Every solar module contains ~40 grams of antimony trioxide in its cover glass as a fining agent, but the same compound appears in ammunition primers and military pyrotechnics. When China restricted antimony exports in 2024, the US military scrambled to fund domestic refineries, exposing how the clean energy and defense supply chains compete for the same critical mineral.
Source: The Dark Side of Solar Glass: Antimony, Geopolitics, and the Energy Transition · InvestorNews · Aug 31, 2024