Strategic Materials: A Resource Challenge for India
About the Book
The scramble for natural resources is not a new phenomenon. Every state, either developed or developing, is always found busy ‘managing’ resources for its sustenance and growth. Minerals (also called materials) is one the crucial natural resource which plays a significant part in the development of both civilian and military industrial complexes of nation-states. There are a few minerals which are categorized as ‘strategic’ because of their importance for the industries and owing to natural and man-made difficulties in their procurement. This work debates the issues of strategic materials and their importance for nation-states. There has been an attempt here to contextualize the importance of strategic materials from a national security perspective. This study presents a macro view with regard to India’s strategic minerals architecture and undertakes analysis to understand current and futuristic challenges and opportunities in this sector, and offers a few recommendations based on the assessment undertaken. Issues related to Rare Earth and new materials are also discussed.
Contents
Acknowledgments
List of Figures and Tables
The Thought
- Introduction
- Strategic Materials: An Overview
Mineral Chemistry
Important Materials
Elucidating Strategic Minerals - Global Distribution of Strategic Mineral Resources
Africa
Australia
Brazil
China
India
United States - Risk Assessment of India
India’s Strategic Materials ‘Resource Management’ Assessment
Broad Evaluation
In closing - India’s Import Dependency
DRC
Australia
Brazil
China
Russia
United States - Challenges for the Indian Mining Sector
Environmental Impacts of Mining
Impacts of Open Pit Mining
Threat fromNaxalism
Illegal Mining - Rare Earth Materials
What are REEs?
Explicit REE Significance
Global REE Deposits and Mining Processes
REEs and China
Challenging the Chinese Monopoly
India and REEs
REEs on the Critical List
Wrapping up - Emerging Materials
Graphene
Germanane
Stanene
Metamaterials
3D Printing Technology
Molybdenum disulphide
New Solar Cells
Shape Memory Alloys
Self-Healing Artificial Material
Boron, Aluminium and Magnesium (BAM) ‘Ceramic’ Alloy
Ceramic Matrix Composites (CMC)
Qingsongite - Conclusion and Recommendations
APPENDICES
Appendix A: History of Mining and Evolution of Mineral Legislation in India
Appendix B: MMDR Act, 1957
Appendix C: MMDR Act, 1957; Amended up to 10th May, 2012
Appendix D: Press Release MMDR Bill, 2011, September 2011
Appendix E: Press Release MMDR Bill, August 2013
Index
