Electrochemical method could make seawater a low-cost source of magnesium salts

Executive Briefing & Key Highlights

Magnesium supplements are gaining popularity to treat conditions such as insomnia, migraines and constipation. Most magnesium salts are extracted from rocks by crushing and heating them, which requires a lot of energy. Now, researchers reporting in ACS Energy Letters have developed bismuth electrodes that selectively pull magnesium ions from seawater, another abundant source of the element. They s