scholarly journals Life Cycle Impact of Rare Earth Elements

2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Koltun ◽  
A. Tharumarajah
Keyword(s):  
Rare Earth ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Rare Earth Elements ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Economic Value ◽  
Resource Depletion ◽  
Local Environment ◽  
Clean Energy ◽  
Energy Technologies ◽  
Representative System

The diverse properties of rare earth elements have seen broad and growing applications in clean energy technologies, hybrid vehicles, pollution control, optics, refrigeration, and so on. This study presents a “cradle-to-gate” life cycle assessment of the energy use, resource depletion, and global warming potential resulting from the production of rare earth elements (REEs) using the Bayan Obo rare earth operation in Inner Mongolia, China, as a representative system. The study aggregates data from the literature, LCI databases, and reasonable estimations. A novel economic value-based allocation method for the multiple coproducts of the process is proposed. It is found that four of the high priced REEs scandium, europium, terbium, and dysprosium have very high GWPs from production relative to the rest. A mass-based allocation is also provided for comparison. Impacts on immediate local environment from waste streams that can be toxic are not included in this study.

scholarly journals Rare Earth Elements supply vs. clean energy technologies: new problems to be solve

2016 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 29-44 ◽  
Author(s):  
Baolu Zhou ◽  
Zhongxue Li ◽  
Yiqing Zhao ◽  
Cong Zhang ◽  
Yixin Wei
Keyword(s):  
Supply Chain ◽  
Rare Earth ◽  
Rare Earth Elements ◽  
Electric Vehicles ◽  
Hybrid Electric Vehicles ◽  
Clean Energy ◽  
Energy Technologies ◽  
Long Run ◽  
Recycling Techniques ◽  
New Strategies

Abstract Rare earth elements (REEs) provide important properties to clean energy technologies such as wind turbine and hybrid electric vehicles. The global REE demand will grow rapidly during the global transformation toward a greener economy in the next decades. This high demand will require a steady supply chain in the long run. China has a monopoly of global REE production and extraction. The global REE supply chain runs the risk of disruption along with Chinese REE policy evolution. To overcome this supply chain vulnerability, new strategies and measures should be adopted to satisfy future REE supply/demand. There is a pressing need to explore REE deposits, develop efficient REE recycling techniques from end-of-life products, improve substitution technologies for REEs, and reduce the number of critical REEs used in devices. Such measures are facing significant challenges due to environmental factors and an unbalanced market, and overcoming them requires efforts from government and REE companies.

scholarly journals Sustainability of emerging energy and transportation technologies is impacted by the coexistence of minerals in nature

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ayman Elshkaki
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Dioxide ◽  
Rare Earth ◽  
Rare Earth Elements ◽  
Carbon Dioxide Emissions ◽  
Clean Energy ◽  
Energy Technologies ◽  
Material Efficiency ◽  
Global Dynamic ◽  
Reduce Carbon Dioxide ◽  
Carbon Dioxide Equivalent

AbstractWind power and electric vehicles can help reduce carbon dioxide emissions and improve air quality. However, these technologies rely on rare metals whose extraction requires large amounts of energy and water and are high in carbon emissions. Here we consider the sustainability of both technologies and the impacts of rare earth elements co-extraction. We use a global dynamic material flow-stock model and several scenarios for rare earth elements demand and supply. Cumulative carbon dioxide equivalent emissions associated with rare earth metals oversupply was between 5.5 and 6.4 times the emissions associated with dysprosium and neodymium production when dysprosium demand was increased. Carbon dioxide equivalent emissions associated with metals extraction and production were equivalent to between 10% and 29% of carbon dioxide emissions reduction through electric vehicle use. Targeting metal rich deposits and increased material efficiency and recycling reduced carbon dioxide emissions by 78%, 39% and 35%, and combined by 90%. Our findings highlight the role of resource efficiency and recycling in enhancing clean energy technologies.

