonproduction, worrying some textile manufacturers, although there appears little riskthat IS-linked clothing will end up on the catwalk or in customers' closets. After seizing oil and grain fields to fund their offensive, jihadists also assumedcontrol of "three-quarters of the production of cotton" in Syria, which was arelatively important exporter before the war, said Jean-Charles Brisard, a specialiston the financing of extremist groups. Syrian cotton is an issue at the vaunted fashion houses in Paris. A buyer for hautecouture collections at a top label said on condition of anonymity that they havebecome more vigilant over the origin of their fabrics. "Our regular supplier sent us bolts of cloth without a tag of origin, and we asked ourworkshops not to touch them until we had all the required certificates," the buyersaid. Companies are keenly aware of the impact of a public relations disaster in theclothing industry after the Rana Plaza factory in Bangladesh collapsed, killing 1,138people. Foreign labels that had subcontracted work were accused of failing to pushfor safe labor conditionsThe key concern with Syrian "conflict cotton" is that it couldmake its way to international markets via Turkish wholesalers,who would buy the cotton at cut-rate prices from IS fightersdesperate for cash.
-今次棉花之戰，風眼何在？筆者認為，這也是中美「一哥」之爭。過去，美國是棉花第一生產國，但自從中國使用棉花小麥雙季播種和地膜覆蓋式推動棉花生產，數量和質量都有級數式躍升。中國成為棉花第一生產國，美國跌至第二。而中國更是全球最大棉花消費國和棉紗生產基地，打通了整條產業鏈。以前，美國紐約期貨交易所主控棉花的定價權，2004年鄭州商品交易所推出棉花期貨交易，2011年湖北天門市建成全國最大的棉花交易市場和國際化大型現貨超市，2016年上海落成了國際棉花交易中心。所以，中國已成為世界紡織業的中心──「一哥」。美國推棉花戰，是「一哥之戰」。中國棉花協會發表聲明，希望國際紡織服裝品牌商能夠尊重中國市場和消費者，並歡迎到新疆考察實情。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/news/20210327/00184_005.html
yarn
- http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2017-07/03/c_136411626.htm China's securities regulator has recently approved the launch of cotton yarn futures on the Zhengzhou Commodity Exchange, according to an official statement. The cotton yarn futures, together with the cotton futures that already traded, will help companies in the industry to hedge against and improve the management of risks, the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) said. Futures contracts obligate investors to buy or sell the underlying assets at a predetermined price at a specified time, helping investors mitigate risks of price volatilities. Large and frequent fluctuations in cotton yarn prices have had negative impacts on related industries in the past few years, and the launch of the cotton yarn futures will be an answer to market demand, the CSRC said.
oil
- The Red Line Agreement is an agreement signed by partners in the Turkish Petroleum Company (TPC) on July 31, 1928. The aim of the agreement was to formalize the corporate structure of TPC and bind all partners to a "self-denial clause" that prohibited any of its shareholders from independently seeking oil interests in the ex-Ottoman territory. It marked the creation of an oil monopoly, or cartel, of immense influence, spanning a vast territory. The cartel preceded easily by three decades the birth of another cartel, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), which was formed in 1960. It has been said that, at a meeting in 1928, Calouste Gulbenkian, an Armenian businessman and philanthropist, drew a red line on a map of the Middle East demarcating the boundaries of the area where the self-denial clause would be in effect. Gulbenkian said this was the boundary of the Ottoman Empire he knew in 1914. He should know, he added, because he was born in it and lived in it. The other partners looked on it attentively and did not object. They had already anticipated such a boundary. (According to some accounts, the “red line” was not drawn by Gulbenkian but by a French representative.) Except for Gulbenkian, the partners were the supermajors of today. Within the “red line” lie the entire ex-Ottoman territory in the Middle East including the Arabian Peninsula (plus Turkey) but excluding Kuwait. Kuwait was excluded as it was meant to be a preserve for the British. Years later, Walter C. Teagle of Standard Oil of New Jersey remarked that the agreement was “a damn bad move”. However, it served to define the sphere of operations of TPC's successor, the Iraq Petroleum Company (IPC). The writer Stephen Hemsley Longrigg, a former IPC employee, noted that "the Red Line Agreement, variously assessed as a sad case of wrongful cartelization or as an enlightened example of international co‑operation and fair-sharing, was to hold the field for twenty years and in large measure determined the pattern and tempo of oil development over a large part of the Middle East". Apart from Saudi Arabia and Bahrain where ARAMCO and BAPCO prevailed, IPC monopolized oil exploration inside the Red Line during this period.American oil companies Standard Oil of New Jersey and Socony-Vacuum were partners in IPC and therefore bound by the Red Line Agreement. When they were offered a partnership with ARAMCO to develop the oil resources of Saudi Arabia, their partners in IPC refused to release them from the agreement. After the Americans claimed that World War II had ended the Red Line Agreement, protracted legal proceedings with Gulbenkian followed. Eventually the case was settled out of court and the American partners were allowed to join ARAMCO. The Red Line Agreement became a legacy document after this date, as IPC continued to operate existing concessions under its terms but the shareholder companies were allowed independently to seek new oil concessions across the Middle East.
- https://www.theguardian.com/business/2017/jul/18/ecuador-opec-oil-output-production-cuts-price Ecuador has become the first country to publicly admit it will not meet Opec’s production curbs, saying it needs to pump more oil to address its fiscal deficit.
- http://www.economist.com/news/business/21688386-amid-surge-demand-rechargeable-batteries-companies-are-scrambling-supplies It is not a big business: lithium accounts for only about 5% of the materials in some car batteries, and for less than 10% of their cost. Worldwide sales of lithium salts are only about $1 billion a year. But the element is a vital component of batteries that power everything from cars to smartphones, laptops and power tools. With demand for such high-density energy storage set to surge as vehicles become greener and electricity becomes cleaner, Goldman Sachs, an investment bank, calls lithium “the new gasoline”.The industry is fairly concentrated, which adds to the worry. Last year Albermarle, the world’s biggest lithium producer, bought Rockwood, owner of Chile’s second-biggest lithium deposit. It and three other companies—SQM, FMC of America and Tianqi—account for most of the world supply of lithium salts, according to Citigroup, a bank. What is more, a big lithium-brine project in Argentina, run by a joint venture of Orocobre, an Australian miner, and Toyota, Japan’s largest carmaker, is behind schedule. Though the Earth contains plenty of lithium, extracting it can be costly and time-consuming, so higher prices may not automatically stimulate a surge in supply. Demand is also on the up. At the moment, the main lithium-ion battery-makers are Samsung and LG of South Korea, Panasonic and Sony of Japan, and ATL of Hong Kong. But China also has many battery-makers. Adam Collins of Liberum, another investment bank, talks of an “inflection-point” in Chinese demand for lithium salts. Its government is stepping up the promotion of lithium-ion batteries and electric vehicles, with the biggest emphasis on buses. Sales of “new energy” vehicles in China almost tripled in the first ten months of 2015 compared with the same period in 2014, to 171,000 (though they remain less than 1% of total vehicle sales). Tesla Motors, an American maker of electric cars founded by Elon Musk, a tech tycoon, is also on the prowl. It is preparing this year to start production at its “Gigafactory” in Nevada, which it hopes will supply lithium-ion batteries for 500,000 cars a year within five years. J.B. Straubel, Tesla’s chief technical officer, says the firm wants to secure supplies of many battery materials, not just lithium. “There’s so much hype in the lithium market right now...people look at it as this magical element,” he says. Nonetheless, in August Bacanora, a Canadian firm, said it had signed a conditional agreement to supply Tesla with lithium hydroxide from a mine that it plans to develop in northern Mexico. Bacanora’s shares jumped on the news—though analysts noted that shipping fine white powder across the United States border would need careful handling. Bigger carmakers also have a growing appetite for lithium. In a recent shift, Toyota has begun offering lithium-ion batteries instead of heavier nickel-metal hydride ones in its Prius hybrid. Mr Collins notes that tougher emissions standards in Europe and America are likely to boost carmakers’ need for lithium. Another big source of demand may be for electricity storage. The holy grail of renewable electricity is batteries cheap and capacious enough to overcome the intermittency of solar and wind power—for example, to store enough power from solar panels to keep the lights on all night. Tesla says that next month it will start installing “Powerwall” battery packs in American and Australian homes to store solar energy, at a cost of $3,000. Enel, an Italian utility, is launching similar storage products this year in South Africa, where homes and businesses suffer frequent black-outs.
