# Tellurium

A copper-refining by-product that makes cadmium telluride solar panels and thermoelectric coolers, produced mostly in Chinese refineries.

Source page: https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/tellurium/

Tech & minor metals · No. 41

- US critical 2025
- India critical 2023
- HHI 6,242 · highly concentrated
 Tech & minor metals · Foundation · Matter

Most tellurium is scraped from the sludge left when copper is refined, and 70% now ends up in solar panels.

Chart: Illustration: Tellurium

##### Where it comes from

Chart: Map of where it comes from

Tellurium is almost never mined for itself. Over 90% comes from the slimes left when copper anodes are electrorefined; the rest from lead skimmings and smelter dusts.

##### Three things to know

1. More than 90% of tellurium has come from anode slimes, so copper produced by leaching lets its tellurium slip away uncaptured.
2. Bismuth telluride, the best thermoelectric at room temperature, puts thermoelectric devices second with about 15% of 2025 use.
3. World output doubled from 459 t in 2020 to 958 t in 2024, according to World Mining Data.

##### The journey

1. 1 **Copper ore**Porphyry ore with traces of tellurium
2. 2 **Anodes**Concentrate smelted into copper anodes
3. 3 **Anode slimes**Residue left by electrorefining copper
4. 4 **Copper telluride**Slimes treated to an intermediate
5. 5 **Refined tellurium**High-purity metal, 5N or better
6. 6 **Products**CdTe solar modules and thermoelectric devices
 Covered in [What makes something a commodityCommodities](https://www.materialinsights.org/learn/commodities/what-is-a-commodity/)[Supply, demand and the cost curveCommodities](https://www.materialinsights.org/learn/commodities/supply-demand-costs/)[Criticality and geopoliticsCommodities](https://www.materialinsights.org/learn/commodities/criticality-and-geopolitics/)

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## Other sections

- [Overview](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/tellurium/overview/index.md)
- [Correlation](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/tellurium/correlation/index.md)
- [Extraction](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/tellurium/extraction/index.md)
- [Production](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/tellurium/production/index.md)
- [Stocks](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/tellurium/stocks/index.md)
- [Cycles](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/tellurium/cycles/index.md)
- [Trading](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/tellurium/trading/index.md)
- [Movement](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/tellurium/movement/index.md)
- [Criticality](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/tellurium/criticality/index.md)
- [Characteristics](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/tellurium/characteristics/index.md)
- [Emissions](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/tellurium/emissions/index.md)
- [Relationships](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/tellurium/links/index.md)