History of cadmium

How did our relationship with it begin and change?

Friedrich Stromeyer found cadmium in a zinc ore in 1817. It was used first as a yellow pigment, then for plating steel, then in nickel-cadmium batteries. Now cadmium telluride solar panels are its growing use.

Last updated 3 October 2026.

Discovery and name

Friedrich Stromeyer discovered cadmium in Germany in 1817. He isolated it from a sample of zinc ore whose color was not what he expected¹. According to Los Alamos National Laboratory, German doctors made medicines from calamine, a zinc mineral. Some of the medicines turned yellow instead of staying white. Stromeyer found that the color came only from calamine that held a certain material, and separated it².

Two other German scientists, K.S.H. Hermann and J.C.H. Roloff, found the element at about the same time. Stromeyer usually gets the credit, but historians are not sure who was first².

He named it after cadmeia, the ancient Greek name for zinc ore¹. The industry association traces the name to the Latin cadmia and the Greek kadmeia, both old names for calamine or zinc oxide³. Cadmium still comes mostly from zinc ores.

Germany made the first commercial cadmium metal in the 1880s, from zinc ores of Upper Silesia, now part of Poland. German output peaked at about 43 tonnes in 1912¹.

How our use changed

Pigments came first. The industry association says cadmium sulfide pigments were used from about 1850 and appear in paintings by Vincent van Gogh³. US production began in 1907. When the First World War cut imports from Germany, US output rose fast, and by 1917 the United States was the largest producer¹.

Plating came next. The cadmium electroplating process was developed in 1919. By the 1940s electroplating took about three quarters of US cadmium¹. In 1927 the US National Bureau of Standards proposed the light of cadmium atoms as a practical standard of length⁴. In 1960 a new definition of the meter used the light of krypton atoms⁴.

Batteries took over in the second half of the 20th century. In the United States, plating took 70% of cadmium in 1960. By 2000 batteries took 75% and plating 8%¹. Japan passed the United States as a user in the 1980s, as its battery industry grew¹.

Toxicity changed the market from the middle of the century. Itai-itai disease in Japan made more people aware of the poison¹. Governments, mainly in Western Europe, restricted many uses¹. Lithium-ion batteries then replaced NiCd batteries in most consumer goods⁵. Solar is the newest use. In its 2026 summary, USGS described cadmium telluride panels as an increasing use⁶.

1800s

1817

Science

Friedrich Stromeyer finds cadmium in an oddly colored zinc ore sample and names it after cadmeia, the ancient Greek name for zinc ore. ¹
c. 1880

Industry

First commercial cadmium metal is made in Germany, as a by-product of smelting zinc ores from Upper Silesia. ¹

1900s

1907

Industry

Commercial production starts in the United States: Grasselli Chemical Co. in Cleveland recovers 6 t from zinc ores. ¹
1919

Industry

The cadmium electroplating process is developed. Plating iron and steel becomes the main use. ¹
1927

Science

The US National Bureau of Standards pushes for light from cadmium atoms to serve as a practical standard of length. ⁴
1948

Law and policy

The US government starts to stockpile cadmium for military uses. By the end of 1962 it holds more than 7,800 t. ¹
1955

Health

Newspapers first report itai-itai disease in the Jinzu River basin, Toyama, Japan. ⁷
1961

Science

Doctors publish the theory that cadmium causes itai-itai disease, at a conference of the Japanese Orthopedic Association. ⁷
1968

Conflict

Victims file the first suit for compensation against Mitsui Mining & Smelting. In May the Japanese government accepts the link to mine pollution. ⁷
1972

Conflict

The victims win the itai-itai case on appeal. On 10 August Mitsui signs an agreement with the victims' organization. ⁸

2000s

2000

Industry

About three quarters of the cadmium used in the United States goes into batteries. In 1960, 70% went into plating. ¹
2004

Health

At least 400 workers at four Gold Peak battery factories in southern China have high blood cadmium in tests. ⁹
2006

Law and policy

The EU battery directive 2006/66/EC bans portable batteries with more than 0.002% cadmium from 2008, with exemptions for cordless power tools, emergency systems and medical equipment. ¹⁰
2010

Law and policy

The European Parliament votes to keep solar panels out of the revised RoHS rules, after lobbying for and against cadmium telluride panels. ¹¹
2012

Law and policy

Toyama finishes restoring 1,686 hectares of cadmium-polluted paddy, and opens a museum on itai-itai disease. ⁷
2013