- http://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/finance/20160718/00275_001.html 智利最大鹽湖阿塔卡馬鹽湖（Salar de Atacama）。該地蘊含世界上最純淨鋰源，據估計儲藏着全球接近三分之一的鋰儲備。
- http://www.economist.com/news/americas/21723451-three-south-american-countries-have-much-worlds-lithium-they-take-very-different
- http://www.mining.com/japans-mitsui-injects-30m-sigmas-lithium-project-brazil/ Japan’s Mitsui & Co. will invest $30 million in Sigma Lithium Resources’ (TSX-V: SGMA) project in Brazil, as demand for the metal used in the batteries that power electric vehicles is set to continue growing, keeping the market tight. The funds, together with a $40 million debt offering Mitsui granted Sigma, will allow the Canadian miner to begin building a processing plant at its Grota do Cirilo asset, a hard rock lithium project in the south-eastern Brazilian province of Minas Gerais.
- ft 23may19 powering the battery supply chain
- http://www.globaltimes.cn/content/1153148.shtml Chinese scientists have found a major lithium deposit in Southwest China's Yunnan Province, estimated to contain more than 5 million tons. There are approximately 40 million tons of proven lithium reserves in the world, the Xinhua News Agency's Globe magazine reported. A team led by research fellow Wen Hanjie from the Institute of Geochemistry under the Chinese Academy of Sciences found 340,000 tons of lithium oxide in a test site in central Yunnan.
They estimated the total amount of lithium to be in excess of 5 million tons. The lithium discovered is a new type in carbonate formation, the institute said on its website on Monday. Lithium, a chemical element mainly contained in brines, pegmatite and clay, is viewed by some analysts as one of the most valuable metals in the first half of the 21st century.-印度目前依賴鋰電池從中國進口，尤其印度正專注發展製造業，積極鼓勵智能手機在印度生產，鋰電池需求量龐大。報道指，印度已成立國營企業與世界鋰礦儲量排名第三的阿根廷一家企業簽署合約，從去年中起在阿根廷勘探鋰礦。擬2030年全面禁燃油車這間與阿根廷企業簽署合約共同勘探鋰礦的印度國營企業為Khanij Bidesh India Ltd，由印度國家鋁業有限公司（National Aluminium Company Limited）、印度斯坦銅礦開採有限公司（Hindustan Copper and Mineral Exploration Ltd）等印度國營企業於2019年8月成立，負責在國外採購鋰、鈷等戰略性礦產。除了阿根廷外，這間印度國營企業也正從鋰礦儲量世界第一的玻利維亞，及全球第二的智利探索獲得鋰礦的方案。另一方面，印度總理莫迪已經提出該國在2023年三輪車全面電動化、2025年兩輪車全面電動化，到2030年將全面禁止燃油車的計劃，因而驅動電動車的鋰電池成為印度重視的戰略資源。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/finance/20210119/00202_025.html
- Felix話，新疆棉花嘅品質向來上乘，由於事件已經演變成國際商貿糾紛，估計本港部分廠商鑑於產品要出口到歐美，或者會暫時轉用巴基斯坦或印度棉花，當大批廠商同時轉用外國棉花，有可能令同類貨品價格上升，最終成本會轉嫁至外國品牌。由於唔少國際知名品牌喺過去10年，其業績增長主要依賴中國市場。受疫情影響下，內地經濟持續表現較好，認為上述國際品牌要自行衡量，係咪要放棄中國嘅大生意。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/news/20210327/00176_064.html
- http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2017-07/03/c_136411626.htm China's securities regulator has recently approved the launch of cotton yarn futures on the Zhengzhou Commodity Exchange, according to an official statement. The cotton yarn futures, together with the cotton futures that already traded, will help companies in the industry to hedge against and improve the management of risks, the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) said. Futures contracts obligate investors to buy or sell the underlying assets at a predetermined price at a specified time, helping investors mitigate risks of price volatilities. Large and frequent fluctuations in cotton yarn prices have had negative impacts on related industries in the past few years, and the launch of the cotton yarn futures will be an answer to market demand, the CSRC said.
- The Red Line Agreement is an agreement signed by partners in the Turkish Petroleum Company (TPC) on July 31, 1928. The aim of the agreement was to formalize the corporate structure of TPC and bind all partners to a "self-denial clause" that prohibited any of its shareholders from independently seeking oil interests in the ex-Ottoman territory. It marked the creation of an oil monopoly, or cartel, of immense influence, spanning a vast territory. The cartel preceded easily by three decades the birth of another cartel, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), which was formed in 1960. It has been said that, at a meeting in 1928, Calouste Gulbenkian, an Armenian businessman and philanthropist, drew a red line on a map of the Middle East demarcating the boundaries of the area where the self-denial clause would be in effect. Gulbenkian said this was the boundary of the Ottoman Empire he knew in 1914. He should know, he added, because he was born in it and lived in it. The other partners looked on it attentively and did not object. They had already anticipated such a boundary. (According to some accounts, the “red line” was not drawn by Gulbenkian but by a French representative.) Except for Gulbenkian, the partners were the supermajors of today. Within the “red line” lie the entire ex-Ottoman territory in the Middle East including the Arabian Peninsula (plus Turkey) but excluding Kuwait. Kuwait was excluded as it was meant to be a preserve for the British. Years later, Walter C. Teagle of Standard Oil of New Jersey remarked that the agreement was “a damn bad move”. However, it served to define the sphere of operations of TPC's successor, the Iraq Petroleum Company (IPC). The writer Stephen Hemsley Longrigg, a former IPC employee, noted that "the Red Line Agreement, variously assessed as a sad case of wrongful cartelization or as an enlightened example of international co‑operation and fair-sharing, was to hold the field for twenty years and in large measure determined the pattern and tempo of oil development over a large part of the Middle East". Apart from Saudi Arabia and Bahrain where ARAMCO and BAPCO prevailed, IPC monopolized oil exploration inside the Red Line during this period.American oil companies Standard Oil of New Jersey and Socony-Vacuum were partners in IPC and therefore bound by the Red Line Agreement. When they were offered a partnership with ARAMCO to develop the oil resources of Saudi Arabia, their partners in IPC refused to release them from the agreement. After the Americans claimed that World War II had ended the Red Line Agreement, protracted legal proceedings with Gulbenkian followed. Eventually the case was settled out of court and the American partners were allowed to join ARAMCO. The Red Line Agreement became a legacy document after this date, as IPC continued to operate existing concessions under its terms but the shareholder companies were allowed independently to seek new oil concessions across the Middle East.
- http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/bizchina/2017-01/23/content_28029534.htm OPEC's campaign to prop up oil prices is getting unlikely support from its biggest customer. China's production is forecast to fall by as much as 7 percent this year, extending a record decline in 2016, according to analysts at CLSA Ltd, Sanford C. Bernstein & Co and Nomura Holdings Inc. That's about the same size as the output cut agreed by Iraq, the second-biggest producer in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, which late last year reached a deal to trim supply to support prices.
- https://www.ft.com/content/b8cdfb48-e3dc-11e6-9645-c9357a75844a
Supertankers from Iran’s state-owned oil fleet are sailing to Europe for the first time since sanctions were eased last year, as one of the world’s biggest crude shippers moves to step up deliveries.
