Top Industries purchasing Scandium (Sc)

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Top Industries purchasing Scandium (Sc)

Scandium is one of the most expensive and least traded critical minerals.
Adding small amounts of scandium to an aluminum alloy significantly increases strength, heat resistance, and weldability.

Rank	Industry	Volume (MT)	% Usage	Primary Applications
1	Aerospace & Defense	~18.0	45.0%	Al-Sc alloys for airframes, bulkhead components, and missiles.
2	Energy (Fuel Cells)	~10.0	25.0%	Electrolyte stabilizer in Solid Oxide Fuel Cells (SOFC).
3	Sports & Recreation	~4.8	12.0%	High-end bicycle frames, baseball bats, and lacrosse sticks.
4	Lighting (High-Intensity)	~2.8	7.0%	Scandium iodide in metal halide lamps for stadium/film lighting.
5	Automotive (EVs)	~2.0	5.0%	Lightweight structural castings and heat exchangers for battery cooling.
6	Electronics & 5G	~1.2	3.0%	Sc-doped Aluminum Nitride for 5G radio frequency filters.
7	Additive Mfg (3D Printing)	~0.6	1.5%	Scalmalloy® powders for high-strength 3D printed metal parts.
8	Space Exploration	~0.2	0.5%	Satellite fuel tanks and lightweight structural housings.
9	Scientific Research	~0.2	0.5%	NMR spectroscopy and fundamental materials science.
10	Marine Engineering	~0.1	0.25%	Corrosion-resistant weld wire for specialized naval vessels.
11	Green Hydrogen	Trace	<0.2%	Research into scandium-doped proton exchange membranes.
12	Laser Technology	Trace	<0.1%	Gadolinium-Scandium-Gallium Garnet (GSGG) crystals.
13	Nuclear Energy	Trace	<0.1%	Neutron-absorbing alloys for reactor monitoring.
14	Semiconductors	Trace	<0.1%	High-k gate dielectrics and piezoelectric thin films.
15	Medical Technology	Trace	Trace	Scandium-47 radioisotopes for targeted cancer therapy.
16	Robotics	Trace	Trace	Lightweight high-torque actuators for industrial arms.
17	Luxury Goods	Trace	Trace	High-end watch cases and specialized eyewear frames.
18	Oil & Gas	Trace	Trace	Specialized tracers for reservoir mapping.
19	Ceramics Mfg	Trace	Trace	Toughening agents for high-performance zirconia.
20	Artificial Intelligence	Trace	Trace	Heat-stable substrate materials for next-gen AI chips.

Major Individual Company Purchasers

• Bloom Energy: Likely the world's largest individual purchaser of scandium oxide. They use it as a stabilizer in the electrolyte of their Solid Oxide Fuel Cells (SOFC) to lower operating temperatures and extend cell life.
• Airbus SE: A major driver of scandium demand through their development of Scalmalloy® (a proprietary Al-Mg-Sc alloy). They use it for 3D-printed structural components to reduce aircraft weight.
• The Boeing Company: Utilizes scandium alloys in both commercial aircraft and defense systems (like the C-17 Globemaster) for improved fatigue resistance and weldability.
• Safran S.A.: A primary European purchaser for aerospace engine components and landing gear parts where high strength-to-weight ratios are critical.
• Rio Tinto (Iron & Titanium Division): Uniquely, Rio Tinto is both a producer (recovering scandium from waste at their Sorel-Tracy plant) and a purchaser for their internal downstream aluminum alloying R&D.
• Mistubishi Chemical Group: A major purchaser for the production of high-performance lighting and specialized electronic materials in the Asian market.
• Resonac (formerly Showa Denko): Uses scandium in the production of high-purity aluminum alloys for the semiconductor and electronics industries.
• Qurv Technologies: An emerging purchaser utilizing scandium for next-generation image sensors and computer vision hardware.

Caution: This content was sourced and arranged by AI and thus may be subject to errors, biases, omissions, or antiquation.
This information can provide a general sense of industry dynamics, but may be unreliable in its specifics, or as an isolated basis for investment decisions.