Wheel loaders load trucks with ore at the MP Materials rare-earth mine in Mountain Pass, Calif. Steve Marcus/Reuters
Rare-earths developer NioCorp Developments is joining forces with defense contractor Lockheed Martin to develop advanced scandium applications, backed by the Pentagon.
The NioCorp–Lockheed partnership, announced on Oct. 22, is part of a program to engineer aluminum-scandium alloy prototypes, with the objective aimed at improving structural performance and weight efficiency in advanced fighter aircraft systems.