- https://www.ft.com/content/83bf9a26-5b6c-11e7-b553-e2df1b0c3220 Canada, home of the world’s third-largest oil reserves, might have seen producers slash capital spending during the three-year-old oil decline, but earlier investments in the country are set to keep pushing output higher for at least the next 18 months. A forecast released this month by the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers sees the country’s output increasing by 270,000 barrels a day in 2017 and another 320,000 b/d next year. That combined two-year Canadian increase is equal to almost a third of Opec’s production cuts that it made with allies like Russia at the beginning of this year in an effort to raise prices.- https://www.theguardian.com/business/2017/jul/18/ecuador-opec-oil-output-production-cuts-price Ecuador has become the first country to publicly admit it will not meet Opec’s production curbs, saying it needs to pump more oil to address its fiscal deficit.
-https://www.ft.com/content/fb1c1520-6fa5-11e7-aca6-c6bd07df1a3c Nigeria and Libya should join the deal to cut global oil production agreed by Opec and Russia as soon as their output stabilises, Alexander Novak, Russia’s energy minister, has said. Producers are battling to prop up crude prices that have sagged on fears that the deal’s effectiveness is fading. Russia, Saudi Arabia and other Opec members agreed late last year to reduce production, in an effort to prop up the market. - 「伊斯蘭國」（IS）這幾年急速擴張是因搶奪了敍利亞與伊拉克的油田，以生產的石油收入支付整個軍事擴張。庫爾德人在伊拉克北部崛起是因當地在這幾年開採石油，產量巨大，並打敗IS佔了原來的敍伊油田。無論是IS或庫爾德，都是靠把石油運往土耳其，從傑伊漢港口出運。IS是非法地以低價賣給以色列；庫爾德人在伊賣油是違反與中央政府的協議，用走私的方法，相信在土耳其出口後也是賣給以色列。在這個非法石油的產業鏈裏，美國是主導，也提供軍事保護傘。其中也可能包括用石油收入買美國軍火和僱傭兵的因素。先是IS，後是庫爾德，美國未必想建立庫爾德國，但至少是用石油支撐這兩個傀儡組織，對抗不聽美國和以色列指揮的伊朗、伊拉克、敍利亞，以至黎巴嫩政府。沙特阿拉伯與阿聯酋的介入，是為了建設北經敍利亞出口地中海，到歐洲的石油天然氣管道。伊拉克與敍利亞政府必然爭奪庫爾德人控制的兩國石油油井。俄羅斯與伊朗都已介入庫爾德內部政治，目的是把當地的石油或是運往俄控制的煉油廠提煉，或是繞道從伊朗出口。俄伊的介入必然扶助庫爾德的反獨立派別與伊拉克、敍利亞建立聯邦自治。成功的話，美國便無從插手，中國也可在當地投資。http://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/news/20171023/00184_001.html
- ft 6nov19 blockbuster oil auction puts brazil on map
- 中國石油化工(00386)、中國石油(00857)、中國海洋石油(00883)及中化集團的高層，正商討組團聯合採購原油，並稱計劃已獲內地監管機構支持。往後四大油企巨頭將可成全球最大原油買家，以提高進口原油的議價能力。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/finance/20200630/00202_003.html
- ft 6nov19 blockbuster oil auction puts brazil on map
- ft 7nov19 blow to brazil as oil majors shun auction
- 中國石油化工(00386)、中國石油(00857)、中國海洋石油(00883)及中化集團的高層，正商討組團聯合採購原油，並稱計劃已獲內地監管機構支持。往後四大油企巨頭將可成全球最大原油買家，以提高進口原油的議價能力。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/finance/20200630/00202_003.html
-沙特石油出口不斷減少。美國能源部資料顯示，當地上周沒有進口任何沙特原油，為35年來首次。回溯12年前當拜登擔任美國副總統時，美國每日進口100萬桶沙特原油，規模僅次加拿大，亦視為美國國家安全風險之一。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/finance/20210108/00202_017.html
廢食油
- 燃燒化石油會釋放二氧化碳及污染物，加劇氣候變化危機。為紓緩問題，有國家引入已使用及以植物提煉而成的食油，與化石燃料混合，製成生物柴油，供私家車及貨櫃車使用。但有專家擔心，近年社會對廢食油的需求急升，有關做法會影響當地畜牧業及變相鼓勵去森林化。製作薯片及食物的廢油是製造生物柴油的主要成份，歐洲近年亦興起廢食油的收集及加工行業，令此類廢油變得供不應求。據歐洲運輸環境聯合會指，歐洲有逾一半的廢食油都是由外地進口，自2014年起，入口數量亦按年上升近40 %。有團體擔心，此類廢食油原本是畜牧業用作餵飼動物之用，擔心需求急升會對有關行業造成影響。團體又指，廢食油因需求增加而令價格急升，擔心有賣家會在食油中加入價錢較低的棕櫚油，變相鼓勵砍伐棕櫚樹，加劇東南亞去森林化現象。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/news/20210428/00176_059.html
lng
- 液化天然氣一夜漲價近千元http://hk.hkcd.com/pdf/201911/1113/HA07B13CEMA_HKCD.pdf
廢食油
- 燃燒化石油會釋放二氧化碳及污染物，加劇氣候變化危機。為紓緩問題，有國家引入已使用及以植物提煉而成的食油，與化石燃料混合，製成生物柴油，供私家車及貨櫃車使用。但有專家擔心，近年社會對廢食油的需求急升，有關做法會影響當地畜牧業及變相鼓勵去森林化。製作薯片及食物的廢油是製造生物柴油的主要成份，歐洲近年亦興起廢食油的收集及加工行業，令此類廢油變得供不應求。據歐洲運輸環境聯合會指，歐洲有逾一半的廢食油都是由外地進口，自2014年起，入口數量亦按年上升近40 %。有團體擔心，此類廢食油原本是畜牧業用作餵飼動物之用，擔心需求急升會對有關行業造成影響。團體又指，廢食油因需求增加而令價格急升，擔心有賣家會在食油中加入價錢較低的棕櫚油，變相鼓勵砍伐棕櫚樹，加劇東南亞去森林化現象。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/news/20210428/00176_059.html
lng
- 液化天然氣一夜漲價近千元http://hk.hkcd.com/pdf/201911/1113/HA07B13CEMA_HKCD.pdf
-據標普Global Platts指出，東北亞LNG基準價格飆至每百萬英國熱能單位（BTU）28.221美元，今年累漲87%，更較一年前當疫情衝擊需求時的紀錄低位狂升15倍。中國、南韓及日本皆是LNG進口大國，北京上周氣溫降至半世紀低位，家居和辦公室取暖用電需求上升，帶動發電用天然氣的需求急增。倫敦航運經紀公司Simpson Spence Young負責天然氣的執行董事Toby Dunipace形容現時是「完美風暴」，當氣溫急降之際，東亞地區天然氣庫存呈現枯竭。有市場人士指出，除澳洲及挪威天然氣生產出現問題外，全球天然氣基本上沒有供應短缺，問題主要在運輸上。美國墨西哥灣LNG生產商正全力將美國過剩的天然氣，輸往亞洲，以賺取兩地的巨額差價。據Vortexa數字顯示，亞洲去年12月進口破紀錄340萬噸美國LNG。不過，美國LNG輸往亞洲必經的巴拿馬運河，卻因貨櫃運輸季節性增加，最近出現嚴重擠塞情況，一些LNG運輸船轉而取道非洲好望角，但船程多17天。船隻短缺下，Spark Commodities指出，一艘LNG運輸船的租金，由去年底每日19萬美元，爆升至上周五的32.5萬美元。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/finance/20210113/00202_015.html
LithiumUn sable bitumineux Las arenas de alquitrán, conocidas también como arenas bituminosas, arenas de petróleo, arenas petrolíferas o arenas aceiteras 油砂（英语：Oil sands，亦称焦油砂） Oil sands, also known as tar sands or crude bitumen, or more technically bituminous sands, are a type of unconventional petroleum deposit. Oil sands are either loose sands or partially consolidated sandstone containing a naturally occurring mixture of sand, clay, and water, saturated with a dense and extremely viscous form of petroleumtechnically referred to as bitumen (or colloquially as tar due to its superficially similar appearance). Natural bitumen deposits are reported in many countries, but in particular are found in extremely large quantities in Canada. Other large reserves are located in Kazakhstan, Russia, and Venezuela.
