The Technology Enabler

Cobalt has been utilised by man for at least the last 2,600 years, dating back to Ancient Egypt providing blue pigments for glassware and ceramics.

2,600 years later, cobalt blue is still used for decoration, enhancing the quality of life. We now know that cobalt, an oligo element, is also bioessential and is found at the centre of vitamin B12, an integral compound for red blood cell formation and neurological health in humans. The uses of cobalt are now very broad and the list is ever expanding, with many contributing significantly to a sustainable planet such as the metal's role in rechargeable batteries.

Considered a Critical Raw Material, cobalt is recognised as an important technology enabling metal where energy storage, high temperature resilience, hardness, process efficiency and environmental benefits are required. Cobalt has a diverse range of important uses from gas turbines and hard metals to rechargeable batteries and industrial catalysts, which are vital in the development of sustainable energy policies for the future.

Cobalt has many uses based on several of its unique properties

In industrial chemical processes cobalt's unique catalytic properties can be used for applications including desulphurisation of hydrocarbons, which is crucial to clean fuel technology, and also the removal of nitrous oxide to ensure that emissions of greenhouse gases are minimised.