The star of Magrathea’s process is an electrolyzer, a device that uses electricity to split a material into its constituent elements. Basically, the company runs its electrolyzer about 100 °C higher than is necessary to keep the molten salt a liquid. It then uses the extra heat in inventive ways, including to dry out the magnesium salt that eventually goes into the reactor. The result could be a production process with net-zero emissions, according to an independent life cycle assessment completed in January. Breaking into magnesium production won’t be simple, says Simon Jowitt, director of the Nevada Bureau of Mines and of the Center for Research in Economic Geology at the University of Nevada, Reno.