Rare earth: advantage key to move in technology value chain

Asoke K Laha, President & MD, Interra Information Technologies

In a science column in an article on rare earth, the author was dwelling on the various kinds of rare earth found in mother earth and their utilities. One thing that struck me most was the statement made by the author that countries that controlled the rare earth would have the last word in technology. I was impressed by the cogent reasons that he attributed. Foremost argument that he adduced was the overwhelming influence of technology in deciding the course of development in the coming years. Almost all technologies, be it chips that form the hardcore of artificial intelligence, robotics, new frontiers of communications equipment like smart phones etc. he says, are very much dependent on rare earth. Does it mean rare earth is something new? It has existed ever since the earth was formed. But humans did not know much about its uses. Prehistoric man would have used the rare earth including different types of rocks and other naturally available materials for different purposes such as tools, shelters and the like. That is why archeologists divide prehistoric periods into the Stone, Bronze and Iron ages, named after the main technologies used at the time.

Happily, between the prehistoric and digital age, there is a gap of several millennia. Yet today still, what drives mankind forward is technology. The author of the eminently written column has been referring to the growth of the technology through the prism of time zones. It triggered many thoughts in me. Foremost, what will be the course of future technologies? Is it constructive or destructive or both? Will mankind develop aversion towards technology at some point of time because of its invasive nature into the privacy of the people? Or, is there any end to technology or its omnipresence is infinite?

Rare earth in layman’s language is either metals or the lanthanides are a set of 17 nearly –indistinguishable lustrous silvery-white soft heavy metals. There are common chemical properties for these metals or oxides. They tarnish slowly in air at room temperature and react slowly with cold water to form hydroxides. At elevated temperatures, say at 400 Centigrade or so, they ignite spontaneously and burn with a fierce colorful pyrotechnic flame.

Once extracted from mines, rare earths are shipped to separation facilities. They are separated from other minerals. Then rare earths are individually separated into oxides, metals and finally magnets that are used in everything from missiles to wind turbines, medical devices, power tools, cellphones and motors for hybrid and electric vehicles and what have you.

Rare earths have diverse applications in electrical and electronic components, lasers, glass, magnetic materials, monitoring earthquakes, complicated medical treatments and industrial processes. They do not occur as base metals or in lump or visible quantities like iron or aluminum. They are extracted from other materials.

There is a paradox in the very name of rare earth. They are available in plenty. Rare-earth elements are typically dispersed and not often found concentrated. Therefore, economic exploitation is difficult and expensive unlike metals like iron ore, copper or aluminum. Each rare earth in terms of its electronic and magnetic properties is really unique.

A rare earth called Scandium alloy with aluminum is used for manufacturing aerospacecomponents, additive in metal-halide lamps and mercury-vapor lamps, and radioactive tracing agent in oil refineries. Yttrium named after the village of Ytterby, Sweden, where the first rare earth ore was discovered in early 1800 has multifarious uses in supercomputers, jet engines, electro ceramics, spark plugs and has medical uses including treatment of cancer. Lanthanum is used in high refractive index and alkali-resistant glass, flint, hydrogen storage, battery-electrodes, camera and refractive telescope lenses, fluid catalytic cracking catalyst for oil refineries. Praseodymium, another rare earth is used in magnets, lasers, core material for carbon arc lighting, colorant in glasses and enamels, additive in didymium glass used in welding goggles, ferrocerium fire steel (flint) products, single mode fiber optical amplifiers (as a dopant of fluoride glass).

This is only a set of illustrative lists of rare earth and their uses. Its uses are expanding and hardly is there any segment in technology where the rare earth is not used. Scientists are engaged in finding new uses since the discoveries can be trailblazing and rewarding.

There is geopolitical significance to rare earth. India and Brazil had supplied a major chunk of rare earth till 1948. In the early 1950’s monazite deposits were found in South Africa. Today, the India and South African deposits still produce some rare earth concentrates.

Increased demand has strained supply. There is growing concern about the shortage of rare earth. That will severely affect the technology value chain. Unless new sources are developed, there will be severe constraints on the supply side. That will lead to spiraling prices since the use of rare earth is widening, particularly for making cutting edge technologies and devices like smartphones, digital cameras, computer parts, semiconductors, renewable energy technology, military equipment, glass making, and metallurgy.

The increase in rare earth prices coupled with Chinese reluctance to export the vital raw material, motivated a number of countries to go scouting for rare earth and reports are there that they are stockpiling to make a killing. These countries include Australia, Brazil, Canada, South Africa, Tanzania, Greenland, and the United States. Mines in these countries were closed when China undercut world prices in the 1990s. Now the prices are ticking high and these countries are trying to enter the arena, though it may take some time to come around.

Extracting rare earth is a difficult process due to a combination of environmental, technical and political factors. Many regions, including the European Union, have an abundance of these resources but lack the expertise that other countries like China have in the processing and magnet production. Also, the rare earth industry has come under fire for environmental concerns. Many rare earth elements reside among mineral deposits with radioactive materials that can enter the water table. Mining, processing and disposal can also contribute to ecosystem disruption and release hazardous byproducts into the atmosphere. Some companies have proposed extracting rare earths from coal. There are also companies, which are eager to recycle old batteries or disk drives. Recycling of key raw materials used in the EV space is receiving greater investment focus. These include a start-up from former Tesla CTO JB Straubel, and Li-Cycle.

In all probability, the rare earth scene is going to warm up in the coming years. Countries that fail to take measures to ensure adequate supply of rare earth either through excavations or import or recycling will remain as technology takers and those countries which push this agenda to the forefront will emerge as technology leaders. I only wish that this truth should be imbibed by India’s technology experts and policy makers.