- The exploitation of bituminous deposits and seeps dates back to Paleolithic times.[12] The earliest known use of bitumen was by Neanderthals, some 40,000 years ago. Bitumen has been found adhering to stone toolsused by Neanderthals at sites in Syria. After the arrival of Homo sapiens, humans used bitumen for construction of buildings and waterproofing of reed boats, among other uses. In ancient Egypt, the use of bitumen was important in preparing mummies. In ancient times, bitumen was primarily a Mesopotamian commodity used by the Sumerians and Babylonians, although it was also found in the Levant and Persia. The area along the Tigris and Euphrates rivers was littered with hundreds of pure bitumen seepages. The Mesopotamians used the bitumen for waterproofing boats and buildings. In Europe, they were extensively mined near the French city of Pechelbronn, where the vapour separation process was in use in 1742. The name tar sands was applied to bituminous sands in the late 19th and early 20th century.[16] People who saw the bituminous sands during this period were familiar with the large amounts of tar residue produced in urban areas as a by-product of the manufacture of coal gas for urban heating and lighting.[17] The word "tar" to describe these natural bitumen deposits is really a misnomer, since, chemically speaking, tar is a human-made substance produced by the destructive distillation of organic material, usually coal. Since then, coal gas has almost completely been replaced by natural gas as a fuel, and coal tar as a material for paving roads has been replaced by the petroleum product asphalt. Naturally occurring bitumen is chemically more similar to asphalt than to coal tar, and the term oil sands (or oilsands) is more commonly used by industry in the producing areas than tar sands because synthetic oil is manufactured from the bitumen,[18] and due to the feeling that the terminology of tar sands is less politically acceptable to the public. Oil sands are now an alternative to conventional crude oil. In Canada, the First Nation peoples had used bitumen from seeps along the Athabasca and Clearwater Rivers to waterproof their birch bark canoes from early prehistoric times. The Canadian oil sands first became known to Europeans in 1719 when a Cree native named Wa-Pa-Su brought a sample to Hudsons Bay Company fur trader Henry Kelsey, who commented on it in his journals. Fur trader Peter Pond paddled down the Clearwater River to Athabasca in 1778, saw the deposits and wrote of "springs of bitumen that flow along the ground." In 1787, fur trader and explorer Alexander MacKenzie on his way to the Arctic Ocean saw the Athabasca oil sands, and commented, "At about 24 miles from the fork (of the Athabasca and Clearwater Rivers) are some bituminous fountains into which a pole of 20 feet long may be inserted without the least resistance."
- http://www.economist.com/news/business/21688386-amid-surge-demand-rechargeable-batteries-companies-are-scrambling-supplies It is not a big business: lithium accounts for only about 5% of the materials in some car batteries, and for less than 10% of their cost. Worldwide sales of lithium salts are only about $1 billion a year. But the element is a vital component of batteries that power everything from cars to smartphones, laptops and power tools. With demand for such high-density energy storage set to surge as vehicles become greener and electricity becomes cleaner, Goldman Sachs, an investment bank, calls lithium “the new gasoline”.The industry is fairly concentrated, which adds to the worry. Last year Albermarle, the world’s biggest lithium producer, bought Rockwood, owner of Chile’s second-biggest lithium deposit. It and three other companies—SQM, FMC of America and Tianqi—account for most of the world supply of lithium salts, according to Citigroup, a bank. What is more, a big lithium-brine project in Argentina, run by a joint venture of Orocobre, an Australian miner, and Toyota, Japan’s largest carmaker, is behind schedule. Though the Earth contains plenty of lithium, extracting it can be costly and time-consuming, so higher prices may not automatically stimulate a surge in supply. Demand is also on the up. At the moment, the main lithium-ion battery-makers are Samsung and LG of South Korea, Panasonic and Sony of Japan, and ATL of Hong Kong. But China also has many battery-makers. Adam Collins of Liberum, another investment bank, talks of an “inflection-point” in Chinese demand for lithium salts. Its government is stepping up the promotion of lithium-ion batteries and electric vehicles, with the biggest emphasis on buses. Sales of “new energy” vehicles in China almost tripled in the first ten months of 2015 compared with the same period in 2014, to 171,000 (though they remain less than 1% of total vehicle sales). Tesla Motors, an American maker of electric cars founded by Elon Musk, a tech tycoon, is also on the prowl. It is preparing this year to start production at its “Gigafactory” in Nevada, which it hopes will supply lithium-ion batteries for 500,000 cars a year within five years. J.B. Straubel, Tesla’s chief technical officer, says the firm wants to secure supplies of many battery materials, not just lithium. “There’s so much hype in the lithium market right now...people look at it as this magical element,” he says. Nonetheless, in August Bacanora, a Canadian firm, said it had signed a conditional agreement to supply Tesla with lithium hydroxide from a mine that it plans to develop in northern Mexico. Bacanora’s shares jumped on the news—though analysts noted that shipping fine white powder across the United States border would need careful handling. Bigger carmakers also have a growing appetite for lithium. In a recent shift, Toyota has begun offering lithium-ion batteries instead of heavier nickel-metal hydride ones in its Prius hybrid. Mr Collins notes that tougher emissions standards in Europe and America are likely to boost carmakers’ need for lithium. Another big source of demand may be for electricity storage. The holy grail of renewable electricity is batteries cheap and capacious enough to overcome the intermittency of solar and wind power—for example, to store enough power from solar panels to keep the lights on all night. Tesla says that next month it will start installing “Powerwall” battery packs in American and Australian homes to store solar energy, at a cost of $3,000. Enel, an Italian utility, is launching similar storage products this year in South Africa, where homes and businesses suffer frequent black-outs.
- http://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/finance/20160718/00275_001.html 智利最大鹽湖阿塔卡馬鹽湖（Salar de Atacama）。該地蘊含世界上最純淨鋰源，據估計儲藏着全球接近三分之一的鋰儲備。
- http://www.economist.com/news/americas/21723451-three-south-american-countries-have-much-worlds-lithium-they-take-very-different
- http://www.mining.com/japans-mitsui-injects-30m-sigmas-lithium-project-brazil/ Japan’s Mitsui & Co. will invest $30 million in Sigma Lithium Resources’ (TSX-V: SGMA) project in Brazil, as demand for the metal used in the batteries that power electric vehicles is set to continue growing, keeping the market tight. The funds, together with a $40 million debt offering Mitsui granted Sigma, will allow the Canadian miner to begin building a processing plant at its Grota do Cirilo asset, a hard rock lithium project in the south-eastern Brazilian province of Minas Gerais.
- ft 23may19 powering the battery supply chain
- http://www.globaltimes.cn/content/1153148.shtml Chinese scientists have found a major lithium deposit in Southwest China's Yunnan Province, estimated to contain more than 5 million tons. There are approximately 40 million tons of proven lithium reserves in the world, the Xinhua News Agency's Globe magazine reported. A team led by research fellow Wen Hanjie from the Institute of Geochemistry under the Chinese Academy of Sciences found 340,000 tons of lithium oxide in a test site in central Yunnan.
They estimated the total amount of lithium to be in excess of 5 million tons. The lithium discovered is a new type in carbonate formation, the institute said on its website on Monday. Lithium, a chemical element mainly contained in brines, pegmatite and clay, is viewed by some analysts as one of the most valuable metals in the first half of the 21st century.
