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| Science & Technology |
| Can the US rare-earth industry rebound? |
| 2010-11-27 |
| The U.S. was the primary producer of rare earths until the 1990s, when the Chinese began undercutting the Americans on cost. Now companies in the U.S. and Australia are ramping up production at two rich sites for rare earths, but the process will take years. Getting from rocks to the pure metals and alloys required for manufacturing requires several steps that U.S. companies no longer have the infrastructure or the intellectual property to perform. |
| Posted by:Anguper Hupomosing9418 |
| #6 Dude...you mean they might do a reunion tour? "Get ready, cuz here I come..." |
| Posted by: anymouse 2010-11-27 17:58 |
| #5 I do not know if silver futures are tied to this, bugging me is the knowledge that I watched a silver piece of jewelry bought on amazon skyrocket to triple the price I paid this summer and then fall back down. |
| Posted by: Fire and ice 2010-11-27 15:01 |
| #4 So it depends on the price. |
| Posted by: Goldies Every Damn Where 2010-11-27 14:12 |
| #3 It's not the mining of rare earths that is the problem. Processing them is extremely polluting. Rare earths are actually more common than copper, cadmium and lead. Bastnaesite, a mineral that contains the lighter weight rare earths, must be first crushed to a fine, powdery sand, which is then put in a tank of liquid through which air is bubbled. The rare earths are then skimmed from the surface. Then they must be separated with acid or solvent. Monazite, that has some heavier rare earths, must be boiled in hot sulfuric acid or hot sodium hydroxide, later to be treated with hydrochloric acid. All told, it can take "dozens, or hundreds" of steps to separate the various rare earths. |
| Posted by: Anonymoose 2010-11-27 12:35 |
| #2 I'm sure the environmentalists will put a stop to it somehow. Mining is one of their pet topics. |
| Posted by: gromky 2010-11-27 09:48 |
| #1 Can the US rare-earth industry rebound? Not if comrade B.H. obama has anything to say about it. |
| Posted by: nGuard 2010-11-27 08:33 |