China eliminates rare-earths quotas
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China eliminates rare-earths quotas
C
hina’s Ministry of Commerce eliminated the quota system for rare-earths exports starting in January 2015. These materials, some of which are considered critical in a broad range of high-tech applications, from consumer electronics and medical equipment to clean-energy and military applications, have been an area of scientific, industrial manufacturing, and government focus for several years.
The issues around rare-earth elements (REEs) are very complicated because of a number of contributing factors. International politics and economics play a large role in the price and availability of these commodities, but the properties of the materials themselves and the breadth of different types of deposits add a layer of complexity. According to Lawrence Meinert, Head of the Natural Resources
Rare-Earth Elements and Common Uses Element
206
Symbol
Classifi cation
Scandium
Sc
Light
Lightweight aerospace components, armor alloys
Yttrium
Y
Heavy
Lasers, high-strength materials, hightemperature superconductors, high-temperature ceramics, radar, superalloys
Lanthanum
La
Light
Hydrogen storage, nickel-lanthanum hydride battery electrodes, optical lenses, phosphors, fluid-cracking catalyst
Cerium
Ce
Light
Polishing powder, phosphors, superalloys, fluidcracking catalyst
Praseodymium
Pr
Light
Magnets, lasers, x-ray scintillators
Neodymium
Nd
Light
Magnets, lasers, glass pigments
Promethium
Pm
Light
Batteries
Samarium
Sm
Light
Magnets, lasers, phosphors
Europium
Eu
Light
Phosphors, lasers, lighting, nuclear physics studies
Gadolinium
Gd
Light
Magnets, lasers, computer memory, pharmaceutical tracers for MRI, neutron capture, optics
Terbium
Tb
Heavy
Phosphors, lasers, lighting, sonar, x-ray detectors, magnetostrictive alloys
Dysprosium
Dy
Heavy
Magnets, lasers, halide lamps
Holmium
Ho
Heavy
Magnets, lasers, materials & nuclear research
Erbium
Er
Heavy
Lasers, fiber optics, synthetic gems
Thulium
Th
Heavy
X-ray machines, lasers, nuclear physics
Ytterbium
Yb
Heavy
Lasers, nuclear medicine, high strength alloys, optics, pressure sensors
Lutetium
Lu
Heavy
PET scan detectors, scintillometers
MRS BULLETIN
•
VOLUME 40 • MARCH 2015
•
Uses
www.mrs.org/bulletin
Program at the US Geological Survey, “Rare earths are not traded and sold as pure metals but rather in oxide, carbonate, or alloyed forms tailored to specific applications. They are also a niche market because while they are critical to achieve specific properties, most applications use very small amounts of these materials.” The combination of these two factors means there is a very different pricing structure for REEs than for typical metals like gold, iron, copper, and aluminum, for example. In addition, “rare earths are not all equal—there are some elements that are extremely important, but many others that are not,” said Jack Lifton, Co-founding Principal at Technology Metals Research LLC. This fact further complicates the issue because even though some of the heavy
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