- scmp 17mar2021 chinese-australian lithium ties tightened
- extraction technology
- 除了油價外，其他商品價格近期急升，工業金屬亦不例外，尤其是鎳價，在昨日突然間急升近2000美元，升幅達一成三，至16690美元一噸，原因是印尼鐵礦石出口措施不明確，令市場供應可能受影響。交易員和分析員相信，全球主要鎳礦供應地的印尼，快將禁止部分礦石出口。印尼亦是部分錫礦石的產地。一名鎳原材料分析員表示，他只聽到短期內將有有關管制鎳礦石的法規公布。不過，印尼政府在周四表示，鎳生產者只需遵守現行的鎳礦石出口規例，不用相信鎳的出口禁令會提前執行。印尼政府曾在2017年放寬了對鎳礦石出口的禁令，但卻表示放寬期只有五年，在2022年禁令便會恢復。http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20190809/PDF/b3_screen.pdf
- 外電報道，蘋果公司（Apple Inc.）擬首次向礦商直接採購iPhone電池原料的鈷金屬，以確保供應不受全球電動車熱潮影響。據悉，磋商中的供應合約為期五年甚至更長，涉及每年數千噸。http://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/finance/20180222/00202_012.html
- ft 21aug18 "the race to replace cobalt"
- economist 1dec18 "battery farming" on cobalt supply
- http://af.reuters.com/article/commoditiesNews/idAFL3N1600CR While prices for most Australian commodities are bumping along the floor, local avocados are fetching a king's ransom thanks to hostile weather, strict quarantine laws and a Christmas binge. Outside South and Central America, where the fruit is native, Australia has the highest per-capita consumption in the world, at an annual 3.2 kilogrammes (kg), or about 15 fruits, according to industry body Avocados Australia. But while Australian demand for the fruit has been fuelled by its store of healthy fats, supply has been strangled by heavy rain and bushfires, and because growers in western Australia, anticipating a fall in demand after Christmas, exhausted their stocks to flood the market in the lead-up to the holiday season.
- china
nuts
- 受中美貿易戰不斷升級影響，中國目前對美國進口杏仁徵收60%的額外關稅。但日本傳媒昨日報道，中國對美國堅果類食品的市場需求仍然強勁，分析指中國仍會繼續進口堅果，預料堅果價格上漲的趨勢將會持續。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20191126/00180_011.html
onion
- 印度於9月底以暴雨失收為由停止洋葱出口， 導致鄰國孟加拉洋葱嚴重短缺，價格飆升。由 於洋葱是南亞地區必要食材之一，為免引起社 會動盪，孟加拉政府前日從緬甸、土耳其、中 國及埃及等地空運大批洋葱應急，總理哈西娜 更宣佈暫停在總理府膳食中使用洋葱，與民共 渡時艱。 孟加拉的洋葱價格已經由原本每公斤 30塔卡 (約 2.8 港元)，升至最近的 260 塔卡(約 24.1 港 元)。當局除了空運洋葱應急外，亦透過國營的 孟加拉貿易公司(TCB)出售平價洋葱，每公斤只 售 45塔卡(約 4.2港元)，吸引數以百計民眾排隊 搶購，甚至有人因此大打出手。 一名41歲英語教師在TCB外足足排了兩個鐘， 直言有生之年從未見過洋葱價格超過120塔卡， 「即使要我再排兩個鐘我也會繼續排。」 另一名家庭主婦則表示，自從上周起煮飯已經 不再用洋葱，當小販的丈夫亦已停止售賣 piazu (孟加拉特色小食，以洋葱扁豆混合香料下油炸 成)。http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2019/11/19/a22-1119.pdf
water
Talc or talcum is a clay mineral composed of hydrated magnesium silicate with the chemical formula H2Mg3(SiO3)4 or Mg3Si4O10(OH)2. In loose form, it was one of the most widely used substances known as baby powder, along with corn starch. It occurs as foliated to fibrous masses, and in an exceptionally rare crystal form. It has a perfect basal cleavage, and the folia are not elastic, although slightly flexible.The word "talc" derives from Medieval Latin talcus, which in turn originates from Arabic: طلق ṭalq which in turn was derived from Persian: تالک tālk. In the ancient times, the word was used for various related minerals, including talc, mica, and selenite. Talc is a common metamorphic mineral in metamorphic belts that contain ultramafic rocks, such as soapstone (a high-talc rock), and within whiteschist and blueschist metamorphic terranes. Prime examples of whiteschists include the Franciscan Metamorphic Belt of the western United States, the western European Alps especially in Italy, certain areas of the Musgrave Block, and some collisional orogens such as the Himalayas, which stretch along Pakistan, India, Nepal, and Bhutan. Talc carbonate ultramafics are typical of many areas of the Archaean cratons, notably the komatiite belts of the Yilgarn Craton in Western Australia. Talc-carbonate ultramafics are also known from the Lachlan Fold Belt, eastern Australia, from Brazil, the Guiana Shield, and from the ophiolite belts of Turkey, Oman, and the Middle East. Notable economic talc occurrences include the Mount Seabrook talc mine, Western Australia, formed upon a polydeformed, layered ultramafic intrusion. The France-based Luzenac Group is the world's largest supplier of mined talc. Its largest talc mine at Trimouns near Luzenac in southern France produces 400,000 tonnes of talc per year, representing 8% of world production.Talc is used in many industries, including paper making, plastic, paint and coatings, rubber, food, electric cable, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and ceramics.
Crocodile
- http://www.economist.com/news/business/21698705-why-breeding-brutes-may-help-their-wild-brethren-snappy-dressers
- https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3010200/china-cracks-cheap-lithium-production-electric-car-breakthrough The cost of extracting the mineral has been slashed to a “record low” of 15,000 yuan (US$2,180) per tonne by the new process, a Chinese government report said. That compares to an international price for lithium ranging from US$12,000 to US$20,000 per tonne – and a long-term contract price of about US$17,000 – over the past year, according to some industrial estimates. The precise production costs of lithium are a closely guarded business secret, but industry insiders interviewed by the South China Morning Post
agreed that the rate quoted in the report could be considered one of, if not the lowest, around.
- https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2019/02/16/business/u-s-research-recycling-lithium-ion-batteries/ The U.S. government will lead an ambitious effort to develop technologies to recycle lithium-ion batteries from electric vehicles, cellphones and other sources to ensure a reliable and affordable supply of metals crucial to battery production in anticipation of soaring global demand and potential shortages, Department of Energy officials said Friday. Calling the effort a national security issue, the agency announced a $15 billion, three-year research and development project housed at the Argonne National Laboratory outside of Chicago. The collaboration between Argonne, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and several universities also is an attempt to catch up with China and other countries that manufacture and recycle the vast majority of lithium-ion batteries, including those shipped back from the U.S., officials said. U.S. dependence on other countries for metals such as lithium, cobalt, nickel and graphite, as well as finished batteries, “undermines our national security” because the source countries are not always close allies, said Daniel R. Simmons, assistant secretary of the Energy Department’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.
- 除了油價外，其他商品價格近期急升，工業金屬亦不例外，尤其是鎳價，在昨日突然間急升近2000美元，升幅達一成三，至16690美元一噸，原因是印尼鐵礦石出口措施不明確，令市場供應可能受影響。交易員和分析員相信，全球主要鎳礦供應地的印尼，快將禁止部分礦石出口。印尼亦是部分錫礦石的產地。一名鎳原材料分析員表示，他只聽到短期內將有有關管制鎳礦石的法規公布。不過，印尼政府在周四表示，鎳生產者只需遵守現行的鎳礦石出口規例，不用相信鎳的出口禁令會提前執行。印尼政府曾在2017年放寬了對鎳礦石出口的禁令，但卻表示放寬期只有五年，在2022年禁令便會恢復。http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20190809/PDF/b3_screen.pdf
- https://www.reuters.com/article/us-indonesia-nickel/indonesian-nickel-miners-to-stop-ore-exports-immediately-idUSKBN1X7106 Indonesia’s nickel miners agreed on Monday to stop nickel ore exports immediately, the country’s investment agency chief Bahlil Lahadalia said, after Jakarta last month brought forward a ban on shipments to January 2020 from 2022.Exports due to be shipped from Indonesia, the world’s biggest nickel ore producer, will be bought by local smelter operators at an international price level, Lahadalia said.“This agreement was carried out not on the basis of a letter from the government or technical ministry, but a joint agreement,” Lahadalia said. “Where the agreement is carried out by the nickel association with us the government.”Indonesia’s government in September expedited the ore export ban by two years as part of its efforts to boost expansion of a local smelting industry.Expectations of the Indonesian ban have pushed nickel CMNI3 prices on the London Metal Exchange (LME) up nearly 40% to around $17,000 a tonne now.
