China's domination of the global production of rare-earth minerals in particular has fuelled the search for other sources of materials essential for everything from electronics to wind turbines.

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Imagine the headaches at Dow Chemical, whose business is turning hydrocarbons into products like Styrofoam and materials for everything from shampoo to electronics.

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Dr van Dover thinks that the electronics industry's demands for new materials a dielectric here, a magnetic-recording medium there are fairly few.

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Before going public in 2014 Cheil merged with the Lee family's de facto holding company, Samsung Everland, and another affiliate, Samsung SDI, to create a leading producer of energy-storage solutions, including batteries for autos and consumer electronics, as well as specialty materials used in the manufacture of TVs, semiconductors and smartphones.

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For example, contaminant removal may include the separation of unwanted materials like electronics, PVC and minerals.

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What I was expecting was a kit with plastic materials for walls and furniture, a few decorative items and a lot of electronics.

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Drawing on more than 150 years of materials science and process engineering knowledge, Corning creates and makes keystone components that enable high-technology systems for consumer electronics, mobile emissions control, telecommunications and life sciences.

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I. du Pont de Nemours and Company (DD) : This Delaware-based materials giant operates in about 80 countries, making products for a wide array of industries, including agriculture, nutrition, electronics, construction and apparel, to name a few.

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