Minerals yearbook, 1992: Columbium (niobium) and tantalum. Annual report

Technical Report · Wed Dec 01 04:00:00 EST 1993

OSTI ID:5265934

Cunningham, L D

Columbium is used principally as an additive in steelmaking, which annually accounts for about 80% of the U.S. reported consumption. The outlook for steel is discussed in the annual report for iron and steel. The outlook for columbium will also be dependent to a lesser degree on the performance of the aerospace industry. Continued reduction in military spending is expected to lead to reduced aerospace shipments throughout the decade. For the past decade, more than 60% of the tantalum consumed in the United States was used to produce electronic components, mainly tantalum capacitors, with major markets in recent years being computer and communication systems. Annual U.S. apparent consumption of tantalum is anticipated to be less than 400 tons through most of the 1990s. The major components of U.S. supply-demand relationships for tantalum in 1982-92 are given.

• Research Organization: Bureau of Mines, Washington, DC (United States)
• OSTI ID: 5265934
• Report Number(s): PB-94-131950/XAB
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY
290400* -- Energy Planning & Policy-- Energy Resources
ELEMENTS
GLOBAL ASPECTS
METALS
NIOBIUM
RESOURCE ASSESSMENT
TANTALUM
TRANSITION ELEMENTS