cobalt
- https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-06-08/cobalt-upstarts-eye-glencore-s-turf-for-244-billion-ev-spoils The race is on to supply more of the cobalt needed for batteries in the fast-growing market for electric vehicles -- and that means fresh competition for the big players Glencore Plc and the Democratic Republic of Congo. A pipeline of projects is looming in places including Australia, the U.S. and Canada after cobalt prices more than doubled in the past year. Glencore produces almost a third of the world’s supply, mainly from the Congo, which is by far the biggest source, accounting for as much as 65 percent. Among those backing new global developments are billionaire Anil Agarwal and mining tycoon Robert Friedland. They’re aiming to capitalize as a battery boom sends demand for cobalt soaring more than 30-fold by 2030, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance.- https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-08-06/glencore-plans-to-shutter-giant-cobalt-and-copper-mine-in-congo Glencore Plc is planning to halt production at one of the world’s biggest cobalt mines after prices for the battery metal collapsed and costs at the project increased, according to a person familiar with the situation.The announcement that Glencore will close its Mutanda mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo is expected to come as the company lays out an overhaul of its key African copper and cobalt business when it releases first-half results on Wednesday. It would be another setback for Glencore, which has been dogged by operational problems, legal challenges and a rift with Congo’s government over a new mining code.
- 外電報道，蘋果公司（Apple Inc.）擬首次向礦商直接採購iPhone電池原料的鈷金屬，以確保供應不受全球電動車熱潮影響。據悉，磋商中的供應合約為期五年甚至更長，涉及每年數千噸。http://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/finance/20180222/00202_012.html
- ft 21aug18 "the race to replace cobalt"
- economist 1dec18 "battery farming" on cobalt supply
- 鈷廣泛用於電池，主要是高能量密度的鈷可作為電池中的穩定劑。目前全球大部分鈷產自政局不穩的中非國家剛果民主共和國，當中約40%產能由中國企業控制。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/finance/20210126/00202_028.html
- 鈷作為保持長續航鋰電池性能穩定的關鍵成分，成為重要的資源，鈷價過去半年已上漲50%。因中國掌控全球60%以上的鈷供應，有專家指出，鈷勢成為繼稀土之後，另一項中國的談判武器。現時全球70%以上的鈷來自非洲數一數二窮的剛果民主共和國，可是大部分是由中資持有，而且80%由中國公司提煉。今年首季，內地上市的鈷業股成績標青。主要受惠新能源汽車及數碼產品的需求強勁，鈷價持續上漲，帶動鈷企收入大幅上升。深圳創業板上市的寒銳鈷業上季錄得淨利潤按年激增超過3倍，期內鈷產品銷量按年增長11.47%，並公布將會來港上市。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/finance/20210514/00202_012.html
-中國是全球最大的大米生產和進口國。外媒消息指，中方買家近日與印度出口商簽訂合約，計劃於今年12月至明年2月，從印度進口10萬噸碎米，是近30年來首次；據統計顯示，是次進口量佔內地去年全年消費總量0.05%。外界擔憂中國境內或現糧荒，才會向存有邊境等議題爭議的印度購買大米。
https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20201206/00178_001.html
Avocadorice
- Global attention would be on Vietnam in the coming weeks and months for clues on whether a rice crisis loomed, Teng said. The country is responsible for about 10 per cent of global rice trade – an exceptionally tight market with just about six per cent of all rice traded – and a long-term disruption could roil much of Asia, where the carbohydrate is the main staple.https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3078376/coronavirus-food-security-asias-next-battle-post-covid-worldhttps://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20201206/00178_001.html
- http://af.reuters.com/article/commoditiesNews/idAFL3N1600CR While prices for most Australian commodities are bumping along the floor, local avocados are fetching a king's ransom thanks to hostile weather, strict quarantine laws and a Christmas binge. Outside South and Central America, where the fruit is native, Australia has the highest per-capita consumption in the world, at an annual 3.2 kilogrammes (kg), or about 15 fruits, according to industry body Avocados Australia. But while Australian demand for the fruit has been fuelled by its store of healthy fats, supply has been strangled by heavy rain and bushfires, and because growers in western Australia, anticipating a fall in demand after Christmas, exhausted their stocks to flood the market in the lead-up to the holiday season.
- china
- introduced to china in 2010; started planting in guangxi
salmon
- http://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20170115/00180_023.html 繼養殖三文魚最大出產國智利的漁場出現藻害，大西洋三文魚主要產地蘇格蘭和挪威，近來亦分別出現三文魚寄生蟲害，令去年的全球供應量大跌近百分之九，批發價暴增多達百分之五十。業界預計，未來半年情況繼續惡化，恐會令到三文魚售價進一步上漲。
nuts
- 受中美貿易戰不斷升級影響，中國目前對美國進口杏仁徵收60%的額外關稅。但日本傳媒昨日報道，中國對美國堅果類食品的市場需求仍然強勁，分析指中國仍會繼續進口堅果，預料堅果價格上漲的趨勢將會持續。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20191126/00180_011.html
cashew
- https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/tanzania-deploy-military-cashew-nuts-farmers-price-row-john-magufuli-a8633311.html Tanzania has been forced to deploy the military to purchase cashew nuts from farmers in a bid to resolve the current row over prices. President John Magufuli ordered an increase in cashew nut prices, the country’s most valuable export crop, in an attempt to safeguard farmers from unsustainably low prices. Farmers had halted sales after saying the amount the crop could command was too low for them to continue to operate.onion
- 印度於9月底以暴雨失收為由停止洋葱出口， 導致鄰國孟加拉洋葱嚴重短缺，價格飆升。由 於洋葱是南亞地區必要食材之一，為免引起社 會動盪，孟加拉政府前日從緬甸、土耳其、中 國及埃及等地空運大批洋葱應急，總理哈西娜 更宣佈暫停在總理府膳食中使用洋葱，與民共 渡時艱。 孟加拉的洋葱價格已經由原本每公斤 30塔卡 (約 2.8 港元)，升至最近的 260 塔卡(約 24.1 港 元)。當局除了空運洋葱應急外，亦透過國營的 孟加拉貿易公司(TCB)出售平價洋葱，每公斤只 售 45塔卡(約 4.2港元)，吸引數以百計民眾排隊 搶購，甚至有人因此大打出手。 一名41歲英語教師在TCB外足足排了兩個鐘， 直言有生之年從未見過洋葱價格超過120塔卡， 「即使要我再排兩個鐘我也會繼續排。」 另一名家庭主婦則表示，自從上周起煮飯已經 不再用洋葱，當小販的丈夫亦已停止售賣 piazu (孟加拉特色小食，以洋葱扁豆混合香料下油炸 成)。http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2019/11/19/a22-1119.pdf
Sand
- minerals worn down to size of 0.0625 mm (anything smaller is called silt) and 2 mm (anything larger is called gravel)
- http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/nagpur/NGT-notice-to-state-government-on-sand-mining/articleshow/52168919.cms Perturbed over illegal sand mining from riverbeds despite a ban across the state, the National Green Tribunal (western zone), while hearing an execution application, has asked the union ministry of environment and forest and Maharashtra government to apprise it of the action taken against violators. A bench headed by NGT chairperson (western zone) Justice Jawed Rahim and Dr Ajay Deshpande directed the Maharashtra government officers to inform it via affidavit the actual status of mining across the state. The matter is listed for next hearing on May 18. RTI activist Paramjeet Singh Kalsi filed an execution application with the NGT against the State Environment Impact Assessment Authority (SEIAA), department of revenue and forest, principal secretary of environment department and Nagpur's district collector over their failure to curb use of excavator machines used for sand mining. On May 15, 2015, the NGT had directed the Maharashtra government to ensure that all sand mining is done manually. Even a year later, the revenue and forest department, environment department and even SEIAA have failed to execute this order. Sand mining firms have been using excavators in the area, Kalsi alleged. The applicant has made several complaints to the authorities, but to no avail. Using excavators is harmful to the groundwater level. A significant impact of all of this can be seen on the river bank. It subsequently affects the right to life of those living on the river bans due to the impending danger to their settlements and to groundwater reserves, lawyer Ashim Sarode, representing the petitioner, stated. The deputy regional transport offices of Gondia and Nagpur (east) have replied in a query that the department has no guidelines of how much sand is allowed to be transported in a vehicle.