Health

Officials in Guangzhou find eight of 18 samples of rice from Hunan heavily contaminated with cadmium. ¹²
2013

Law and policy

The European Parliament votes to ban NiCd batteries in cordless power tools from 2017. ¹³
2014

Law and policy

In China's first national soil survey, cadmium is above the standard at 7.0% of sample points. ¹⁴
2015

Law and policy

The EU drops a Swedish proposal to ban cadmium pigments in artists' paints, after a petition from artists. ¹⁵
2016

Law and policy

China starts a campaign against heavy-metal pollution. By November 2019 about 700 operations that processed cadmium had reportedly closed. ⁵
2018

Trade

The United States adds a 10% duty on Chinese goods, cadmium products included. It rises to 25% in May 2019. ⁵
2025

Trade

China requires export licenses for cadmium telluride, cadmium zinc telluride and cadmium mercury telluride, with tellurium and other metals. ¹⁶
2025

Industry

The leading US maker of cadmium telluride solar panels opens a fifth factory, for a US capacity of about 14 GW a year. ⁶

Sources

1
W.C. Butterman and J. Plachy, U.S. Geological Survey, 2002. Mineral Commodity Profiles: Cadmium (Open-File Report 02-238) , pp. 3-24.

History, minerals, refining process, uses by period, environment and price history to 2000.
- discovered in 1817 by Friedrich Stromeyer, who isolated it from an anomalously colored sample of zinc ore
- after cadmeia, the ancient Greek name for zinc ore
- The first commercial cadmium metal was produced in Germany in the 1880s as a byproduct of the smelting of zinc ores from Upper Silesia (now part of Poland). Germany remained the most important producer until the outbreak of World War I; its annual production peaked at about 43 t in 1912
- by 1917, the United States had six domestic producers and had become the world’s leading producer of cadmium
- the development of the cadmium electroplating process in 1919, which was applied mainly to the coating of iron and steel
- By the 1940s, electroplating represented about three-fourths of domestic cadmium consumption
- (75.0%) Batteri es (1.0%) Other uses (8.0%) Plating
- (70.0%) Plating (9.0%) Other uses U.S. apparent consumption in 1960
- having been surpassed by Japan in the 1980s as that country’s manufacture of NiCd batteries burgeoned
- At midcentury, awareness of cadmium’s toxicity was heightened by the recognition that cadmium was a principal contributing cause
- governments, principally in Western Europe have imposed restrictions on the use of cadmium for some purposes
- The first commercial cadmium metal was produced in Germany in the 1880s as a byproduct of the smelting of zinc ores from Upper Silesia
- commercial production in the United States began in 1907 when the Grasselli Chemical Co. of Cleveland, Ohio, recovered 6 t of cadmium metal
- The U.S. Government began stockpiling cadmium in 1948 to insure its availability for critical uses in military hardware
- By 2000, about three-fourths of the cadmium consumed went into batteries
2
Los Alamos National Laboratory, 2026. Cadmium, in Periodic Table of Elements , History.

Discovery by Stromeyer in 1817 and the near-simultaneous finds by Hermann and Roloff.
- In 1817, Friedrich Stromeyer, a curious doctor, figured out that the color change only happened when the calamine had a certain material in it
- two other German scientists … K.S.H. Hermann and J.C.H Roloff … also discovered cadmium. Although Stromeyer generally gets the credit for discovering the element, historians aren’t sure who technically discovered cadmium first
3
International Cadmium Association (industry association), 2026. The Future .

Recycled cadmium is about 23% of supply; NiCd batteries are called the largest use.
- its name is derived from the Latin word cadmia and the Greek word kadmeia that are ancient names for calamine or zinc oxide
- naturally-occurring cadmium-sulfide based pigments were used as early as 1850 because of their brilliant red, orange and yellow colors, and appeared prominently in the paintings of Vincent van Gogh
4
National Institute of Standards and Technology, 2026. Meter .

The cadmium red line as a practical standard of length from 1927, until the krypton definition of 1960.
- It was in 1927 that NIST (then known as the National Bureau of Standards) advocated for the interference patterns of energized cadmium atoms to be made a practical standard of length
- mercury lost out to krypton … in 1960, the 11th CGPM agreed to a new definition of the meter
5
R.M. Callaghan, U.S. Geological Survey, 2024. Cadmium, in 2019 Minerals Yearbook (advance release) , pp. 15.1-15.4.

