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Cadmium: Overview

From NiCd batteries to solar panels: cadmium's shifting uses

From NiCd batteries to solar panels: cadmium's shifting uses What this tab covers What the commodity is used for, why, in what volumes and with what alternatives, and its chain from mine or field to end user. Also the latest price moves, top recent news, three things to know, and buttons into each tab.

Key uses

UseShareAnnual volumeWhy this commodityAlternatives
Nickel-cadmium (NiCd) batteries, mainly industrial back-up, rail and aviation batteriesn/a n/a basis NiCd cells tolerate deep discharge, extreme cold and heat, and decades of service with little maintenance, so they remain in aircraft, railway, telecom and utility back-up systems. Consumer NiCd cells have largely been replaced by lithium-based batteries with higher energy density (USGS 2026). Spent NiCd batteries are the main source of recycled cadmium. USGS MCS 2026 Lithium-ion batteries (most consumer and many industrial uses)
Nickel-metal hydride
Lead-acid (stationary back-up)
Cadmium telluride (CdTe) thin-film solar modules3%indicative about 600 t Cd a yearbasis CdTe is the absorber layer in First Solar's modules, deposited as a thin film in one fast step; the company expected about 14 GW a year of US capacity once its fifth plant ramps up (USGS 2026). It is the main growth market for cadmium, and modules are designed to be recycled. USGS MCS 2026 (Cadmium and Tellurium chapters) Crystalline silicon modules
CIGS thin film
Pigments: cadmium sulphide and sulphoselenide yellows, oranges and reds for plastics, ceramics and artists' paintsn/a n/a basis Cadmium pigments are bright, opaque and stable at high processing temperatures, so they colour engineering plastics, glass enamels and ceramics where organic pigments fade or burn. Toxicity rules have restricted them in many consumer products. USGS MCS 2026 Cerium sulphide pigments (mostly in plastics)
Organic pigments
Coatings and plating, especially fasteners for aircraftn/a n/a basis Cadmium plating protects steel fasteners against salt corrosion while keeping low friction and good electrical contact, which aerospace specifications still require. Elsewhere, zinc-nickel coatings have replaced it. USGS MCS 2026 Zinc-nickel coatings (most plating)
Aluminium-based coatings
Alloys, PVC stabilisers and semiconductors (CdZnTe radiation detectors, CdSe quantum dots)n/a n/a basis Cadmium-zinc-telluride crystals detect X-rays and gamma rays at room temperature for medical imaging and security; the US stockpile planned to buy 2,800 square centimetres of CdZnTe substrates in FY2025. Cadmium selenide quantum dots give pure colours in displays. Cadmium also goes into some copper alloys and barium-cadmium PVC stabilisers. USGS MCS 2026 Barium stabilisers (PVC)
Indium phosphide quantum dots (displays)
High-purity germanium detectors
USGS gives no percentage split; it lists NiCd batteries as the main use, followed by alloys, coatings and pigments, with CdTe solar, CdZnTe detectors and CdSe optoelectronics growing. The CdTe estimate is derived from tellurium use and is indicative.

From mine to user

  1. 1. Zinc ore mining Cadmium substitutes for zinc in sphalerite; typical zinc ores average about 0.03% cadmium (USGS 2026). Miners are not paid for it.
  2. 2. Zinc concentrate Concentrates are shipped to zinc smelters; most US-mined zinc ore is exported for smelting.
  3. 3. Roasting and leaching At the smelter, concentrate is roasted and leached in sulphuric acid. Cadmium dissolves with the zinc.
  4. 4. Solution purification Zinc dust is added to the solution and cements out cadmium (with copper and cobalt) as a sponge before zinc electrowinning.
  5. 5. Cadmium refining The sponge is dissolved and electrolysed or distilled to 99.95%+ metal, sold in 10 t lots; or the cadmium is treated as waste. World refined output was about 23,000 t in 2025 (USGS).
  6. 6. Products Battery electrodes, CdTe powder, pigments, plating anodes and alloys.
  7. 7. Recycling Spent NiCd batteries, electric-arc furnace dust and CdTe panels are recycled; about 4,000 t, about 20% of supply, came from recycling in 2008 (USGS Circular 1365).

Price movement snapshot 2026-10-25

No public daily or monthly benchmark price for this commodity in the datasets used.

World production 23k tonnes, 2024 Largest producer China 38.88% of world

Three things to know

  • Typical zinc ores contain only about 0.03% cadmium, yet world refined output was about 23,000 t in 2025 (USGS).
  • The leading US CdTe panel maker expected about 14 GW a year of domestic capacity once its fifth plant ramps up in 2026 (USGS).
  • World cadmium sales in 2014 were only about $43 million (Tilton & Guzmán).

Top recent news snapshot 2026-10-25, last 30 days

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