Rare earths-what are the uses of it

Rare earth elements-metallurgical industry  

Adding rare earth metals or fluoride or silicide into steel can refine, desulphurize and neutralize harmful impurities with low melting point, and improve the processing performance of steel.  Rare-earth ferrosilicon alloy and rare-earth silicon magnesium alloy are used as nodulating agents to produce rare-earth nodular cast iron. Because this nodular cast iron is especially suitable for the production of complex nodular iron parts with special requirements, it is widely used in automobile, tractor, diesel engine and other machinery manufacturing industry.  The addition of rare earth metals to non-ferrous alloys such as magnesium, aluminum, copper, zinc and nickel can improve the physical and chemical properties of the alloys, and improve the mechanical properties at room temperature and high temperature.  

Rare earth elements-petrochemicals

The molecular sieve catalyst made of rare earth has the advantages of high activity, good selectivity and strong resistance to heavy metal poisoning, so it has replaced aluminum silicate catalyst in petroleum catalytic cracking process.  In the process of ammonia synthesis, a small amount of rare earth nitrate is used as the cocatalyst, and the treated gas volume is 1.5 times larger than that of nickel-aluminum catalyst.  In the process of synthesis of butadiene rubber and isoprene rubber, rare earth naphthenate-triisobutyl aluminum catalyst was used to obtain the product with good performance, less glue hanging equipment, stable operation, short post-treatment process and so on.  Composite rare earth oxides can also be used as catalysts for purification of exhaust gas of internal combustion engines, and cerium naphthenate can also be used as paint drier.  

Rare earth elements-glass ceramics

Rare earth oxide or processed rare earth concentrate can be widely used as polishing powder for optical glass, lens, picture tube, oscilometer tube, flat glass, plastic and metal tableware.  In the process of melting glass, cerium dioxide can be used to have a strong oxidation effect on iron, reduce the iron content in the glass, in order to achieve the goal of removing green glass;  The addition of rare earth oxides can be used to produce optical glass and special glass for different purposes, including infrared, uv absorption glass, acid and heat resistant glass, X-ray resistant glass, etc.  Adding rare earth in ceramic glaze and porcelain glaze can reduce the fragmentation of glaze, and can make products show different colors and luster, is widely used in the ceramic industry. 

Rare earth elements-new materials  

Rare earth cobalt and Ndfeb permanent magnet materials, with high remanence, high coercivity and high magnetic energy product, are widely used in electronics and aerospace industry;  Pure rare earth oxide and ferric oxide from the combination of garnet ferrite single crystal and polycrystal, can be used in microwave and electronics industry;  Yttrium aluminum garnet and neodymium glass made of high purity neodymium oxide can be used as solid laser materials.  Rare earth hexaboride can be used as cathode material for electron emission.  Lanthanum nickel metal is a new hydrogen storage material developed in the 1970s.  Lanthanum chromate is a high-temperature thermoelectric material.  In recent years, the superconducting materials made by barium yttrium cu-oxygen modified barium oxide can obtain superconductor in the liquid nitrogen temperature region, making a breakthrough in the development of superconducting materials.  

In addition, rare earth is also widely used in lighting sources, projection TV phosphor, sensitization screen phosphor, three primary color phosphor, photocopying lamp powder;  In agriculture, applying a small amount of rare earth nitrate to field crops can increase their yield by 5~10%.  In textile industry, rare earth chloride is also widely used in tanning fur, fur dyeing, wool dyeing and carpet dyeing.