In the past boron has found many applications in the manufacture of glass, ceramics and as wood preservatives. It has also been used in chemical synthesis and as an ingredient of lubricants. Boron is not present in nature in elemental form but it can be found combined with other elements in borax, perborate, kernite and colemanite. Vulcanic spring waters sometimes contain boric acid and boroates are mined in the US, Tibet, Chile and Turkey. Boron is now mainly used in organic synthesis, in the manufacture of a special type of glass, for lubricants and as a component of aerospace structures.

Icosahedral boron-rich solids have received much attention in the last decade because of their optical properties. In particular, iosahedral boron selenide (B2Se3) is known as an excellent material for room temperature neutron detectors and high-energy physics detectors.