Rare earths are always making headlines. Rare earths — the name is not used uniformly and often misunderstood by the public — are usually the “metals of the Rare Earths”. These are 17 elements of the periodic system with similar chemical properties: the fifteen lanthanoids of the order numbers 57 to 71, lanthanum , Certain , posseodymium , neodymium , promethium , Samarium , Europium , gadolinium , terbium , dyprosium , ol , Peas , thulium , Ytterbium and Lutetium — and Scandium and yttrium with the order numbers 21 and 39. These metals have unusual properties that make them so special and irreplaceable for many applications.

A confusing name
The name Rare earths is misunderstood, however. Geologically speaking, these metals, with the exception of promethium, are not so rare in the earth's crust. The name comes from the time of its discovery in the 18th century. Century when they were discovered in minerals that were considered rare at the time. The term “earths” is also confusing, which is historically based: it is the old name for oxides. Rare earths are found in nature only in complex, mineralogical compounds.

Some of them like Certain , yttrium and neodymium are even more common than chrome, Nickel or Copper . In fact, economically degradable deposits are rare. Rare earths are divided into groups: the light Rare earths , which are more common and are the first to be refined, the average Rare earths Samarium , Europium and gadolinium and the heavy rare earths terbium , dyprosium and the following lanthanoids .

China's dominance
The largest known reserves are located in China, where around 60 percent of rare earths are also being degraded worldwide. China even has a market share of over 80 percent in the refining process. This is also the reason why rare earths are always making headlines. For the kingdom of the middle uses its quasi-monopoly on the production of rare earths geopolitically as a means of pressure.

The metals of the rare earth have unusual fluorescent, conductive and magnetic properties. It makes it extremely useful in small quantities: In alloys or as a blend, they enable very specific applications ranging from everyday household appliances to e-cars and wind power plants to High precision weapons and nuclear submarines are enough.

Radioactive side effects
In nature, rare earth elements usually occur together with one another, often together with the radioactive elements uranium and thorium. This makes the degradation and, above all, the further extraction difficult. Because of their similar chemical properties, their separation from one another is also difficult, which makes the process energy-intensive and costly. To produce small quantities, large quantities of ore are required.

Radioactive water, toxic fluorine and acids, which are a high risk for the environment and health, remain behind from the processing processes. Strict environmental conditions, higher labour and energy costs have shifted the extraction of rare earths from the USA and Europe to China over time. Beijing is constantly using its dominant position as a manufacturer, which leads to scarcity and price explosions.

Mission supply chain security
The EU and North America are making a reliable access to rare earths, regardless of China, with adapted raw material laws and strategies. allow China to break the monopoly in rare earths and downstream products such as permanent magnets. New deposits are being sought for development in their own territory, partnerships with raw materials-rich and like-minded countries are closed and recycling the most important.