Application of rare earth metals

The applications of rare earth elements are very diverse. Rare earths play a key role in the production of materials for high-tech consumer sectors, such as electronic and electro-optical industries, information technology, biomedicine, environmental protection, energy conservation.

At the same time, they are used in the production of phosphors, industrial ceramics, catalysts for the oil refining and automotive industries, superconductors, permanent magnets, high-quality glass, fiber optics, oxygen sensors, lasers, long-life batteries for electric vehicles, film and photographic equipment. In addition, rare earths are widely used in traditional areas of consumption, in particular metallurgy.

While all rare earth elements are used in the form of chemical compounds, only some of them are consumed on an industrial scale in the form of metals (in particular, in the production of magnets). The markets for rare earths in terms of the type of products consumed are divided into two segments:

• areas requiring the use of undivided elements – glass production, catalysts for the oil refining industry, rechargeable batteries, polishing powders, metallurgy;
• areas requiring the use of individual rare earths are the production of catalytic filters-neutralizers of car exhaust gases, magnets, phosphors, capacitors, ceramics and a number of other goods.

Europium, neodymium, yttrium, dysprosium and terbium remain among the most popular metals. The first one is actively used in nuclear power, electronics, medicine (including cancer treatment). Neodymium is used to create lasers, incandescent lamps and in agriculture, its oxide is used in glassmaking. Yttrium even competes with titanium in the aerospace industry. Terbium is used in the manufacture of computers. Dysprosium is indispensable in nuclear power and metallurgy.

• Scandium: space technology, energy-saving lamps
• Yttrium: lasers, microwave filters, high-temperature superconductors
• Lanthanum: lenses, oil purification, glass with a high refractive index, electrodes
• Cerium: glass and ceramics, polishes, oxidants
• Praseodymium: magnets, lasers, incandescent lamps
• Neodymium: magnets, lasers
• Promethium: atomic batteries
• Samarium: magnets, lasers, masers
• Europium: lasers, energy-saving lamps
• Gadolinium: magnets, lasers, X-ray tubes, magnetic resonance imaging, computer memory
• Terbium: lasers, fluorescent lamps
• Dysprosium: magnets, lasers
• Holmium: lasers
• Erbium: lasers, vanadium steel
• Tuliy: medical X-rays
• Ytterbium: lasers
• Lutetium: positron emission tomography, glass with a high refractive index