Some metals are considered expensive due to their rarity in nature, while others are abundant. Metals in general are valuable natural resources for many countries.
The rarest metal on earth
Elements or non-organic compounds that naturally form in the Earth's mantle, such as those defined by the American Geological Society, are metals that do not contain carbon.
Metals differ in their internal atomic structure, and the shape taken by the metal's crystals, as well as other physical properties, and each metal has a unique chemical composition.
Cobalt is considered the rarest metal in the world, to the extent that there is only one known crystal of it on the planet, which was found in the Mogok area of Myanmar.
The Caltech Minerals Database describes that crystal as a dark orange precious stone weighing 1.61 carats. It was officially recognized by the International Mineral Association in 2015.
The second rarest metal on earth
Unfortunately, there is not much information available about cobalt, so we will move on to the second rarest metal, bismuth.
Bismuth appears in the form of dark red spherical crystals (with some pink exceptions).
Finding bismuth may have become easier these days, but it remains one of the less understood metals in the world.
Identify the crystal structure elements that make up the beryl during this research. It relied on infrared spectroscopy to determine the elements based on their absorption, reflection, and light transmission.
While Rosman discovered an error in the original chemical composition that was established by British museum scientists. They successfully identified aluminum, boron, calcium, and oxygen, but they did not discover the zirconium element. Rosman also discovered the secret that makes the beryl tend to red, which is the presence of small amounts of vanadium and chromium in the metal. For this reason, beryl sometimes resembles emerald.
What is the secret of this metal?
The first reason is that it is only found in Myanmar, but the second reason lies in the formation of the beryl. The beryl is considered one of the borate minerals, which means it contains boron. It also contains zirconium. It is noted that boron faces a severe difficulty in bonding with zirconium. Beryl is considered the only metal that combines these two elements in nature.
It is worth mentioning that many crystals suspected to be beryl have been sent to Rosman so that he can identify them. Some crystals remained hidden to the naked eye for long periods, either because they were stored in bags with solid precious stones or because they were covered with other minerals.
Why is it in Myanmar?
According to the American website Live Science, Myanmar is considered to be the home of these rare metals for the following reason:
The great Gondwana continent began to separate about 180 million years ago, and at that time the Indian subcontinent moved north and collided with the region that is known as South Asia today. The pressure and heat from the collision resulted in the formation of a deep mineral deposit, mostly consisting of precious stones. Roman believes that the boron found in beryl, as well as other mineral crystals, may have come from the surrounding shallow seas that surrounded the recently formed earth's crust.
It is important to mention here the ethical concerns associated with mining in Myanmar, as Human Rights Watch raises awareness of human rights violations by the military government, which profits from the mining industry.
The mining industry in Myanmar relies on unsafe, disease-ridden mines, exploitation, and child labor.
Some jewelry companies refuse to buy gems extracted from Myanmar for this reason, while some scientists refuse to study samples from the country.
Many valuable things exist in our planet, but in addition to not knowing their locations, they are also unknown. Did you know this metal? Or even where it is found?
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