Lanthanide elements such as cerium (Ce), praseodymium (Pr), neodymium (Nd), samarium (Sm), europium (Eu), gadolinium (Gd), terbium (Tb), and dysprosium (Dy), commonly referred to as rare earths, constitute only a small proportion of global mineral supplies but are essential components in many high-tech products.
Given the high price of rare earths, it may be tempting to consider more extreme solutions - mining in Greenland or mining resources from space - but several factors will limit any such plans.
Rare earth elements gained new scientific and geopolitical importance with advances in atomic physics during the 20th century. Due to their unique physical properties, rare earth elements became essential components in commercial and military technology such as magnets used in electric cars, jet fighters and drones. Unfortunately, due to being difficult to distinguish from each other when extracting them is costly and time consuming process that requires specialized equipment.
MP Materials recently purchased Mountain Pass Mine in Texas to process light rare earths, and plans to expand its operations with a refinery and separation facility in Texas. Lynas Mining from Australia operates a plant in Malaysia to separate heavy rare earths - both companies intend to create similar facilities here in the U.S.
Rare earth elements (REEs) have seen exponential growth in high-tech consumer and defense products over recent years, from computer hard drives and flat-screen monitors to televisions with more vibrant colors, energy-efficient TVs, scandium baseball bats, electronic displays and guidance systems, lasers and much more. Although their amounts in individual products may be small, REEs play an essential role in how devices function properly - from computer hard drives and flat-screen monitors using neodymium magnets; to glass adding vibrant colors energy-efficient televisions ; to scandium found essential in aluminum alloy baseball bats used within. Defense applications utilizes these elements within electronic displays guidance systems lasers or electronic displays.
An absence of rare earths could cause prices for consumer electronics, autos, batteries and industrial technologies to skyrocket; furthermore it could threaten critical infrastructure like wind turbines and telecom networks.
Though the Biden administration has attempted to return as a major player in rare earth supply chain, it will require large investments and years for this goal to become reality.
The United States holds approximately 30% of global rare earth reserves. Yet its efforts to develop an industry have failed due to reliance on China for production quotas and taxes; environmental laws; and restrictions against domestic exploration and mining activities.
http://www.asianmetal.com/Events_2011/2011RES/Index_2011RES_en.asp
Recent decades have witnessed an enormous surge in demand for rare earth elements. These crucial materials are required for numerous commercial and national security technologies, including permanent magnets found in hybrid cars, cell phones and lasers; chemical catalysts; and nuclear reactor fuel rods.
Mining rare earths is energy intensive and creates large volumes of harmful waste, making profit difficult. Furthermore, their unique chemical properties make separating the metals difficult; current production methods require much ore to produce even small amounts of rare earth metals.
These factors make identifying sustainable sources of REEs increasingly critical, and new innovations offer viable alternatives to traditional REE mining. Harvard researchers, for instance, developed a technique to separate REEs using bacteria instead of toxic chemicals; and Purdue University scientists recently created a process to extract them from coal ash as byproduct of power plants - both are positive steps forward for environmental sustainability and our economy. The more viable options there are available as replacements to traditional REE mining, the greater our environmental and economic gains may be.
REE demand worldwide is on the rise, yet many companies that depend on this critical metal face potential supply-chain risks. China currently dominates this field and controls 97% of known REE reserves - this gives China considerable power over prices as evidenced in 2010 when they cut REE exports to ensure enough material was available domestically for manufacturing purposes and prices surged sevenfold across the globe as a result.
In response to their high prices, manufacturers are exploring alternative supplies and technologies. Governments should fund research into products which use less REEs or replace them with abundant elements; encourage producers to utilize sustainable mining techniques; tax mine waste to encourage recycling efforts and lower pollution; as well as create a circular economy - keeping goods, components and metals in circulation rather than discarding once they no longer serve a useful purpose.
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Rare earth elements (REEs) form the backbone of today's cutting-edge technologies - from miniaturizing electronics and green and medical technologies, to defense, telecommunication and transportation systems. Their magnetic, phosphorescent and catalytic properties play a pivotal role in many applications, including permanent magnets used for motors, speakers and wind turbines among many others.
In the 1970s, corporate and industrial research led to the invention of nickel-metal hydride batteries utilizing neodymium and lanthanum chemistry for rechargeability and energy storage capacity; they became an essential component in portable electronics as well as hybrid cars.
Mining operations, though highly regulated by state and federal governments, leave an extensive environmental footprint. Mining of one ton of rare earth metals generates 30 pounds of dust pollution as well as 9600-12,000 cubic meters of waste water that contains salts and radioactive materials. Furthermore, mining causes social disruptions as it causes land degradation, biodiversity loss, deforestation, air contamination and water contamination - metal mining being one of the leading polluters of toxic waste in America.
Once production levels decline, it can take years for mining companies to open new properties and resume producing, potentially disrupting manufacturing and driving prices higher in the meantime. This effect can be further compounded when one country controls most or all of the supply - as was seen when China restricted rare earth exports in 2010.
High prices have caused manufacturers to take three steps: (1) attempt to decrease the quantity of REEs required per product, (2) source substitutes that perform similarly and (3) create products without REE usage altogether.
As of 2018, the U.S. was completely dependent upon other countries for 21 key minerals, including rare earths. To address this, the Biden administration has prioritized creating a domestic supply chain for these critical elements; this involves developing advanced separation and recovery technologies which enable extraction from existing sources while mitigating demand growth.
Rare Earth elements occupying the lower-left corners of the periodic table are key ingredients in green technologies like General Electric wind turbines and Tesla electric cars; medical tools like Philips Healthcare scanners; and military hardware such as F-35 fighter jets. As such, their use has been recognized by US government officials as critical to national security - yet political risks could compromise supply chains carrying these valuable materials.
China mines and processing facilities supply most of the global supply of rare earth elements, and President Xi Jinping has hinted he may use this as leverage in trade talks with Donald Trump's administration. Many are now worried that China might unilaterally disrupt the global market - some companies are creating innovations that reduce or eliminate rare earth needs while others increase recycling efforts in response.
Mining and separation processes produce toxic byproducts, including radioactive thorium found in ore deposits. To safeguard their workers, facilities must operate under stringent regulatory oversight and manage waste disposal carefully; using recycled rare earths instead of mined ones may help companies achieve an "green" label and encourage buyers to pay more for them.
Even if companies that rely on rare earths can develop inventive ways of recycling them, their stocks won't last forever and could force them to prioritize more essential applications over less critical ones, according to Gholz, who served from 2010-2012 as senior advisor for manufacturing and industrial base policy at the Pentagon.
Apple and Toyota have invested in technologies that use less rare earths to help mitigate future shortages, but may make their products more expensive than their competition. According to Gholz, rare earth prices are artificially kept low because of the costs associated with extracting them from ore and processing them; he believes if prices were higher more companies would invest their savings into recycling products instead.