Rare earth metals refer to a group of seventeen elements. These metals are essential for the production of technology and green energy applications such as magnets, batteries, electric motors, and wind turbines. Despite what the name suggests, they are not rare in nature, however they are particular difficult to mine and process. It is an energy intensive activity to mine these metals, and amidst a more environmentally conscious world, there are increasing concerns regarding the widespread reliance on these metals.
Industries rare earth metals are used in
These metals are primarily used in the production of modern technologies we use today. This is because they have have strong magnetic properties, are highly conductive, and can be catalysts. Their magnetic properties make them very useful in the production of magnets. Elements like Neodymium (Nd), Dysprosium (Dy), and Terbium (Tb) are used to produce electric motors in order to maintain lightweight properties while producing high torque.
However, not all countries have these metals in abundance. China us currently the largest producer of these metals as they not only are they widespread in certain regions, but they also have advanced and robust infrastructure to extract and process the metals. 60% of the global rare earth metal industry is controlled by China. Currently, in the US, the Mountain Pass Mine in California is the only mine in the country which produced rare earth metals. However, in order to grow local production of these elements, there has been promising progress from other mines in producing these metals.
USA Rare Earth produces new metal
In a recent breakthrough for local production of these rare earth metals, USA Rare Earth announced that they have produced a sample of dysprosium oxide (Dy₂O₃) with a purity of 99.1%. This material is critical in electric motor productions, as well as playing a role in nuclear technology and lights. If USA Rare Earth can start producing Dy₂O₃ locally, we may see the price of electric vehicles be reduced as production costs would be lowered due to being able to buy the element locally instead of needing to import large quantities of it.
USA Rare Earth has also been making progress with regards to producing other rare earth metals at their new plant which is still under development in Stillwater, Oklahoma. “In addition to dysprosium oxide, our team has now produced a variety of rare earth elements, including terbium and the light rare earth element neodymium, among others,” said CEO Joshua Ballard. “We’re excited about the progress we’ve made in bringing this processing capability back home to the United States.”
How clean is renewable energy?
While the increase in domestic production is exciting, it highlights how electrical vehicles can be mistakenly thought of as being pure renewable sources. While the output of electrical vehicles has no emissions compared to the internal combustion engine, producing the batteries and magnets needed for the electric motors is still harmful for the environment. Environmentally friendly application of transportation technology must take a holistic approach beyond just producing electric motors but also making private transport less of a necessity.
Other advances in alternative engine solutions within the transportation industry include hydrogen fuel-cell technology. These engines produce no emissions, however their environmentally friendly application depends on the source of hydrogen. Hydrogen can be produced both from renewable sources as well as being man-made.
Currently, these engines are on the rise in the transportation industry, however hybrid electrical engine solutions still continue to dominate as consumer’s preferred choice of vehicle. Japanese automaker Toyota has been a significant pioneer in producing this technology, already possessing an impressive lineup of hydrogen fuel-cell models.
