Electrochemical Metallurgy, Energy Storage, and Sustainability

Mitigating the excessive emission of global greenhouse gas necessitates the rapid expansion of renewable energy sources, such as solar and wind power. This transition requires the large-scale deployment of renewable energy systems, including the manufacturing of power-generation and energy-storage infrastructure. Consequently, there is a surging demand for bulk materials, such as Fe, Al, Zn, etc. On the one hand, conventional metallurgical extraction of these metals imposes a significant environmental burden (e.g., CO 2 emissions). On the other hand, the metal extraction consumes energy that is stored in the metals. In this regard, the key lies in the electrification of metallurgy, by which renewable energy is used for metal extraction that relieves environmental burdens while achieving energy storage. The green metals are building blocks for making sustainable, renewable energy devices. Achieving this shift requires intensive interdisciplinary collaboration among researchers in metallurgy, energy, environmental science, and sustainability.