The cobalta silver-coloured mineral but known for the blue pigments used since ancient times, is certainly not among the best-known metallic materials: in fact, we are usually dealing with objects made of aluminium, iron, or metal alloys such as steel or bronze . Despite this, it is used for millennia for ornamental purposesand is a fundamental component of vitamin B12, essential for human and animal metabolism. With the birth of metallurgy modernity has taken on an increasingly important role both in the production of metallic alloys more resistant than lithium batteriesused for electric vehicles and for the turbo functionality of new chargers. Its increased demand has also social and geopolitical implicationswith large impacts on the global economy, shifting trade balances but also carrying terrible consequences for workers least protected in the supply chain.
What is cobalt and where is it found
Cobalt is a chemical element of symbol Co and atomic number 27, that is, the nucleus of its atom has 27 protons. From a chemical point of view it belongs to the category of transition elements.
In nature it is not available in its pure state: in mines, the cobalt is found as an “impurity” inside other minerals, such as cobalt dolomite (CaMgCo(CO3)2). These minerals are contained in rocks and soils in small quantities: le Congo mines they are among the richest in cobaltwith concentrations up to 5 times greater to those of deposits in the rest of the world. There Democratic Republic of the Congo it is in fact the largest producer of cobalt in the world: the Central African nation owns the 47% of resources currently discovered (with Australia second at 18%) and provides the 70% of the metal to world market (second is Indonesia with 5.3%).
Cobalt always has been important for humans and all living beings, but we only noticed it “recently”: metal is in fact included in the cobalaminbetter known as vitamin B12, essential for metabolism and single vitamin obtainable exclusively by consuming products of animal origin. Ruminants, for example, despite being herbivores, obtain the vitamin thanks to bacteria present in their pre-stomachswho synthesize it starting from the cobalt present in the food being digested.
Among them older uses of cobalt, or rather of its oxide, there is the one for the coloring of fabrics, ceramics and other products. The intense blue of cobalt oxide it has been used since ancient times, and in contrast with a white background it has become a recurring motif in the most disparate cultures, from refined Chinese ceramics to Arabic taste and its traces also arrive in the craftsmanship of modern Andalusia and Portugal.
The name “cobalt” by which we know it today, however, only comes with theindustrialization and the birth of modern metallurgya period in which new uses for this mineral were also discovered. German miners had noticed that some copper and silver ores smelted with difficulty and they released toxic fumes in processing. They had attributed these unwanted characteristics to the presence of evil “spirits”, which in Nordic folklore were called kobalts or koboldsterms probably deriving from Greek kobalos (“goblin”).
The Swedish chemist George Brand identified and purified the metal in 1730: when the cobalt was identified as impurities in minerals in Germany, the association between metal and Nordic elves became clear and immediate.
What is cobalt used for today: uses and importance for lithium batteries
Cobalt is exploited, mainly alloyed with other metalsdue to its characteristics heat resistancefor the magnetic properties and the majority hardness and resistance of the products that include it: it is today present in applications such as the blades of aeronautical turbines, in magnetic resonance imaging equipment and in heavy metallurgy cutting tools. Cobalt is also used as a catalyst in the production of fuels, as it favors theelimination of sulfides and nitrous oxides from crude oil during processing.
In the construction of lithium batteriesfundamental for all modern electronics come on PCs to smartphones and for the electric mobilityother elements are also used (such as cobalt but also aluminium, nickel and manganese) for the production of the positive electrode, the cathode, and based on the metal used we have different categories and also large differences in battery performance.
Cobalt guarantees greater thermal stability to batteries, favoring very fast refills and great “punches”i.e. sudden requests for large quantities of current. These energy needs are common in driving electric carsbut the push towards “turbo” charging (for example those of mobile phones, with chargers that halve the charging time) is now widespread even in the latest generation of small household appliances.
For this reason, the NMC lithium batteries (Nickel-Manganese-Cobalt) are the most used with 57% of production car, tablets and smartphonesand global demand for cobalt grows by 10% every year.
The tragedy of the mines in Congo
The mines managed by large multinationals, where the working conditions they sure are heavy, they are anyway subject to the control of national authorities, with regular contracts and rights and safeguards, albeit limited, for employees.
The darkest side of cobalt is that of “artisanal” mines of small size: in these places the workersoften even minor, they act autonomously, without any securitywith few tools available. In these precarious conditions, workers dig tunnels of tens or hundreds of meters, with a very high risk of sudden collapseswhich makes these irregular mines much more dangerous than the more widespread but generally more accessible gold mines.
To the deaths for collapses or rock falls, the risks due to exposure to toxic substances and in exhausting shifts, up to 12 hours: Nonetheless, the mines attract between 44,000 and 200,000 workers, driven by earnings of around between 3 and 4 $ per day. A low figure, but still attractive for the DRC, where 60% of the population lives on less than 2 dollars a day.
The lack of organization and state control favors a irregular labor market: the miners have no direct contact with buyers and are forced to sell the fruit of their labor at a bargain price to intermediaries. Once cobalt has been introduced into the industrial supply chain to be marketed all over the world, it then becomes difficult certify the original source of minerals.
The processes of refining main events occur instead abroad, due to the lack of adequate infrastructure and energy grids in Congo. Alone in China 75% of the world’s cobalt is refined. For this reason, the economic growth of the Democratic Republic of Congo is disadvantaged, as it cannot benefit from much of the wealth generated by Cobalt. At the same time, the weight of the Chinese giant increases for the energy transitioncausing resistance and production crises in Western markets, due to the strong dependence on Asia.
Many companies, such as Apple and Tesla, are trying to distance themselves from the Cobalt supply chain to “clean up” its own image. Apple has communicated its intention to use only recycled cobalt in the production of batteries from 2025, but these are company declarations which we will see if concrete actions will follow. Tesla already uses al batteries Lithium iron phosphate (LFP) in 50% of vehicles.
This, unfortunately, could turn out to be one equally bad choice for the workers of Congo, which without the proceeds from the mines would collapse below the poverty line with all their families. In the future, the real challenge will therefore be to improve the working conditions And control over the supply chain, to allow Congolese citizens to also benefit from the wealth that Cobalt generates in the modern economy.
Sources:
