Resource World Magazine

18 www.resourceworld.com A U G U S T / S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 8 C hina's new environmental policies and their enforcement are contrib- uting to a stable global supply and pricing of rare earth elements (REE), espe- cially necessary for magnets used in the automotive and motor industries. There are numerous factors contributing to this stable environment as explained by Dr. Chen Zhan Heng, Deputy Secretary-General of the Association of China Rare Earth Industry (ACREI) in his Beijing office. In addition, Chinese scientists are discovering cleaner processes and moving up the REE industrial value chain. The People's Republic of China's (PRC) general strategy for the environment began in 2010. The central government is dedicating a great deal of attention to protecting the health of its citizens from factories and mines that damage the qual- ity of the air, soil and water. Cities are issued environmental performance reports and government inspectors are visiting factories and closing illegal mines such as iron ore and coal due to emissions. The crackdown on illegal mines and their toxic processes is impacting REE mines as well. Dr. Chen divided China's REE min- ing areas into those in the mountainous regions in the south and those in the north. Mines in southern China are in Jiangxi, Guangxi, Guangdong and Hunan provinces, among others, for middle and heavy elements characterized by their ion- absorption in the soils. Of the 17 REE in the periodic table, these include deposits of dysprosium (Dy), terbium (Tb), ytter- bium (Yb) and yttrium (Y). Deposits in the north are dominated by Baotou, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region (IMAR) and in Sichuan and Shandong, such as neo- dymium (Nd) and praseodymium (Pr) used for magnets. The light, middle and heavy REEs are categorized by their atomic weight, physical and chemical properties. The separation process of REE from ores involves the use of chemicals and toxins in the slag. In the south, miners dig holes 5 metres apart and pour in chemicals with ammonia which flows along the rocks and surface soil that collects the liquid into a pond. Then more chemicals are used to precipitate rare earths and to remove aluminum and iron. Radioactive materi- als such as thorium (Th) are concentrated in the slag and are dangerous to public health. In the Baotou, IMAR, Sichuan and Shandong mines, the separation process involves fluorine gas and sulfur dioxide that is released into the air. ACREI advises the central government, scientists and their member producing companies in China and their joint ven- tures in techniques for REE production to reduce waste emissions. "China developed a rare earth separation technology with- out ammonium nitrate which is already adopted by several producers. As for the north, factories are investing in clean gas emissions and have established a waste gas processing system; solid wastes are stored safely," said Chen. ACREI also studies mar- ket trends for the REE industry. The supply of REE to worldwide demand centres on China. China not only dominates the supply of rare earth raw materials, but also most rare earth functional materials such as rare earth permanent magnets. The United States Geological Survey (USGS) estimates that there are 110 million tonnes of proven reserves worldwide; China has 36 million tonnes, Russia has 19 million tonnes, the US has 13 million tonnes and Australia has 5 million tonnes. Only in the past 20 years has China become the largest supplier of REE with well over 90% of the market, but China has only 23-30% of proven worldwide reserves. The future of national economies will depend on a reliable supply of REE for new energy, new materials, defense applications and space science. Dr. Chen estimates that the worldwide demand for rare earth ore will be 210,000 tonnes per year including the supply from recycling: China with 180,000 tonnes and Japan and others 30,000 tonnes or so. There are a number of factors contrib- uting to the current supply and pricing of REE in China which impact demand in China and worldwide exports. The REE mines in the south of China are almost depleted. Though the producers ask for new licenses, the PRC has not issued any new licenses for about 15 years, according to Chen. The producers are asked to use their old licenses to dig in certain areas that are depleted. Chen urges the central government to issue new licenses to producers to expand their mining areas. The expiry date for licenses is 2030 for the IMAR mines, but most southern mines are expiring. "In 2018, the PRC issued a new document on how to apply for new licenses. This signals that the government might issue licenses for new mines," he said. The south mines have REE in very mountainous areas and the needed rail- ways required that tunnels be drilled through them. In their construction, REE deposits are discovered during the drill- Chinese policies control rare earths industry Sometimes it's difficult to get facts and figures on the Chinese rare earths industry; however, Contributing Writer Robert L. Wallack travelled to China and posted this revealing story. RARE EARTHS

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