Chapter Seventy: Serious

  "Man is iron, rice is steel, one meal missed and the hunger pangs start." In life, a large part of it is closely related to eating, just like humans, industry also needs to input nutrients and constantly discharge waste. Without a large amount of mineral resources as input, discharging production waste, industry cannot thrive and become strong.

  When humans entered the industrial era, the main equipment was textile machinery and steam engines that provided power for it, which quickly made coal an indispensable energy source in the industrial era. Later, steam trains and steam ships emerged, further pushing the role of coal to its peak, and its success also led to the widespread application of steel, cement, copper and other materials.

  In the blink of an eye, humanity entered the era of electric power industry, and the main energy source during this period was naturally electricity. Coal still occupied a certain position with its strong chemical energy, but hydroelectric power began to be applied, especially in daily life where internal combustion engines started to appear in large numbers and were widely used. Oil began to challenge coal's dominant position, followed closely by metal materials.

  The main sign of whether a country is industrially developed or not does not lie in the richness of its resources, but rather in its ability to utilize them. A country with abundant resources is not necessarily an industrial power, and it is those countries or regions that can make better use of their resources that are more likely to be industrially developed. The production, manufacture, and sale of commodities are all part of the process of converting natural resources into commodity resources, with the goal of obtaining a good use value at the lowest cost and thereby earning a profit. Whoever is able to make better use of resources is the true strongman.

  "Firstly, I would like to make a brief report on behalf of the Mineral Resources Development and Management Bureau. This report was jointly completed by the Ministry of Land and Resources and the Ministry of Industry, and due to time constraints, the information may not be entirely accurate. However, it has already allowed us to have a relatively clear understanding of the resource distribution and mineral reserves in some provinces and cities. But this does not include Shaanxi, Gansu, Xinjiang..."

  A robust and dark-skinned man, with a standard appearance of an outdoor mineral exploration personnel, he looks exactly like a farmer, but he is indeed a geological talent, and now also a bureau chief. He is Mr. Li Siguang, the chief expert on western mineral resources. After taking office at the State-owned Assets Management Bureau, he soon showed his talents, leading a team of people to rush about in the mountains and rivers, busy but joyful. The glorious reputation of "iron feet and steel legs" comes from their outstanding achievements.

  "After some effort, our survey results are trustworthy." With that, Director Li took out a map from his file bag and hung it on the back wall where everyone could see it. He then picked up a pointer and continued to explain.

  "The five southwestern provinces are rich in resources, with astonishing reserves. First, we completed the survey of Guangxi Province and discovered nearly fifty kinds of mineral resources, including tin, antimony, aluminum earth, tungsten, etc., with astonishing reserves. Sichuan has huge reserves of vanadium, titanium, pyrite, natural gas, solvent limestone, etc. Guizhou has large reserves of phosphorus, coal, silica stone, Hainan has iron ore, and Yunnan has lead, zinc, copper, all with huge storage volumes, and most are rich mines that are easy to develop."

  "But so far, we have not found any large oil fields... In other words, our autonomous region lacks petroleum resources." As soon as he said this, most of the people at the meeting were shocked. He then added: "We have discovered oil and gas fields with considerable reserves in Chishui, Guizhou Province, Baise, Guangxi, Baoshan, Jinggu, Yunnan, etc. Take Tiandong for example, its maximum reserve is absolutely no more than 150 million tons."

  "Let's tell a joke, the just-ended war among European countries, we are very clear about this war. I don't know how much change the war has brought to military equipment and tactics, but anyone can clearly recognize that this war has made oil the main force of industry. The daily oil consumption of the great powers' war is conservatively estimated to be tens of thousands of tons, which is hundreds of millions of tons per year...and this war lasted for more than five years..."

  Li Si Guang did not speak vaguely, using the European war that everyone is familiar with as an example. Everyone can accept this fact: oil has become an indispensable resource for industry, military and even the entire society. Moreover, his survey results were not alarmist. Although the southwest is rich in mineral resources, its small oil reserves are indeed a major disadvantage, even in another time and space.

  The autonomous region has developed to this point, and it is already a strong industrial area. The strength of the industry lies in its huge profits and rich products, especially cars, which are a sharp double-edged sword.

  Manufacturing cars can promote the progress of the entire industrial system, not only bringing huge profits to the autonomous region, but also gradually forming a certain car culture in society, leading industrial progress with cars and guiding life changes with cars... But the "negative impact" it brings is also enormous. Cars cannot be separated from petroleum and various lubricants. Even if a large number of cars are exported, the number of cars retained in the autonomous region is still increasing day by day. The autonomous region also needs to export a large number of automobile-derived products, such as engine oil, lubricating oil, etc., which indirectly increases the autonomous region's demand for petroleum. In an imperceptible way, the consumption of refined oil in the autonomous region will exceed 150,000 tons.