Review of rare earth elements recovery from secondary resources for clean energy technologies: Grand opportunities to create wealth from waste

2020 ◽  
Vol 267 ◽  
pp. 122048 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rajesh Kumar Jyothi ◽  
Thriveni Thenepalli ◽  
Ji Whan Ahn ◽  
Pankaj Kumar Parhi ◽  
Kyeong Woo Chung ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Rare Earth ◽  
Rare Earth Elements ◽  
Clean Energy ◽  
Secondary Resources ◽  
Energy Technologies

scholarly journals Possibilities of recovery and separation of rare earth elements

2019 ◽  
Vol 73 (1) ◽  
pp. 99
Author(s):  
Dominika Fila
Keyword(s):  
Rare Earth ◽  
Rare Earth Elements ◽  
Mineral Resources ◽  
Oil Refining ◽  
Secondary Sources ◽  
Energy Technologies ◽  
Technology Products ◽  
Low Emission ◽  
Market Situation ◽  
Critical Mineral

Rare earth metals are a group of elements widely used in high technology products. They are included in the group of critical mineral resources for the EU economy. Rare earth elements are found in computers and mobile phones, as well as in low-emission energy technologies. They are also applied in chemical processes as catalysts in the oil refining. Some of them occur even in considerable quantities in the earth's crust but not very often in the concentrations justifying the profitability of their extraction. Additionally, the constantly growing demand and the current market situation cause that alternative resources of rare earth elements recovery are sought after. Therefore, the recovery and separation methods as well as recovery from the secondary sources are becoming more and more important. The following paper presents the possibilities of recovery and separation of rare earth elements from primary and secondary sources.

scholarly journals The significance of energy consumption in environmental impact of rare earth elements recovery from tailings and mining waste

2019 ◽  
Vol 108 ◽  
pp. 02011
Author(s):  
Karolina Kossakowska ◽  
Katarzyna Grzesik
Keyword(s):  
Rare Earth ◽  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Rare Earth Elements ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Raw Materials ◽  
Electricity Production ◽  
The European Union ◽  
The Eu ◽  
Lca Results ◽  
Critical Raw Materials

Rare Earth Elements (REEs) are identified as critical raw materials for the European Union economy. REEs are not currently produced in the EU, while there are several sources not properly addressed. Within the ENVIREE project tailings from New Kankberg (Sweden) and Covas (Portugal) were identified as rich in REEs and chosen for recovery processing. The Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology was used to evaluate the environmental impact of REEs recovery. The aim of this study is the detailed analysis of several scenarios with different electricity production schemes of REE recovery. The study discusses the share of energy use in the overall impact on the environment, taking into account diversification in the electricity production structure among EU countries. The energy use is a significant contributor to the overall environmental impact of studied cases. Its share in the total environmental burden is reaching up to 47%. The results show that applying the average electricity scheme production for Europe may lead to biased LCA results. For the accurate LCA results the local production schemes of energy for certain countries should be chosen.

scholarly journals ISLAMIC FINANCIAL DEVELOPMENT IMPACT ON ENERGY INTENSITY: EVIDENCE FROM ISLAMIC BANKS

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdul-Jalil Ibrahim ◽  
Nasim S. Shirazi ◽  
Amin Mohseni-Cheraghlou
Keyword(s):  
Financial Development ◽  
Fixed Effects ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Energy Intensity ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Clean Energy ◽  
Islamic Banks ◽  
Energy Technologies ◽  
Banking Development ◽  
The Relationship

The relationship between financial development and energy intensity is yet firmly established as the literature is emerging, and the few empirical studies that have been done provide conflicting results. Whereas some conclude a U-shaped relationship between financial development and energy intensity, others show a linear relationship between the two variables.  This study investigates the relationship between financial development and energy intensity by focusing on the role of Islamic financial development. The study covers 30 countries where Islamic banks are present.  Using the  fixed-effects panel model, the empirical results suggest that Islamic banking development significantly increases energy intensity in the sample countries. We also identify other important factors that increase energy intensity.  These include carbon emissions, renewable energy use and energy imports. The findings point to the importance of designing policies to incentivize Islamic banks and Shari'ah-compliant investors to finance clean energy technologies as a potent tool for reducing energy intensity, achieving sustainable development, and greening Islamic finance.

