Rare earth minerals may seem exotic, but their presence is essential in numerous products ranging from wind turbine magnets and smartphones to energy-saving fluorescent lighting systems.
But their future supply trajectories depend heavily on technology and policy choices, with China holding the world's largest reserves and being involved in most supply chains.
Materials with obscure names may seem inaccessible; yet these essential materials are essential components of high-tech devices that support green energy development. Unfortunately, though, their availability may become increasingly scarce with continued renewable energy development at its current rate - leading to one study showing that global demand will exceed supply in terms of metal resources needed.
Research examined 10 rare earth elements (REEs), or REEs, such as neodymium and dysprosium. These lanthanide metals--numbered from 57-71 on the periodic table--are widely used as magnets in wind turbines and electric cars as well as for high efficiency lighting, batteries, military equipment, etc.
These metals cannot be found isolated, as they are instead found mixed together in natural ores that must be processed using chemical processes before separation can take place. That means these minerals are often in short supply when demand increases; according to researchers' estimates a "pinch" could arise over the next 25 years as lightweight and efficient motors and generators required for clean energy technologies require these metals for production.
REEs are extremely toxic to mine and extract, potentially having lasting impacts on both human and environmental health. Dumped into landfills when old electronic equipment is dumped away, they may seep into soil and water sources where they leach into them and harm both people and wildlife alike. Furthermore, inhalation exposure of REEs may prove fatal over time due to toxic air pollutants like neodymium which are poisonous when inhaled and can damage liver tissues over time.
China boasts the world's highest reserves and production of REEs; however, they may not be enough to meet future demand due to China's ambitions of hegemony and lack of international solidarity on energy matters. This leaves much uncertainty for the global energy landscape's future development.
http://www.ctia.com.cn/TungstenNews/2009/22172.html
Praseodymium is one of the rare earth metals, and like its fellow elements it possesses unique magnetic properties that make it invaluable in green energy applications. It's a soft silvery-yellow metal with high corrosion resistance in air. Plus it boasts higher first ionization energy than most rare earth elements for easier bond formation with other elements.
Small quantities of electronic waste may exist naturally; however, most is generated from electronic devices that have been abandoned and dumped. E-waste export to developing nations for disposal often poses health hazards to waterways, soils and animals in those countries - making this form of waste unfriendly to the environment as it costs too much to remove from existence altogether.
Rare earth elements are utilized in almost all modern technologies, from automobiles and smartphones to wind turbines and lighter flints containing rare earth materials. Electric motors in automobiles use permanent magnets with neodymium-iron-boron composition while electrical sensors utilise yttria-stabilized zirconia material as sensors.
Diversifying rare earth mineral supplies is important, as dependency on any one source can be hazardous for companies. This is especially true when that source is located within one country - for instance when China restricted exports in 2010 in order to support domestic manufacturing it sent prices skyrocketing globally and some companies that depended upon Chinese suppliers found themselves caught up in an international trade war; an undesirable situation given it takes years for new sources of these elements to emerge.
Dysprosium is a rare-earth element typically found combined with other lanthanides in minerals like bastnaesite and monazite. Never found as pure metal in nature, Dysprosium's concentration in Earth's crust typically ranges between 5.2 ppm and below. With an intense silver metallic sheen and extremely soft nature, it makes Dysprosium difficult to work with.
Paul-Emile Lecoq de Boisbaudran of France was the first person to isolate dysprosium, in 1886. His findings were reported in Comptes rendus hebdomadaires des seances de l'Academie des Sciences (Volume 102 January - July 1886) under its new name of dysprosium as many fractionations steps were needed before reaching sufficient quantities for testing spectroscopically.
Dysprosium, like other rare-earth elements, is a trivalent metal. It is used with lead to manufacture nuclear control rods and boasts luminescence which makes it an attractive candidate for use in laser diodes and metal halide lamps. Furthermore, dysprosium magnets play an essential part in producing renewable energy sources.
Eddy current is an effective paramagnet above 180K and antiferromagnet below that temperature, comparable to the magnetic properties of praseodymium and neodymium. Additionally, its strength increases at elevated temperatures when used in permanent magnets for electric vehicles, making an integral component of permanent magnets for vehicles such as hybrid cars.
Dysprosium is produced mostly in China or Myanmar, leading to fears that there might be a shortage as demand for green power increases and governments promote cleaner energy sources. But according to the United States Geological Survey's estimates, dysprosium is actually abundant enough and will always be available when needed.
Terbium (pronounced TUR-beem), one of nine members of the Lanthanide family, is a silvery-white metal that can be cut with a knife. Like many rare earth elements, it often finds itself combined with other metals for various applications; such as color television tubes or lasers. Terbium also makes up part of lasers and semiconductors and may even be found alloyed with Neodymium and Dysprosium magnets found on wind turbines.
Terbium has proven useful not only for renewable energy production, but also in developing high-temperature fuel cells that produce electricity by combining chemical reactions with hydrogen gas to generate electricity - potentially replacing traditional electric generators altogether.
As is true with other rare earth minerals, terbium does not occur naturally as an element. Instead it must be extracted from ore containing other rare earth elements; most of its supply comes from bastnaesite mined and treated with solvents to extract its terbium content; this extracted terbium then needs to be separated from the other rare earth elements present.
Extraction processes do present challenges. One such mine in Baotou, China has become polluted with arsenic and fluoride from its waste ponds, leading to chronic arsenic toxicity among local residents resulting in skeletal fluorosis and chronic arsenic poisoning; full restoration could take anywhere between 50-100 years for full restoration of this mining site.
Extracting rare earth elements may be challenging, but its importance to green energy production cannot be overstated. Rare earth minerals form magnets which are vital in running solar and wind power systems; without increasing demand for these minerals the world could face significant delays in reaching carbon neutrality goals.
Yttrium is a silvery-metallic transition element with similar chemical properties to those of the lanthanide metals, yet rarely occurs on its own in nature. Instead, it usually forms part of rare earth minerals found in soil or ocean environments; additionally it has also been observed in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems as well as lunar rocks collected during Apollo missions. Human bodies naturally contain small quantities of yttrium that tends to collect mostly in livers and bones.
While yttrium itself isn't widely utilized, its compounds play a vital role in society. For instance, doped with europium, it provided millions of cathode ray tubes used before flat-screen TVs became widespread; similarly used as yellow phosphors such as yellow yttrium phosphate (YPO4) that gives LCD monitors their vibrant blue hue; also used as crystal amplifiers in industrial lasers; while microwave filters made of yttrium iron garnets (Y3Al5O12) provide microwave filters used by radar and communications equipment - just some examples!
As with other rare-earth metals, yttrium is an integral component of permanent magnets. It helps them maintain strength even at higher temperatures - something essential when producing large amounts of electricity - as well as improving performance by decreasing resistance, stabilizing temperature stability and minimizing coking damage to motors.
As demand for green energy continues to surge, so too must our need for rare-earth minerals and reserves be protected. Recycling them is an option, though this involves demagnetisation, crushing and roasting to extract the elements - most materials from the US are sent off to China for processing before being recycled back into their original forms.