1990s, Chinese-based mining companies began developing rare-earths operations, and other mines around the
world simply could not compete, due
to the lower cost of operations at the
Chinese mines and processing facilities. As a result, Chinese-based companies wound up controlling more than
90% of the market by the late 1990s,
and prices remained relatively steady.
However, in 2010, China cut its export quotas for rare earth exports, and
rare earth prices skyrocketed. Furthermore, a territorial dispute with Japan
led China to halt exports to that country for two months, proving its control
over rare earths could also be a weapon
in any sort of international dispute.
Speculators hoarded rare earth minerals, sending prices soaring. Seeing that
the Chinese government was actively
using its control over the rare earths
market to get what it wanted, new rare
earth production facilities were started
in the U.S., Australia, Russia, Thailand,
Malaysia, and other countries.
A potential trade war between China and the U.S., a net importer of rare
earths, combined with an expected rise
in demand for rare earths over the next
few years, could contribute to rising rare
earth prices.
When prices of rare earths spiked
in the past, manufacturers were able
to get their engineers to reduce the
requirements for rare earths in some
products, such as reducing or eliminating the use of europium and terbium
in fluorescent lighting products, says
Pierre Neatby, vice president of sales
and marketing with Avalon Advanced
Materials, Inc., a Canadian mineral development company with three mining
projects expected to enter commercialization, including rare earth elements
tantalum, niobium and zirconium.
A new red phosphor that uses
Manganese4+ (Mn4+) activated fluo-
RARE-EARTH ELEMENTS are spe- cial minerals used in a wide variety of consumer and industrial products. Though they have exotic-sounding names, such as neodymium,
scandium, and dysprosium, they are
abundant right here on Earth. They are
considered rare, however, because they
appear in very small concentrations.
In addition, the process used to
separate them from the rocks in which
they occur is extremely difficult, because the elements have the same ionic
charge and are similar in size. Typical
separation and purification processes
often require thousands of extraction
and purification stages to be carried
out. As such, there is a significant premium attached to these materials, and
several market and geopolitical forces
may cause them to escalate in value.
Rare earths are metallic elements,
and therefore contain unique properties,
including high heat resistance, strong
magnetism, high electrical conductivity,
and high luster. These specific properties make them well suited for use in a variety of products, including cellphones,
batteries, loudspeakers, lights, magnets,
and even wind turbines. In addition,
they are often key elements used in the
creation of components used in everyday
objects, such as light-emitting diodes
(LEDs), fiber optics, compact fluorescent
lights, and are used as catalysts, phosphors, and polishing compounds for air
pollution control, illuminated screens
on electronic devices, and the polishing
of optical-quality glass.
Some of the rare-earth metals (and
their atomic weights) that are commonly used in electronics include lanthanum ( 57), cerium ( 58), neodymium
( 60), samarium ( 62), europium ( 63),
terbium ( 65), and dysprosium ( 66).
The demand for rare earths is ex-
pected to increase over the next several
years, driven by an increase in the use
and production of items that are manu-
factured using rare earths. For exam-
ple, in 1998, cellular telephones, which
have batteries that require rare earth
elements, were used by just 5.3% of the
global population, according to Inter-
national Telecommunications Indus-
try data. By 2017, the penetration rate
of cellphones worldwide had reached
103.4% (exceeding 100% due to owner-
ship of multiple devices).
Other products, such as electric vehi-
cles and wind turbines, were just in the
prototype phase two decades ago, but
have since seen significant commercial
deployment, with positive demand fore-
cast over the next several decades. As a
result, demand for rare earth elements
is likely to grow over time; combined
with a relatively limited base of suppli-
ers, rising demand could drive up the
cost of rare earths for manufacturers,
both in the U.S. and around the globe.
As recently as 30 years ago, rare
earths were mined and processed in
various countries around the world, including the U.S. However, in the early
Electronics Need
Rare Earths
Demand is expected to spike over the next few years,
leading to higher prices and international trade issues.
Society | DOI: 10.1145/3303847 Keith Kirkpatrick
In the 1990s, mining
companies in China
began focusing on
rare earths; mines
in other countries
could not compete
with low-cost
Chinese mining
and processing.