Metal Country (2) Trivia Quiz

Answer: Japan

The image shows a woodblock print called "The Great Wave of Kanagawa" which was created in 1831 by Japanese artist Hokusai. Mount Fuji, an active volcano and Japan's highest mountain, is shown in the background. Although not a leading miner of ilmenite, a common titanium ore, Japan comes second after China for production of titanium. Most titanium is used as the white pigment titanium oxide, which is found in paints, paper and toothpaste, amongst others. Due to the metal's properties, it has uses in the aerospace and marine industries.

As a biocompatible metal, it has many medical applications such as hip joints.

Answer: USA

The museum in question is in New York, USA and emerald is a form of the mineral beryl, coloured green due to trace chromium or vanadium impurities. The US has dominated production of beryllium metal since 1969 when Spor Mountain mine in Utah was opened. The beryllium is produced from the mineral bertrandite mined from Spor Mountain or imported usually in the form of beryl ore. Beryllium's mix of properties sees it being used in a diverse range of applications such as windows for x-ray transmission, in satellites as mirrors and in nuclear reactors as a moderator.

Answer: Sri Lanka

With a nickname "Tear of India" due to its shape and proximity to India, Sri Lanka is one of the producers of gadolinium-bearing minerals. Gadolinium occurs only in trace amounts in gadolinite despite the mineral's name. It tends to be monazite from the mineral sands of Pulmoddai where Sri Lanka mines it.

Gadolinium has a variety of specialist uses. It can be used to enhance the contrast of images obtained by magnetic resonance imagers. Its high neutron absorption cross-section has resulted in various uses in the nuclear energy field. It also has uses in superconductors.

Answer: Argentina

The Iguazu River flows mostly in Brazil however the Iguazu Falls are on the border between Brazil and Argentina. Immediately downstream it becomes a triple border with Paraguay joining in. Both Argentina and Brazil mine lithium although it is Argentina that is part of the 'Lithium Triangle', a high-altitude region of the Andes rich in lithium reserves. It is probably more accurate to call it 'Lithium Crescent' due to the way the lithium is distributed. The lithium salts are in various salt pans that straddle the borders of Argentina, Bolivia and Chile.

Recent developments in battery technology is providing the main drive for new lithium resources. Lithium however has many other applications such as in ceramics and glass, lubricating greases, as a rocket propellant and in the treatment of bipolar disorder.

Answer: Gabon

Gabon is on the Atlantic coast of Africa on the equator and shoehorned between Cameroon and Equatorial Guinea. The surfing hippos of Loanga National Park were caught on camera by a National Geographic photographer and in the 2013 BBC TV documentary series "Africa" narrated by David Attenborough.

The main manganese deposits are inland around Moanda. Manganese is essential in steel making and accounts for over 80% of its use. It also appears in aluminium alloys, batteries and fertilisers. It is also an essential micronutrient for human health.

Answer: Belarus

The accidental wilderness is as a result of the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear reactor explosion. Although the reactor is situated just over the border in Ukraine, some 70% of the fallout fell into this now-wilderness region of Belarus. Potassium is typically mined in the form of potash (or potassium chloride) from ancient lake bottoms and sea beds. Sanctions against the Belarusian government resulted in reduced production after 2019 from the state-owned industry. Most of the potassium (around 95%) is used in fertilisers however there are thousands of industrial uses for potassium compounds.

Answer: Spain

Pamplona is in Spain and the annual bull run takes place in July in honour of Saint Fermin. Strontium mining mostly takes place at the Aurora Mine in Granada at the opposite end of the country. It mostly comes from the mineral celestine. Named after the Scottish village of Strontian where it was first discovered, Spain is Europe's sole producer of the metal.

The bulk of strontium was used to coat cathode-ray tubes (CRTs) in televisions, preventing x-rays emissions causing harm. Television technology has moved on and now you might come across it in glow-in-the-dark paint or in powering satellites.

This latter use is for strontium-90 isotope, a highly-radioactive product of nuclear explosions. Natural strontium is not radioactive and can be found in the body.

Answer: India

The mausoleum shown in the image is better known as the Taj Mahal, built in the 17th century from marble to house the tomb of Mumtaz Mahal, late wife of the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan. It is in Agra, India. India has the largest estimated resources of thorium in the world. Lack of demand means that it tends to be recovered as a by-product of rare earth mining.

At one time high-end camera lens glass could contain as much as 30% by weight of thorium dioxide, which increases the refractive index of the glass and reduces dispersion. Such lenses tended to become yellow after a few years from the radiation emitted by the thorium. Lengthy exposure to ultraviolet radiation restores the lens, however alternatives to thorium are now used.

Answer: Guinea

The West African country of Guinea was the top exporter of bauxite in 2024 according to the US Geological Survey. Bauxite is the mineral from which aluminium is obtained. The guinea was the main British gold coin between 1663 and 1813 with the gold mostly coming from the Guinea Coast of West Africa, hence the name of the coin.

The value when first issued was 20 shillings however its value fluctuated with the change in value of gold compared to silver. Sir Isaac Newton as Master of the Mint fixed the value of one guinea at 21 shillings in 1717.

Answer: Peru

The citadel of Machu Picchu, built in the 15th century, is a familiar icon of the Inca Empire. It was possibly a private city for Incan royalty and abandoned as a result of the Spanish conquest of the empire. Second only to China in 2024 for zinc production, Peru also ranks highly for copper, silver and lead production. Most zinc is used for galvanising steel or iron to improve corrosion resistance.

A significant amount of zinc is also used in making various alloys such as brass and bronze. Zinc oxide is a white pigment used in paint and various zinc compounds may be used as a dietary supplement, zinc being an essential micronutrient.