- 本地媒體《傳真社》近日到廣西實地了解供應填海海沙價格，發現沙價近數月急漲逾一倍，最新價格為每立方米逾一百二十港元，《傳真社》再根據本港大型基建項目填海用沙量推算，「明日大嶼」計劃需要二點六億立方米填料，即單是購買海沙連同運費的開支最高接近六百億港元，且會面對不斷漲價危機。有立法會議員直指「明日大嶼」是「將公帑倒落鹹水海」，填料價格攀升勢令計劃超支並淪為無底深潭，整體造價恐遠遠不止於政府放風的五千億元http://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/news/20181023/00174_001.html
- minerals worn down to size of 0.0625 mm (anything smaller is called silt) and 2 mm (anything larger is called gravel)
- http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/nagpur/NGT-notice-to-state-government-on-sand-mining/articleshow/52168919.cms Perturbed over illegal sand mining from riverbeds despite a ban across the state, the National Green Tribunal (western zone), while hearing an execution application, has asked the union ministry of environment and forest and Maharashtra government to apprise it of the action taken against violators. A bench headed by NGT chairperson (western zone) Justice Jawed Rahim and Dr Ajay Deshpande directed the Maharashtra government officers to inform it via affidavit the actual status of mining across the state. The matter is listed for next hearing on May 18. RTI activist Paramjeet Singh Kalsi filed an execution application with the NGT against the State Environment Impact Assessment Authority (SEIAA), department of revenue and forest, principal secretary of environment department and Nagpur's district collector over their failure to curb use of excavator machines used for sand mining. On May 15, 2015, the NGT had directed the Maharashtra government to ensure that all sand mining is done manually. Even a year later, the revenue and forest department, environment department and even SEIAA have failed to execute this order. Sand mining firms have been using excavators in the area, Kalsi alleged. The applicant has made several complaints to the authorities, but to no avail. Using excavators is harmful to the groundwater level. A significant impact of all of this can be seen on the river bank. It subsequently affects the right to life of those living on the river bans due to the impending danger to their settlements and to groundwater reserves, lawyer Ashim Sarode, representing the petitioner, stated. The deputy regional transport offices of Gondia and Nagpur (east) have replied in a query that the department has no guidelines of how much sand is allowed to be transported in a vehicle.
- 本地媒體《傳真社》近日到廣西實地了解供應填海海沙價格，發現沙價近數月急漲逾一倍，最新價格為每立方米逾一百二十港元，《傳真社》再根據本港大型基建項目填海用沙量推算，「明日大嶼」計劃需要二點六億立方米填料，即單是購買海沙連同運費的開支最高接近六百億港元，且會面對不斷漲價危機。有立法會議員直指「明日大嶼」是「將公帑倒落鹹水海」，填料價格攀升勢令計劃超支並淪為無底深潭，整體造價恐遠遠不止於政府放風的五千億元http://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/news/20181023/00174_001.html
- 記者由香港出發到內地，走訪南昌市和江門市等地尋找砂源，了解填海用砂所帶來的環境禍害。https://hk.news.appledaily.com/local/daily/article/20181119/20549237
- ft 31dec19 hugh demand for sand raises sustainability fears
- economist 18jan2020 "bring me a nightmare" asia's hunger for sand is harming farmers, fishermen and the environment
- 聯合國專家表示，多艘船隻去年多次協助北韓運送石油、沙、煤炭等，建議聯合國將十四艘船隻列入黑名單，而其中一艘船在中國註冊。自去年五月以來，北韓最少一百次向中國非法出口逾百萬噸沙，總值約一萬七千億港元，惟中方指無法證實沙粒已運到中國。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20200421/00180_031.html
-廣東省公安廳前日通報，警方去年12月30日搗破一個涉嫌長期壟斷陽江陽春市河沙開採和銷售、串通招投標、非法採礦的黑惡團夥，其首腦為前全國人大代表李鐵；目前，包括李鐵在內的14名疑犯已被警方刑事拘留，警方向公眾公開徵集他的犯罪線索。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20210205/00178_004.html
- ft 31dec19 hugh demand for sand raises sustainability fears
- economist 18jan2020 "bring me a nightmare" asia's hunger for sand is harming farmers, fishermen and the environment
- 聯合國專家表示，多艘船隻去年多次協助北韓運送石油、沙、煤炭等，建議聯合國將十四艘船隻列入黑名單，而其中一艘船在中國註冊。自去年五月以來，北韓最少一百次向中國非法出口逾百萬噸沙，總值約一萬七千億港元，惟中方指無法證實沙粒已運到中國。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20200421/00180_031.html
-廣東省公安廳前日通報，警方去年12月30日搗破一個涉嫌長期壟斷陽江陽春市河沙開採和銷售、串通招投標、非法採礦的黑惡團夥，其首腦為前全國人大代表李鐵；目前，包括李鐵在內的14名疑犯已被警方刑事拘留，警方向公眾公開徵集他的犯罪線索。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20210205/00178_004.html
glass
- [material by japan foundation handed out in exhibition in central library in mar19] japan manufactured glass balls since 8thc; manufacturing of utensils from glass started from latter half of 16thc when the europeans taught japanese the craft of glassmaking
- [material by japan foundation handed out in exhibition in central library in mar19] japan manufactured glass balls since 8thc; manufacturing of utensils from glass started from latter half of 16thc when the europeans taught japanese the craft of glassmaking
Trona (trisodium hydrogendicarbonate dihydrate, also sodium sesquicarbonate dihydrate, Na2CO3•NaHCO3•2H2O) is a non-marineevaporite mineral. It is mined as the primary source of sodium carbonate in the United States, where it has replaced the Solvay processused in most of the rest of the world for sodium carbonate production. The word entered English by way of either Swedish (trona) or Spanish (trona), with both possible sources having the same meaning as in English. Both of these derive from the Arabic trōn, which in turn derives from the Arabic natron, and Hebrew נטרן (natruna), which comes from ancient Greek νιτρον (nitron), derived ultimately from ancient Egyptian ntry (or nitry).
- uses
- Trona is a common source of soda ash, which is a significant economic commodity because of its applications in manufacturing glass, chemicals, paper, detergents, and textiles.
- It is used to condition water.
- It is used to remove sulfur from both flue gases and lignite coals.
- It is a product of carbon sequestration of flue gases.[18]
- It is also used as a food additive.
- china
- A large-scale baking soda project with an investment of about 1 billion yuan (147 million U.S. dollars) was put into operation on Friday in central China's Henan Province. Invested by Henan Zhongyuan Chemical Co. Ltd., the project is expected to produce 400,000 tonnes of baking soda every year, and create an annual revenue of 1 billion yuan. The project is located in Henan's Tongbai County, often billed the "capital of trona in China" for its rich deposit of the mineral. The mineral was first discovered in the county in the 1970s. http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2019-03/15/c_137898391.htm
water
- 據中新社報道，18日至 19日 在武漢舉行的「中國長江論壇．2016」上，海 外專家建議中國嘗試建立「水銀行」，構建起 「水信託」體系，讓市場決定水資源價格，從 而有效保護水資源。http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2016/11/20/a11-1120.pdf
Graphite
- http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/bizchina/2016-10/26/content_27178148.htm The fast-developing local aerospace industry has given rise to growing demand for independently developed high-performance graphite－a major carbon material used in aerospace projects－according to a top executive at Harbin Electric Carbon Factory.
