CADMIUM (Data in metric tons of cadmium content, unless noted) Domestic Production and Uses: Two companies, one in Illinois and one in Tennessee, recovered cadmium as a byproduct of the smelting and refining of zinc concentrates. A third company, in Colorado, had been recovering cadmium from other nonferrous sources, such as lead smelter baghouse dust, but halted operations in mid-1993. Based on the average New York dealer price, the output of primary metal in 1995 was valued at $5.3 million. The estimated consumption pattern included batteries, 65%; pigments, 14%; coatings and plating, 9%; stabilizers for engineering plastics and similar synthetic products, 9%; nonferrous alloys, 2%; and other including electrooptics, 1%. Salient Statistics--United States: 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995e/ Production, refinery 1,680 1,620 1,090 1,010 1,300 Imports for consumption, metal 2,040 1,960 1,420 1,110 1,040 Exports of metal, alloys, and scrap 448 213 38 1,450 1,050 Shipments from Government stockpile -- -- 185 209 450 Consumption, apparent 3,080 3,330 2,940 1,020 1,600 Price, average, dollars per pound, 99.95% purity in 5-short ton lots, New York dealer 2.01 0.91 0.45 1.13 1.84 Stocks, yearend, producer and distributor 835 868 582 439 540 Employment, smelter and refinery 190 190 195 125 125 Net import reliance1/ as a percent of apparent consumption 46 51 63 1 21 Recycling: Cadmium recycling has been practical only for nickel-cadmium batteries, some alloys, and dust from electric arc furnaces operated by the steel industry. The exact amount recycled is not known. In 1994, the U.S. steel industry generated more than 500,000 tons of electric furnace dust, typically containing 0.003% to 0.07% Cd. Seventeen States are in the process of setting up collection networks for recycling nickel-cadmium batteries. Import Sources (1991-94): Metal: Canada, 39%; Mexico, 14%; Belgium, 12%; Germany, 8%; and other, 27%. Tariff: Item Number Canada and Mexico Most favored nation (MFN) Non-MFN2/ 12/31/95 12/31/95 12/31/95 Cadmium sulfide 2830.30.0000 Free 3.1% ad val. 25% ad val. Pigments and preparations based on cadmium compounds 3206.30.0000 Free 3.1% ad val. 25% ad val. Unwrought cadmium; waste and scrap; powders 8107.10.0000 Free Free 33›/kg. Depletion Allowance: 22% (Domestic), 14% (Foreign). Government Stockpile: Stockpile Status--9-30-95 Uncommitted Committed Authorized Disposals Material inventory inventory for disposal Jan.-Sept. 95 Cadmium 2,020 243 2,020 338 Events, Trends, and Issues: Demand for rechargeable nickel-cadmium (Ni-Cd) batteries continues to grow in the Western World, although at a somewhat slower rate than in past years. More than 60% of cadmium consumed by Western countries now goes into batteries, making batteries the principal end use for the chemical element. Japan continues to be, by far, the largest refiner of cadmium and is also a net importer of cadmium metal. About 93% of the cadmium consumed by Japanese industry goes into batteries. About 75% of the Ni-Cd batteries being produced by Western manufacturers are for cordless electronic equipment. The remaining 25% are used for industrial purposes, such as emergency power supplies for telephone exchanges and hospital operating rooms. This ratio could change dramatically if sales of electric vehicles (EV's) accelerate in the United States, the European Union, and Japan. Ni-Cd batteries could conceivably capture 30% of the midterm (2000-2005) EV battery market, but competition from nickel-metal hydride batteries may be intense because of environmental Prepared by Peter H. Kuck, (703) 648-4965. CADMIUM concerns about cadmium. Much of the present battery research is driven by the impending 1998 deadline requiring 2% of new vehicles sold in California to be emission free. The U.S. Advanced Battery Consortium, a partnership between domestic automobile manufacturers and the Electric Power Research Institute, is working with the U.S. Department of Energy to develop and evaluate advanced battery systems for EV's. The Electric Transportation Coalition, the Electric Vehicle Association of the Americas, and several other support groups are also helping to make affordable EV's a reality. In November 1995, a Swedish public-service organization ordered 150 EV's from a French automobile manufacturer. France is planning to have 100,000 EV's on its highways by the year 2000. On May 11, 1995, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency published new, simplified regulations governing the collection and management of spent Ni-Cd batteries and several other widely generated hazardous wastes. The new regulations are designed to encourage environmentally sound recycling of Ni-Cd batteries and keep them out of the municipal waste stream. The bulk of the batteries currently being collected go to a nickel and chromium recovery facility in western Pennsylvania. There, the batteries are crushed, blended with furnace dusts from stainless steel plants, and then smelted in an electric arc furnace. The Pennsylvania plant recently acquired the necessary refining equipment and technology to produce cadmium sticks from the lead-zinc-cadmium dust that collects in the plant's baghouse. Domestic demand for pigments based on cadmium sulfide and cadmium sulfoselenide reportedly is only one-eighth as large as it was in 1988. The U.S. market for cadmium pigments has shrunk dramatically because of the adoption of stricter environmental regulations and the increased availability of alternative pigments. Both suppliers and consumers are concerned about recyclability and potential liability. Further substitution, however, is becoming increasingly difficult. The alternatives still cannot match many of the properties of cadmium pigments (e.g., color brightness, opacity, heat and light stability, etc.) that have made them popular for decades. Replacement of key cadmium pigments by organic substitutes is not straightforward, especially in applications that require high temperature or pressure processing. Many manufacturers of polyvinylchloride continue to use cadmium-bearing stabilizers to keep their products from degrading when exposed to heat or sunlight. The most popular stabilizers are mixtures of cadmium and barium organic salts (e.g., stearate). The price of cadmium metal plummeted between 1990-93, bottoming out at an alltime low of $0.38 to $0.48 per pound on June 10, 1993. The collapse was driven by global recessionary forces, loss of markets due to environmental concerns, and the introduction of stricter Federal occupational exposure standards in 1992. The price has partially recovered since 1993 and stood at $2.05 to $2.20 per pound on Nov. 24, 1995. World Refinery Production, Reserves, and Reserve Base: Refinery production Reserves3/ Reserve base3/ 1994 1995e/ United States 1,010 1,300 70,000 210,000 Australia 910 950 55,000 150,000 Belgium 1,560 1,600 -- -- Canada 2,130 2,300 80,000 170,000 Germany 1,120 1,200 6,000 8,000 Japan 2,630 2,800 10,000 15,000 Mexico 646 700 35,000 40,000 Other countries 8,110 8,000 280,000 380,000 World total (rounded) 18,100 18,900 540,000 970,000 World Resources: Estimated world resources of cadmium were about 6 million tons based on zinc resources containing about 0.3% cadmium. The zinc-bearing coals of the midcontinental United States and Carboniferous-age coals of other countries also contain large potential resources of cadmium. Substitutes: Coatings of zinc or vapor-deposited aluminum can substitute for cadmium in some plating applications. However, cadmium is still required in situations where the surface characteristics of the coating are critical (e.g., fasteners for aircraft). Cerous sulfide (Ce2S3) is being evaluated as an alternative to some of the red, cadmium-based pigments used to color plastics. e/Estimated. 1/Defined as imports - exports + adjustments for Government and industry stock changes. 2/See Appendix B. 3/See Appendix C for definitions. Mineral Commodity Summaries, January 1996