  In short, the autonomous region has changed the world with cars and is gradually being changed by cars. Now the autonomous region must see clearly what kind of change this is and whether it is a beneficial change.

  "Let's not talk about oil for now, let's discuss the issue of metal mineral resources utilization." Zhang Yu, no matter how he puts it, is still the Minister of Industry and should be the biggest head in this meeting. At this time, he should stand up and shift the focus. Li Siguang and others have not yet gone to investigate Xinjiang, Gansu, and Shaanxi, and now is not the time to say that the autonomous region's oil resources are not rich.

  "For the time being, the metals needed by the entire autonomous region and even the whole world that can be smelted are still the traditional ones. Iron, aluminum, copper, lead, zinc, etc." Zhang Yu motioned for Li Si Guang to sit down, he had to stand up and ramble on for a few more sentences. "Industry is nothing but material development and smelting, product manufacturing, packaging and sales. As part of the Ministry of Industry, we don't need to worry about other things, our task is to develop manufacturing technology and materials. In my opinion, our research on iron has already been quite thorough, copper, aluminum, magnesium, lead, zinc will be the focus of future material research and application."

  According to the latest statistics from the Statistics Bureau, in 1918, the consumption of copper and aluminum in the autonomous region broke through the records of 200,000 tons and 300,000 tons respectively. The progress of the commodity packaging industry, especially the packaging of cigarettes, food cans, etc., greatly stimulated the importation of tin mines and the consumption of aluminum materials.

  Zhang Yu said, taking out a blueprint from his bag and handing it to the crowd for viewing. "Our university's College of Electronics and Information Engineering and School of Materials Science and Engineering have jointly developed an electronic system, which has a dynamic name - wireless radio broadcasting system. In other words, we will usher in the era of wireless broadcasting, our provinces and cities can set up their own radio stations, individual families, private cars, etc. can also install receiving devices... In short, with the continuous progress of science and technology, what we rely on will no longer be just steel and oil, but more things that need to be studied and utilized."

  "Copper has excellent electrical and thermal conductivity, and is widely used in industry. According to our latest industrial classification standards, it is widely used in the electrical industry, light industry, machinery manufacturing, transportation, military industry, etc. This situation is not unique to copper, as many metals are also used in similar ways. In short, copper can be made into wires and cables, which are the foundation of the electrical industry and an important pillar resource for mechanical manufacturing."

  "Copper-based light industry occupies more than half of the consumer goods market, especially in daily hardware and electrical machinery. In mechanical processing and manufacturing, it can be widely used in machinery, instruments, tools, general basic components, etc., with outstanding effects. In several new industries, its application is also quite extensive. According to statistics, every production of a heavy truck requires nearly 30 kilograms of copper. Moreover, from the aviation manufacturing representatives such as Airbus and Boeing, to shipbuilding representatives like Beihai, Zhanjiang, and Sanya, the use of copper in these industries is also increasing gradually."

  "The military, metallurgy, chemical and construction industries are also major copper consumers, with the military industry being particularly prominent. The product series of the three major military factories in Liuzhou were established on the basis of strong resource consumption, with brass being widely used to manufacture weapons, bullet shells, artillery shells, and other products. During wartime, we provided an astonishing number of ammunition types and calibers to warring nations, and the establishment and development of the navy will further drive resource consumption. Not to mention that tin-brass has high corrosion resistance in seawater and marine atmosphere, making it widely applicable to various ships and vessels. We are currently preparing for the establishment of a navy, which will undoubtedly bring a huge challenge to the shipbuilding industry, but also an opportunity for development."

  Brass is composed of zinc, copper, tin, lead and other metals. After actual production testing by Southwest industries, they gradually discovered their Mount Tai-level role in mechanical manufacturing. Zinc-magnesium-aluminum-copper alloys can be used for precision casting parts, galvanizing steel surfaces to prevent corrosion, etc. Under Zhang Yu's guidance, relevant institutions in the southwest also began to utilize them step by step, further expanding the range of use and increasing the amount used.

  "Simply relying on the precious resources within the autonomous region to develop industry is unrealistic and extremely unwise." Zhang Yushu didn't know that his words had stunned the people below, looking at everyone with an expression of disbelief. He smiled and said: "I know everyone pays great attention to the rich resources of China, but these resources are non-renewable after all. We're still in the revival stage and using up these resources lavishly, using a little less each time, what will we do later? If our own resources are depleted and other countries don't export to us, what will we do then? The stone from another mountain can be used to polish jade, and the resources of another country can also enrich ourselves."

