What are Rare Earth Elements Used For?
There are 17 rare earth elements (REEs) in all — 15 lanthanides plus yttrium and scandium. It’s a fairly diverse group, with each rare earth mineral having different applications, pricing and available supply.
However, REEs are often placed in the same basket because they do not occur separately from each other in nature. Aside from that, separation is tricky — before modern methods were available, the process was too difficult and expensive to pursue.
Despite the market’s complexity, it’s worth taking a closer look at the different rare earths and their uses. As global governments take steps to meet energy transition goals, demand is expected to grow immensely, creating opportunities for investors with knowledge of the sector. Read on to learn more about this important group of critical metals.
Are rare earth elements really rare?
Many rare earth investors will be familiar with the adage that rare earth minerals are not that rare — in fact, according to the US Geological Survey, most rare earths are more plentiful in the Earth’s crust than gold, silver and platinum.
As of 2024, there were more than 90 million metric tons of rare earth reserves. Rare earths can be found in carbonatite deposits, alkaline igneous systems, ion-adsorption clay deposits and monazite-xenotime-bearing placer deposits.
The key point to note is that even though REEs are relatively abundant in the Earth’s crust worldwide, “minable concentrations are less common than for most other mineral commodities,” as per the US Geological Survey.
In terms of the availability of specific elements, lanthanum and cerium are relatively abundant in rare earths mineral deposits, while neodymium and praseodymium are much less so; meanwhile, erbium, ytterbium and lutetium are rare. Yttrium is as common as lanthanum and cerium in some types of deposits, but scandium is also very rare.
Rare earth minerals are usually divided into “heavy” and “light” varieties based on their atomic weight. While the concentration of different REEs varies within each given deposit, every deposit is usually dominated by either heavy or light rare earths, with some elements being much more abundant.
What is the difference between rare earth minerals, rare earth elements and rare metals?
Rare earth elements and rare earth metals refer to the specific category of 17 elements on the periodic table, and rare earth minerals refers to the minerals, such as monazite, that contain these metals.
While some use the phrase rare earth minerals to refer to the metals themselves, rare earths are not minerals in the strict sense of the term. Due to their chemical properties, the 17 rare earth elements are classified as metals on the periodic table. However, rare earth elements are not found as pure metals in nature, but are rather locked up in minerals that are mined and refined to obtain the…
Read More: What are Rare Earth Elements Used For?