As lithium mining is set to begin in the Jadar Valley in western Serbia, boron has quietly but significantly entered everyday conversation, protest signs, and official statements. Boron, found in the mineral jadarite alongside lithium, has become a topic of interest due to Rio Tinto’s “Jadar” project.
According to information on the company’s website, in addition to producing lithium carbonate, Rio Tinto plans to produce 160,000 tons of boric acid annually.
Health and safety
Boron is commonly ingested through food and water and can also be purchased as a dietary supplement. According to Professor Michael Ingleson of the University of Edinburgh, boron in small amounts is “not particularly dangerous to humans.” “The harm depends on the boron compound we come into contact with, the amount, and the exposure method,” he adds.
Boron is used in medicine, and Ingleson notes that scientists are exploring new therapies to combat antibiotic resistance based on boron. It is also used to make glass and ceramics, in alloys with other metals, in the pharmaceutical industry, and in nuclear energy production.
Global production and uses
The largest global producers of boron and its compounds are Turkey, the United States and Chile, with significant reserves also in Russia, according to the Royal Society of Chemistry.
Boron makes up about 0.0008% of the Earth’s crust, and Ingleson says it is “neither a common nor a rare” element. At one point, American scientists even considered boron compounds as a fuel alternative for cars, determining that there was enough boron in the Earth’s crust to potentially replace fossil fuels. Although issues prevented the shift to boron-based fuels, the key finding was that there would be sufficient boron for such an endeavor.
Documents from the American Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) from 1955 indicate that the Soviets investigated boron for potential use in fighter planes and missiles.
Common misconceptions
One common misconception in Serbia and other countries is that boron is a heavy metal, says Dušan Veljković, associate professor at the Faculty of Chemistry in Belgrade. “Although you hear it in the media and from some experts, boron is not a metal; it belongs to a small group of chemical elements called metalloids,” Veljković explains.
Metalloids, such as boron, have properties between metals and non-metals, including a shiny surface and high melting points like metals, but are poorer conductors. This group also includes silicon, germanium, arsenic, antimony, tellurium, and astatine.
Applications of boron
While boron-based fuels have not materialized, boron is widely used in glassmaking, household chemicals, and agriculture. “Most boron compounds are used to produce special types of glass and ceramics that are highly resistant to high temperatures and mechanical impact, as well as detergents, powders, and insecticides,” says Veljković.
Some boron compounds, such as boron carbide (B₄C), are used in nuclear research for neutron absorption, which helps control and slow down nuclear reactions in reactors.
In limited quantities, boron is also used in metallurgy to increase the strength of metals and in the production of microchips and magnets.
Health impacts
Due to its presence in soil and water, boron enters the human body through plants and animals. “The optimal amount in soil is 1.5 to 2 milligrams per kilogram. Exceeding these limits can cause significant problems, such as drying out plants,” says Veljković. This issue was observed near Loznica, where Rio Tinto’s exploration activities for the “Jadar” project led to the release of groundwater with excessive boron concentrations affecting crops.
However, in small amounts, boron can have positive effects on humans, and supplements containing boron can be bought in pharmacies and sports supplement stores in Serbia. These supplements are often used to prevent osteoporosis, a condition characterized by the loss of bone mass, Veljković explains.
Regulation and legislation
The maximum allowable concentration of boron is not defined in Serbia’s 2018 regulation on pollutant limits in soil or its 2019 amendments. Serbian scientists have highlighted this in their work on the environmental impact of the potential lithium mine in Western Serbia, published in Scientific Reports, a journal under Nature.
Since 2019, the regulation on drinking water quality has set the maximum allowable boron concentration at one milligram per liter, up from 0.3 milligrams per liter in the 1999 regulation. This change aligns with World Health Organization recommendations and European Union directives, aiming to increase drinking water availability without posing serious health risks, according to Veljković.