  After Zhang Yu finished speaking, Li Si Guang stood up and said: "Metallic mineral resources are precious and rare. We have the ability and strength to think about the country's future and should not use domestic resources excessively. Last year, global copper production was around 32 million tons, with the United States, Canada, South Asia, Mexico, and other countries and regions being the main producing areas, among which refined copper is best in South America. I believe that we can almost guarantee the demand for metal materials by industry without mobilizing domestic metallic mineral resources, relying on overseas imports of minerals, and many parts of the world have very good metal mines..."

  "Director Li is telling the truth. In order to open up trade with imperialist countries, we have been cooperating with South America and Australia for many years. From 14,000 tons in '14 to 100,000 tons in '20, our demand for copper may decrease a bit after the war, but don't forget that our industry is still developing and consumption will continue to increase. They have the ability to meet our needs and are willing to trade with us, why not take advantage of it?"

  As soon as these words came out, everyone couldn't help but burst into laughter. It seems that China is a country with vast territory and rich resources, and it should be a major resource-exporting country. But after Zhang Yu and Li Siyuan's duet, it's likely that China will become a super resource-importing country in the future. This has set the tone for the country even before its founding. Which great power doesn't hope to keep their own resources untouched, wishing other countries would provide them with resources instead? Not only does this achieve sustainable use of resources, but it also indirectly showcases one's national strength to the world, and avoids all sorts of annoying mining accidents. The significance is self-evident.

  "The situation with iron and steel is the best, in 18 years my autonomous region has built three large aluminum smelting bases. As Minister Zhang said, Qinzhou Port Industrial Zone and Fangchenggang Industrial Zone each have one aluminum smelting base, plus Pingguo Aluminum Company. Especially after the second phase of Pingguo Aluminum Company is completed, it can basically meet our current actual demand in 2000, and the products of the other two bases are estimated to be used for export..."

  "Of course, due to aluminum metal having a small density and excellent electrical and thermal conductivity performance, especially its good corrosion resistance and excellent ductility, which makes it highly plastic processable. These properties will definitely make it occupy a large position in the industrial materials that are constantly advancing. Cars need aluminum, and China Aviation Industry Group attaches great importance to metallic aluminum, if..."

  The speaker was definitely unaware that his words had not caught Zhang Yu's attention, as he had already gone to the Pingguo company and looked around in a big circle. He knew some things more clearly than Li Si Guang, but it made him think of other problems. Aluminum can be processed into additives for use in steelmaking, iron alloy production, and various special steel production after processing. Aluminum can also be processed into very thin aluminum foil for packaging various products, such as cigarettes, candies, tea leaves, and small foods that are currently being mass-produced and exported in the southwest. He was worried whether this aluminum company could provide enough good-quality aluminum for future aircraft.

  In fact, aluminum has not reduced its role in industrial production by half since human civilization entered modern society. Southwest will definitely not be able to get out of that road. For civilian use, there are radios, amplifiers, televisions, capacitors, potentiometers, speakers, cars, and cans; for military use, there are radar, radar reconnaissance jamming equipment, missile and satellite launch equipment, etc. In the process of gradual development of Southwest industry, it will definitely gradually increase the research and development and utilization of various metals.

  "Industry, the metal materials needed are definitely not just one or two kinds. The production of battery plates requires lead alloys, battery paste uses lead oxide, bearing alloys, soldering alloys and mold alloys all require lead, our ships also need to use lead plates and lead pipes to resist seawater corrosion, plastic production uses it as a stabilizer, rubber products' activator, glass and coating industry's mainstay is also it, but our lead is tightly dependent on the supply of the United States, which is really a bit troublesome!!"

  The meeting currently only discusses some common metals, iron, copper, aluminum, lead, zinc, tin, tungsten, which are enough to make people have many ideas and understandings, but they don't know that the future actually belongs to rarer metals, nickel, antimony, molybdenum, etc. These rare metals have great prospects in the industry of the future, which is invisible to most people now.

  Nickel, as a ferromagnetic metal, can be used to produce stainless steel, high-temperature alloy steel, high-energy special alloys and nickel-based spraying materials. Therefore, it can be used to manufacture high-performance combat aircraft, rockets, tanks, submarines, radar, atomic reactors, etc. The structural steel and acid-resistant heat-resistant steel containing nickel can be widely used in petroleum chemical industry and mechanical manufacturing, such as large-scale forging parts, steam turbines, engines, blowers, pumps and large-scale acid containers, oil refining catalysts, rechargeable batteries, etc., which are applications of its unique chemical properties. At present, the autonomous region only uses this material in a small range, but with the deepening of scientific research, it will let people see the power of nickel.

