India Unearths Rare Vanadium Element off Gujarat Coast

• 22 Sep 2023

India has recently made a significant discovery of the rare element Vanadium in sediment samples collected by the Geological Survey of India (GSI) from the Gulf of Khambhat near Alang town in Gujarat's Bhavnagar district.

Key Points

• A Game-Changing Year: This discovery comes in the wake of another major find earlier in the year when an extensive lithium reserve, totaling approximately 5.9 million tonnes, was uncovered in the Salal-Haimana area of the Reasi district.
• Additionally, a lithium reserve in Rajasthan's Degana has the potential to fulfill a significant portion of India's lithium requirements if it proves feasible for mining.
• Diverse Applications: Vanadium is found in 55 different minerals and is not typically found in pure form, making its extraction expensive.
• It holds significant industrial value and finds applications across various sectors, including defence.
• Vanadium is used to strengthen materials like steel and titanium and is employed in Vanadium redox batteries for energy storage.
• When combined with titanium and aluminum, it is utilized in the production of jet engine components and electrical parts due to its resistance to corrosion and high-temperature tolerance.