Rare Earth Elements: The New Gold Rush?

Rare earths consist of 17 metals with difficult-to-pronounce names like neodymium and lanthanum that form the basis for green technology, from wind turbines and solar panels to electric car batteries and flat-screen TVs.

Rare-earth elements are in short supply and China controls 97% of world production; China has reduced export quotas recently and this has alarmed Pentagon and prompted global efforts to find alternative sources.

They’re in everything

Many Americans rely on electronic devices every day, yet few understand their reliance is made possible by rare earth elements (REE). These 17 elements, known as the Lanthanide series (Lanthanum to Lutetium), play an essential role in modern technologies like hybrid cars, electric cars, flat screen televisions and tablet computers; green energy technology as well as military defense systems like missile guidance systems.

REEs are such an integral component of global economies that some governments have taken steps to regulate supply and maintain prices, with one interesting trend emerging: geologists searching the US in search of deposits that can break its reliance on China as a single supplier; often in piles of debris or toxic waste formerly considered eyesores or toxic waste deposits may contain REE deposits awaiting discovery.

The USGS, which oversees America's mineral resources, estimates that the United States possesses approximately 30 percent of global rare earth element (REE) reserves, but warns that extracting individual elements from ores, sands and clays is time-consuming, costly and often dirty work.

As a result, researchers and mining companies have been scrambling to develop more efficient techniques for extracting these metals, as well as domestic sources for rare earth elements (REEs). REEs are found in everything from magnets and fluorescent lighting to high performance alloys; many share similar chemical properties making it hard to tell them apart, possess similar atomic structures, and are often combined together when used together; many introductory science books treat REEs as though they were one element - indeed chemically speaking that's often the case - so naturally, REEs are treated as though they were one element - trivalent elements; cerium, Ytterbium, and Europium are all four-valent.

Investors have made investments in rare earth companies like Molycorp in Utah; Lynas Corp in Australia; and Great Western Minerals Group of South Africa as they explore for deposits or own mines there. Some investors buy shares of these companies to invest in the future of global rare earths market while others believe more regulations must be put in place within and without government to ensure responsible production of rare earth metals.

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They’re expensive

The 17 rare earth elements found at the bottom of the periodic table play an indispensable role in consumer electronics like Apple AirPods and iPhones, green technologies like General Electric wind turbines and Tesla electric cars, medical tools such as Philips healthcare scanners and military hardware like F-35 jet fighters - as well as key pieces of military hardware such as F-35 jet fighters. Their use is integral to transitioning towards a low-carbon economy envisioned in Paris Climate Agreement signed by 192 countries in 2015.

Minerals may hold great magic, but their beauty comes at a steep cost; in fact, these minerals have only become more expensive over time.

As demand rises, China has begun selling rare earths at prices beyond their production costs--putting increased pressure on companies that use them and forcing them to find cheaper substitutes or increase prices without the aid of China's monopoly on rare earth processing and export.

Though China dominates rare earth production, there remains hope. The United States has attempted to regain its place as a global leader and reopen Mountain Pass mine, though progress is slow. Other nations such as Australia are trying to boost production but will find themselves unable to match China's subsidised export prices even if they overcome Chinese dominance of rare earth production.

Klinger suggests that recycling rare earths could be an ideal way to address environmental damage caused by mining them. His lab has developed chemical processes for rapidly sorting different rare earths from one another; if these technologies could become commercialized they could make an enormous impactful statement about our environmental footprint.

Even if these alternatives to mining prove infeasible, it's clear that the world needs to diversify its sources of rare earths. Years of pollution from China's dominant supplier have taken their toll on soil, water, and people - and that will only get worse as the Chinese government clamps down on illegal mining operations and enforces tighter environmental regulations.

They’re rare

Rare earth elements (REEs), first discovered during the 18th century, seemed extremely scarce when first discovered. Found only in complex oxide minerals with expensive and labor-intensive extraction processes required, their price surge in the late 1970s led to radical ideas for getting these metals, including opening up Amazon rainforest for mining or even mining seafloor and moon surface locations - ultimately only China produced successfully within highly specialized areas.

China's dominant position grew dramatically following 1978 when Deng Xiaoping initiated economic reforms designed to restore national prosperity without diminishing Communist Party control of China. One goal was becoming an industrial power and manufacturing rare earths; by early 21st century China had virtually monopolized global production of REEs (lanthanides plus scandium and yttrium).

Geologically-speaking, REEs aren't particularly rare: deposits exist all around the world with roughly equal relative abundance to copper and tin deposits. But they're difficult to extract from raw materials due to their chemical properties requiring meticulous separation processes from each other and other materials; furthermore, this process consumes significant energy resources while producing substantial amounts of toxic waste.

Once separated and purified, metals have many applications in society. From magnets and nickel metal hydride batteries, to pollution controls and LED lighting; as well as being essential components in green technologies such as wind turbine motors and electric vehicles.

As trade tensions escalate between the U.S. and China, rare earth elements (REEs) have become an issue of contention. Chinese leader Xi Jinping has used tariff threats to target an American company producing rare earth compounds used in television screens and smartphone cameras; this may raise anxiety regarding future availability.

Rare Earth elements continue to play an increasing role in technology. Future smartphone models could use rare earths such as yttrium and erbium phosphors for vibrant displays, and neodymium magnets for improving audio output from tiny speakers. They may also help develop more eco-friendly electric cars that reduce emissions while slowing climate collapse.

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They’re dangerous

Rare earth metals with exotic names like neodymium and samarium may sound daunting, but their presence in green technology has made them stockmarket darlings. Rare earth elements play an integral part in electric car batteries, General Electric wind turbines and solar panels, medical tools like Philips Healthcare scanners as well as military hardware including F-35 jet fighters - yet are now at risk due to China controlling 97% of market and cutting exports, leaving nations scrambling to find alternative resources.

China's dominance in rare earth production, propelled by cheap labor and what some critics describe as minimal health, safety and environmental safeguards, has left behind an extremely harmful legacy. A journalist with Agence France-Presse recently visited Inner Mongolia - once farmland but now littered with toxic waste dumps and reservoirs of radioactive water.

Mining and separation processes pose risks, but many elements such as thulium and lutetium pose additional threats due to being radioactive. Therefore, companies reliant on metals are searching for ways to bypass mines altogether.

Toyota, for instance, is working on developing an electric motor without rare earth magnets as part of its sustainable initiative.

As companies search for new sources, they are exploring many unexpected areas for rare earths. From thermal power plant sulfide ores to coal mining waste and deep-sea mud that contains abundant minerals. Furthermore, companies are investigating ways of extracting rare earths from radioactive waste materials that contain uranium such as nuclear reactor waste materials or even from volcanic eruptions on the Moon itself.

Fear of metals scarcity has caused a global scramble to find new reserves, prompting countries with suitable geology to mine new reserves while inspiring more companies to invest in innovations that allow them to live without them - an effective counterattack to China's attempts at dominating this sector.