  Antimony, a brittle silver-white metal with no ductility, has excellent corrosion resistance when alloyed with lead, and can be said to have almost perfect corrosion resistance. Not only is it the main material for producing storage batteries, but also the main force in the field of anti-corrosion materials such as chemical pumps and pipes. If it is alloyed with tin, aluminum, and copper, it can produce high-strength and wear-resistant properties, which can be widely used in bearing manufacturing, shaft sleeves, and gears. High-purity antimony and its metal compounds can be used to produce semiconductors and thermoelectric components, and the electronics industry cannot do without it. Computers and smart industries are even more inseparable from it.

  Antimony white is a high-quality white pigment that can be used as a filler in the ceramics and rubber industries, and also serves as an important chemical raw material in industries such as paint, glass, textiles, and chemicals. Antimony has the property of having a low ignition point, making it useful for manufacturing matches and safety matches. Sodium antimonate is also an important decolorizer and clarifier in the production of special glasses.

  There is another metal that has become increasingly important, and its significance was highlighted in the 1920s. It is magnesium, a good material originally used to produce aluminum alloys. The addition of magnesium not only greatly improves the mechanical strength of aluminum alloys but also gives them excellent mechanical processing performance and resistance to alkaline corrosion. Moreover, with magnesium as the core, i.e., magnesium-based alloys, the manufactured structural parts and die-cast parts have higher strength and can almost replace aluminum in many product manufacturing fields such as aerospace and automotive manufacturing. In fact, magnesium alloys were later widely used in rocket production, missile shells, power device systems, and other applications due to their light weight and strong anti-fatigue properties, such as aircraft wings and jet engine mounts.

  Magnesium is also highly reactive and can be used as a reducing agent in the production of titanium, zirconium, and uranium. It is also used as a spheroidizing agent in the production of ductile iron and as a desulfurizer in steelmaking, replacing calcium carbide. In the production of sponge titanium, it serves as a reducing agent. Tungsten is another element that is similar to magnesium. Like magnesium, tungsten has a silvery-white color, but its temperament is more reserved. Its high melting point of 3,400°C demonstrates its strong "endurance", while its extremely high density and hardness are important characteristics of its reserved nature.

  From this, he and chromium, molybdenum, cobalt form wear-resistant alloys that can be used to manufacture cutting tools, metal surface hardening materials, gas turbine blades, etc. Tungsten and tantalum, niobium, molybdenum can also form insoluble alloys. Among the achievements of this honest man, people remember most clearly that he is presented in silk, rod, sheet for making light bulbs, and his role in aerospace and weapons, especially the use of tungsten core piercing bullet cores and nozzles, while in fact he can also be used as a component of electronic tubes, arc welding electrodes, nickel-tungsten alloys can be used as radiation shielding screens.

  Molybdenum, like tungsten, has few opportunities to show itself alone in front of people, because it is a refractory metal, mainly used in the steel industry. Most of it is pressed into blocks as industrial molybdenum oxide and directly used for steelmaking or iron casting, with only a small portion being further refined. Adding molybdenum to stainless steel can greatly improve its corrosion resistance, while adding it to cast iron can significantly increase its strength and wear resistance. In all these applications, it is incorporated into the body of others, so people have little chance to see its grandeur.

  In fact, nickel-based superalloys with 18% molybdenum content have the characteristics of high melting point, low density and small thermal expansion coefficient. The high-temperature parts made from it are widely used in aerospace field. Molybdenum disulfide is also an excellent lubricant used in the aerospace industry. In addition, it is widely used in electronic components such as electron tubes, transistors, rectifiers, etc., playing an important role in people's daily life without many people knowing its great contribution. Its oxides and acidized products have also made outstanding performances in petroleum chemical industry but haven't been paid attention to by the public.

  Oil can be seen as the blood of industry, coal was once the muscle of industry. But times are changing, future industries must have rare metals as the brain of industry, conventional metal materials as the skeleton of industry, non-metallic new materials (ceramics, composite materials, etc.) are the meridians of industry, while oil and coal are still important components of industry, but it is clear that their influence will inevitably be cut back.

  To shape a strong industrial giant, the future republic of this autonomous region is obviously dissatisfied with the simple-minded and thin-limbed industry. The Chinese mainland needs an intelligent and robust industrial giant, which requires attention to materials, resources, and minerals, as well as everything that can be grasped and utilized.