How Does Apple Use Cobalt?

Cobalt is a critical ingredient in lithium-ion batteries that power Apple’s iPhones, iPads, Apple Watch, and MacBooks. However, with cobalt demand soaring and supply constrained, a shortage of cobalt would be a major risk to Apple’s business.

How is cobalt used in Apple products?

13 percent certified recycled cobalt, used in iPhone batteries that can be disassembled by Apple’s recycling robot Daisy and returned to market.

How much cobalt does Apple use?

Musk explained that while Apple’s batteries use 100% cobalt, Tesla’s use is much lower: “Apple uses I think almost 100% cobalt in their batteries and cell phones and laptops, but Tesla uses no cobalt in the iron-phosphate packs, and almost none in the nickel-based chemistries,” Musk said.

Is cobalt used to make iPhones?

Against this backdrop, Apple, which currently leaves the duty of buying cobalt to the companies that make its batteries, is eager to ensure that it has sufficient supplies of the raw material to see out any potential shortfall. The company uses cobalt to power many of its gadgets, including the iPhone and iPad.

Does Apple mine cobalt?

According to a new investigation performed by Amnesty International, Apple is one of several technology companies using cobalt mined by child labor in their lithium-ion batteries.

How much cobalt is in an iPhone?

Copper and cobalt comprise around 6% and 5% of the phones mass. Aluminum is one of the most abundant metals in the Earth’s crust, though it doesn’t exist in a pure state in nature.

What are 3 important uses of cobalt?

Cobalt is also used to make airbags in automobiles; catalysts for the petroleum and chemical industries; cemented carbides (also called hardmetals) and diamond tools; corrosion- and wear-resistant alloys; drying agents for paints, varnishes, and inks; dyes and pigments; ground coats for porcelain enamels; high-speed

Is cobalt used in iPhone batteries?

And that refined cobalt is probably in your phone right now, and, if you own an electric car, it’s also in your vehicle’s battery. Cobalt is used in lithium-ion batteries and other phone components, along with other rare metals and rare Earth minerals.

Who has the biggest supply of cobalt?

The Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo has the largest cobalt reserves in the world, at some 3.5 million metric tons as of 2021. As the total global cobalt reserves amount to 7.6 million metric tons, this means that the DR Congo’s cobalt reserves account for nearly half of the world’s reserves of the metal.

Where is cobalt mined for iPhones?

DRC
More than 60% of the world’s supply of cobalt is mined in the “copper belt” of the south-eastern provinces of DRC. According to the government agency charged with oversight of the informal or “artisanal” mining sector, at least 20% of this supply is mined by locals like Elodie, called creuseurs.

Why is cobalt used in phones?

Cobalt is an essential mineral for the lithium-ion batteries used in electric vehicles, laptops and smart phones. It offers the highest energy density and is key for boosting battery life.

What industry uses the most cobalt?

Sign Up for the Battery Metals Digest
The end use of cobalt is primarily in portable electronics (36.3% of global consumption), such as smartphones and laptops, while automotive applications also account for a major share (23%) and Fitch expects the latter to drive cobalt demand in the coming decades.

Is cobalt still used in batteries?

Cobalt is an essential part of the lithium-ion batteries that give electric vehicles the range and durability needed by consumers. The majority of modern electric vehicles use these battery chemistries in lithium-nickel-manganese-cobalt-oxide (NMC) batteries which have a cathode containing 10-20% cobalt.

Who is the biggest cobalt mining company?

Glencore
Glencore is the world’s largest cobalt-producing mining company by a long shot, achieving estimated total production of 25,320 metric tons (MT) in 2021.

Who controls the cobalt industry?

However, Cobalt is a unique commodity because it’s primarily controlled by only two countries: China and the Democratic Republic of Congo. The DRC supplies about 70 percent of the world’s Cobalt, but 80% of its industrial cobalt mines are owned or financed by Chinese companies.

Who owns cobalt mining?

Glencore is one of the world’s leading industrial producers and marketers of cobalt, a metal expected to become one of the most important raw materials in the transition towards a low-carbon economy due to its use in rechargeable batteries and renewable energy technologies.

What part of a phone contains cobalt?

Cobalt, found in the mineral cobaltoan spinel, is used in mobile phone batteries….

How many years of cobalt do we have left?

More than 70% of the world’s cobalt is produced in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and any nation that produces electronics wants in on that source. But based on operational mines and projected demand, forecasters predict that supply won’t be able to keep up with demand by 2030, or even as early as 2025.

Is cobalt rare on earth?

Cobalt is a rare element with a frequency in the Earth’s crust of 0,004 percent. This puts it in the thirtieth place in the list of frequency ordered items.

What products use cobalt?

Cobalt is an essential raw material for superalloy, cemented carbide, diamond tool, batteries, anticorrosive and magnetic materials. It is widely applied in fields including aerospace, electronic appliances, machinery manufacturing, automobiles, chemical industry, agriculture, ceramics, etc.

What is cobalt used in today?

Cobalt, like iron, can be magnetised and so is used to make magnets. It is alloyed with aluminium and nickel to make particularly powerful magnets. Other alloys of cobalt are used in jet turbines and gas turbine generators, where high-temperature strength is important.