Understanding Rare Earth Elements and Their Importance
Despite the name, these elements are not rare but are present in fairly large amounts in Earth's crust.
By : DC Correspondent
Update: 2025-11-10 17:44 GMT
Rare earth minerals are the naturally occurring minerals that contain one or more rare earth elements in it.
The rare earth elements are a group of 17 metallic elements that are chemically similar and are mostly found together. These include Lanthanum (La), Cerium (Ce), Praseodymium (Pr), Neodymium (Nd), Promethium (Pm), Samarium (Sm), Europium (Eu), Gadolinium (Gd), Terbium (Tb), Dysprosium (Dy), Holmium (Ho), Erbium (Er), Thulium (Tm), Ytterbium (Yb), and Lutetium (Lu), plus two closely related elements: Scandium (Sc) and Yttrium (Y).
Despite the name, these elements are not rare but are present in fairly large amounts in Earth's crust. However, what makes them rare is that they are unevenly distributed on the earth and in most places they are spread in tiny amounts mixed with other minerals.
Despite the name, these elements are not rare but are present in fairly large amounts in Earth's crust. However, what makes them rare is that they are unevenly distributed on the earth and in most places they are spread in tiny amounts mixed with other minerals.
For mining of these elements, it is necessary to have high concentrations of these elements at one spot, so that extracting them becomes economically viable.
Such concentrated deposits are not common as mining them is not economically feasible. That is why these elements are called "rare," even though the elements themselves are abundant.
Why is it Vital
Rare earth elements are very essential for modern technology, defense and renewable energy as they have unique chemical and magnetic properties that cannot be easily replaced with other elements.
Why is it Vital
Rare earth elements are very essential for modern technology, defense and renewable energy as they have unique chemical and magnetic properties that cannot be easily replaced with other elements.
They are widely used in electronics, including smartphones, computers, hard drives, televisions, as well as in green energy and electric vehicles.
They are also used in aerospace and defence, such as jet engines, missiles, guidance systems and lasers.
They even have industrial applications, such as for glass polishing, LED lights, and catalysts in petroleum refining.
Rare earth elements possess unique properties including magnetism, luminescence and resistance to heat, due to which it makes them difficult to replace in modern technologies.
Due to these unique properties, rare earth elements enable engineers to make smaller, lighter, faster, and energy-efficient technologies than would be possible with other ordinary elements. Without them, many modern devices would have been heavy, bigger, less-efficient, and less colourful.