Uses, trade, consumers, China's pollution campaign and the outlook.
- Lithium-ion batteries have significantly replaced NiCd batteries in most consumer electronics
- including 700 operations that processed cadmium
- an additional 10% import duty in late September 2018, increasing the tariff to 25%
6
U.S. Geological Survey, 2026. Cadmium, in Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026 , pp. 52-53.

World refinery production, price, US trade, substitutes and events for 2025.
- cadmium has increasingly been used in semiconductors such as in cadmium-telluride (CdTe) thin-film solar panels
- began production in mid-2025 at a fifth facility
7
Toyama Prefectural Itai-itai Disease Museum, 2026. Itai-itai disease: chronology .

Dates of the first reports, the cadmium theory, the lawsuits and the land restoration.
- 1955 August ... reported in newspapers for the first time
- 1961 June The theory that the cause is cadmium published (The 34th Conference of Japanese Orthopedic Association)
- March The first suit requesting compensation by Mitsui Mining & Smelting Company to the victims was filed ... May The opinion of Ministry of Health & Welfare was published (Itai-itai Disease recognized as caused by pollution)
- 2012 March Completion of restoring the lands in the designated areas April Toyama Prefectural Itai-itai Disease Museum was opened
8
F. Yoshida, A. Hata and H. Tonegawa (Environmental Economics and Policy Studies 2: 215-229), 1999. Itai-Itai disease and the countermeasures against cadmium pollution by the Kamioka mine .

Lawsuits, the 1972 agreement, compensation paid by Mitsui to 1997, and the authors' estimate of the company's share of the burden.
- the verdict for the victims was upheld ... On August 10, 1972 Mitsui Mining and Smelting made an agreement with the victims' organization
9
Loretta Tofani, Pulitzer Center, 2007. China: Powerless to Fight the Poison .

Cadmium poisoning of workers at Gold Peak battery factories; the lawsuits and the company's statement.
- In 2004, tests showed Liu and at least 400 other workers in the four factories were suffering from much higher than normal levels of cadmium in their blood
10
A.C. Tolcin, U.S. Geological Survey, 2010. Cadmium, in 2007 Minerals Yearbook , pp. 15.1-15.3.

The 2007 price rise, producers by country, Belgium's compound makers and the EU battery directive.
- all NiCd batteries containing more than 0.002% cadmium by weight were to be banned from the market
11
pv magazine, 2010. Cadmium won't be banned under RoHS as lobbyists battle it out .

The 2010 vote on RoHS and solar panels; positions of the Non-Toxic Solar Alliance and First Solar.
- The European Parliament decided with 640 votes
12
He Guangwei, Dialogue Earth (then China Dialogue), 2014. Special report: the legacy of Hunan's polluted soils .

The 2013 Guangzhou rice tests, the You county denial and earlier poisoning in Hunan.
- of 18 samples of rice and rice products from Hunan Province, eight were heavily contaminated with cadmium
13
A.C. Tolcin, U.S. Geological Survey, 2015. Cadmium, in 2013 Minerals Yearbook (advance release) , Consumption; Outlook.

Lithium-ion share of Bosch cordless tools; the 2013 EU vote on NiCd batteries in power tools.
- the European Parliament amended the EU Battery Directive (2006/66/EC) to prohibit the inclusion of NiCd batteries in cordless power tools beginning in 2017
14
China Ministry of Environmental Protection and Ministry of Land and Resources, 2014. 全国土壤污染状况调查公报 (Bulletin of the national soil pollution survey) .

Survey from April 2005 to December 2013; cadmium exceeded the standard at 7.0% of sample points.
- 镉、汞、砷、铜、铅、铬、锌、镍8种无机污染物点位超标率分别为7.0%
15
U.S. Geological Survey, 2018. Cadmium, in 2016 Minerals Yearbook (advance release) , Consumption, Pigments.

Sweden's proposal to ban cadmium pigments in artists' paints and its withdrawal in 2015.
- In October 2015, the European Union terminated the proposal
16
International Energy Agency, Policies database, 2025. Decision to implement export controls on tungsten, tellurium, bismuth, molybdenum and indium related items .

China's Decision No. 10 of 2025 (4 February 2025): licenses needed to export tellurium, cadmium telluride, cadmium zinc telluride and cadmium mercury telluride.
- tellurium compounds (cadmium telluride, cadmium zinc telluride, cadmium mercury telluride)