- 僅僅是在 2018年，有關石墨烯材料 的捷報和重磅消息就接連不斷。除了華 為Mate 20X手機首次應用石墨烯技術 之外，還有多條新聞頻頻刷屏：1月 3 日，浙江大學高分子科學與工程學系高 超團隊正式宣佈，一種新型石墨烯-鋁 電池誕生；3月 31日，中國首條全自動 量產石墨烯有機太陽能光電子器件生產 線在山東菏澤啟動。而在 2018 年 11 月，一則關於石墨烯材料應用到護眼儀 的消息再次刷屏。一種名為「範兒石墨 烯恒溫護眼儀」的新型儀器採用石墨烯 溫感熱敷，並通過遠紅外熱療、雙層氣 壓按摩等活化眼部細胞，增強眼部供 氧，從而起到呵護眼睛的作用。專家預 估，中國的石墨烯市場將佔據全球石墨 烯市場份額的一半以上，成為全球石墨 烯行業發展最強有力的推動力量，在全 球石墨烯市場上佔據主導地位。 石墨烯在環保科技方面，有強力的 進行篩選過濾功能，科學家一直研究利 用石墨烯用作海水化淡、除塵系統、醫 療藥物方面的分離過濾或定向傳遞器， 殊不知，中國的科學家竟然想到了這種 功能可以作為美白化妝品的生產製造。 科學家一直以為，石墨烯提煉和製造的 成本非常高昂，使用作美白化妝品一定 售價很高，缺乏競爭力，許多科學家都 放棄了這種想法。唯獨中國科學家鍥而 不捨，認為只需要找尋到了廉價的生產 方法，利用石墨烯生產美白化妝品，一 定是一門賺錢的大生意。http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2019/09/20/b10-0920.pdf
- 勞富文嘅公司喇。勞話，公司原本經營嬰幼兒用品，其後佢成為全球第一位採用石墨烯製成水杯嘅人，呢款水杯可使食水透過石墨烯釋放遠紅外線，讓水分子團折小，出入身體細胞之間，有助加快新陳代謝，仲可以治療高血壓同痛風等。勞仲話，飲水飲得健康，對身體有好大幫助喎。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/news/20200119/00176_077.html- 山西省地質勘查局昨日通報，該局在大同市新榮區發現一個特大型石墨礦床，區內墨礦物資源總量高達一億噸。https://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/china_world/20200626/00178_019.html
Talc or talcum is a clay mineral composed of hydrated magnesium silicate with the chemical formula H2Mg3(SiO3)4 or Mg3Si4O10(OH)2. In loose form, it was one of the most widely used substances known as baby powder, along with corn starch. It occurs as foliated to fibrous masses, and in an exceptionally rare crystal form. It has a perfect basal cleavage, and the folia are not elastic, although slightly flexible.The word "talc" derives from Medieval Latin talcus, which in turn originates from Arabic: طلق ṭalq which in turn was derived from Persian: تالک tālk. In the ancient times, the word was used for various related minerals, including talc, mica, and selenite. Talc is a common metamorphic mineral in metamorphic belts that contain ultramafic rocks, such as soapstone (a high-talc rock), and within whiteschist and blueschist metamorphic terranes. Prime examples of whiteschists include the Franciscan Metamorphic Belt of the western United States, the western European Alps especially in Italy, certain areas of the Musgrave Block, and some collisional orogens such as the Himalayas, which stretch along Pakistan, India, Nepal, and Bhutan. Talc carbonate ultramafics are typical of many areas of the Archaean cratons, notably the komatiite belts of the Yilgarn Craton in Western Australia. Talc-carbonate ultramafics are also known from the Lachlan Fold Belt, eastern Australia, from Brazil, the Guiana Shield, and from the ophiolite belts of Turkey, Oman, and the Middle East. Notable economic talc occurrences include the Mount Seabrook talc mine, Western Australia, formed upon a polydeformed, layered ultramafic intrusion. The France-based Luzenac Group is the world's largest supplier of mined talc. Its largest talc mine at Trimouns near Luzenac in southern France produces 400,000 tonnes of talc per year, representing 8% of world production.Talc is used in many industries, including paper making, plastic, paint and coatings, rubber, food, electric cable, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and ceramics.
Crocodile
- http://www.economist.com/news/business/21698705-why-breeding-brutes-may-help-their-wild-brethren-snappy-dressers
Bdellium /ˈdɛliəm/, also bdellion, is a semi-transparent oleo-gum resin extracted from Commiphora wightii and from Commiphora africana trees growing in Ethiopia, Eritrea and sub-saharan Africa. Bdellium consists of a water-soluble gum, a resin and an essential oil. Bdellium is used in perfumery, as incense and in traditional medicine.[2] It is an adulterant of the more costly myrrh.In China, bdellium, known as an hsi hsiang or "Parthian aromatic", was among the varieties of incense that reached China either along the Silk Route from Central Asia, or by sea. Later an hsi hsiang was applied to an East Indian substitute, gum benzoin from Sumatra.
- benzoin 安息香是波斯语mukul和阿拉伯语aflatoon的汉译，原产于中亚古安息国、龟兹国、漕国、阿拉伯半岛及伊朗高原，唐宋时因以旧名。《酉阳杂俎》载安息香出波斯国，作药材用。《新修本草》曰：“安息香，味辛，香、平、无毒。主心腹恶气鬼。西戎似松脂，黄黑各为块，新者亦柔韧”安息香有泰国安息香与苏门答腊安息香两种。中国进口商品主要为泰国安息香，分有水安息、旱安息、白胶香等规格。安息香与麝香、苏合香均有开窍作用，均可治疗猝然昏厥，牙关紧闭等闭脱之证，但其芳香开窍之力有强、弱之不同，麝香作用最强，安息香、苏合香开窍之功相似，而麝香兼有行气通络，消肿止痛之功，安息香兼可行气活血，又可用于心腹疼痛，产后血晕之症。
- ingredient used by dirtyque
Events
- mining
- 为期三天的2017中国国际矿业大会昨在津开幕，来自全球60个国家和地区万馀名代表参会参展。本届大会以“弘扬丝路精神，共促矿业繁荣”为主题，聚焦“一带一路”热点，提升国际化、市场化、专业化水平，致力推进国际矿业合作。 本届大会由重要活动、高峰论坛、矿业博览会三部分组成，高峰论坛设置一场主题论坛和四场高层论坛（企业CEO论坛、国际矿业部长论坛、国际地质调查局长论坛和首次设置的“一带一路”矿业合作论坛）。此外，42场各类专题论坛将就全球矿业形势与政策、矿业投资与金融、矿业勘探与开发、矿业绿色发展等专题进行研讨。其间，中国矿业国际产能合作企业联盟正式成立。http://paper.takungpao.com/resfile/PDF/20170924/PDF/a6_screen.pdf
- 經 國務院批准，由中國礦業聯合會主辦的2019 中國國際礦業大會昨日在津開幕，吸引了全 球 50多個國家和地區的代表參會。自然資 源部副部長凌月明在開幕式上透露，中國已 着手《礦產資源法》的修訂起草工作，將全 面推進礦業權公開競爭出讓，嚴格限制協議 出讓，更加平等地對待國內外各類市場主 體。同時，他透露，年內，內地將推出一批 優化礦產資源行政審批制度和流程、有序放 開油氣勘查開採市場、調整中央和地方礦業 權審批權限等重大改革措施。http://pdf.wenweipo.com/2019/10/10/a13-1010.pdf
- rare earth
- baotou china rare earth industry forum http://creidf.org/english/index.asp
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