scholarly journals The Future of Scandium Recovery from Wastes

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 55
Author(s):  
Olga Chernoburova ◽  
Alexandre Chagnes
Keyword(s):  
Rare Earth ◽  
Bauxite Residue ◽  
High Strength ◽  
Clean Energy ◽  
Industrial Wastes ◽  
Condensed State ◽  
No Production ◽  
Alumina Production ◽  
Energy Technologies ◽  
Critical Metal

With growing demand for renewable and clean energy technologies, the need in rare earth metals is increasing. Scandium, which is often considered a rare earth element (REE), is a critical metal mainly used in solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) and high strength aluminum alloys used in aerospace and 3D printing applications. Furthermore, scandium supply is limited due to its scarcity and the high cost of its production in Asia and Russia while Europe has no production of scandium. Therefore, scandium extraction from alternative resources such as secondary resources located in Europe is of great concern. Within this context, this work provides a condensed state-of-art review of the issue of scandium recovery from industrial wastes. Priority was given to addressing the technological and economic challenges associated with the recovery of scandium from the said residues, with particular emphasis on the bauxite residue from alumina production, which represents nearly 5 million tons on dry basis per year in Europe.

scholarly journals The role of Rare Earth Elements in the deployment of wind energy in Colombia

2021 ◽  
Vol 48 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Carlos Andrés Gallego
Keyword(s):  
Rare Earth ◽  
Rare Earth Elements ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Energy System ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Low Carbon Economy ◽  
Energy Technologies ◽  
The Government ◽  
Critical Minerals ◽  
Carbon Economy

The deployment of renewable energy technologies will play a crucial role in the global transition to a low-carbon economy and ultimately in the fight against global warming. However, this transition could face important problems because most of those technologies rely on the steady supply of critical minerals. Colombia, thanks to its hydrological resources, has relied on the hydro­power for electricity generation. However, the government has implemented measures to back-up the energy system in draught periods and, consequently, fossil fuels-based plants have increased the market share and with these, CO2 emissions. This study assesses the mineral demand in Colombia in the period 2020-2050 for the rare earth elements embedded in the deployment of wind power technologies in four different climate policy scenarios in order to establish whether they could face geological bott­lenecks that could ultimately hamper the transition to a low-carbon economy. The Gigawatts (GW) of future capacity additions in the energy system are converted into tons of metal using published metal intensities of use and assumptions of Colombia’s technological pathway. Then, the cumulated mineral demand is compared against current mining production rates and geological reserves to establish geological bottlenecks. The results show that the reserves will not pose any threat to its transition. However, when compared to current mining rates, the mineral demand in 2050 could pose a problem for the supply of minerals. Finally, this study gives some policy recommendations that could be used to mitigate these issues, such as substitution, improved circular economy and sound technological choices.

scholarly journals Brown coals of Far East – natural resource for multipurpose industrial processing

2018 ◽  
Vol 56 ◽  
pp. 03018
Author(s):  
Anatoliy Sorokin ◽  
Andrey Konyushok
Keyword(s):  
Rare Earth ◽  
Rare Earth Elements ◽  
Economic Value ◽  
Far East ◽  
Processing Plant ◽  
Chemical Processing ◽  
Rare Metals ◽  
Standard Facility ◽  
Industrial Processing ◽  
Brown Coals

The analysis of the potential economic value of brown coals of the Far East of Russia is carried out when to use them as a complex chemical mineral resource. It was conducted assessment of industrial attractiveness to use coal combustion or coal chemical processing wastes as an additional source of gold, rare metals and rare earth elements. The Sergeevskoye brown coal deposit of the Zeya-Bureya Sedimentary Basin in the Amur Region was proposed as a potential standard facility for the construction of a coal-chemical processing plant to produce resin, montan wax, complex hydrocarbons with associated gold, rare metals and rare earth elements recovery.

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