Rare Earths
Crucial Elements of Advanced Technologies
Materials Science
TM
Volume 6, Number 2
Gearing up for the future
The Rare Earth Crisis— The Supply/Demand Situationfor 2010–2015Discovery and Single CrystalGrowth of LanthanideIntermetallics—Interplayof Synthesis and PhysicalPropertiesMetal Hydrides for NiMHBattery Applications
I n t r o d u c t i o n
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Material Matters
(ISSN 1933–9631) is a publication o AldrichChemical Co., Inc. Aldrich is a member o the Sigma-AldrichGroup. © 2011 Sigma-Aldrich Co.
TM
Vol. 6, No. 2
Nathan Henderson, Ph.D.Aldrich Materials ScienceSigma-Aldrich Corporation
Introduction
Welcome to the second issue of
Material Matters™
for 2011,
RareEarths—Crucial Elements of Advanced Technologies
. This issue highlightsthe Rare Earth Elements (REE), which are essential components of modern technology and find use in numerous applications such asdata storage devices, lasers, phosphors for advanced displays, catalysts,permanent magnets, and petroleum refining.
1-5
Rare Earth Elementshave contributed to the digital revolution and have enabled a varietyof emerging technologies, including hybrid electric vehicles andminiaturized devices and electronics. The Rare Earth Elements are comprised of the fifteen members of thelanthanide series (lanthanum through lutetium) and yttrium. Due tosimilarities in chemical behavior and mineralogical occurrence, scandium is also usuallyincluded in this classification. It should be noted that the term “Rare Earth” is somewhatmisleading, as these elements are not really scarce in the context of crustal abundance,especially when compared to precious metals such as gold and platinum.
6
The extractionof REEs, however, is hardly a trivial matter: these elements are rarely observed in highlyconcentrated, minable deposits. Furthermore, REEs are commonly found together—thus theterm “fraternal fifteen” (lanthanide elements)—in rock-forming minerals, which necessitatesquite sophisticated processes for separations.
7
Sigma-Aldrich® has a long history of expertise in REE processing and offers a range of different grade materials to serve a variety of customers. In 1996, Sigma-Aldrich wasidentified by the U.S. Geological Survey as a key producer of high-purity scandium metal,oxide, and fluoride.
8
In the following years, however, in-house processing of REE oxides andmetals has been reduced due to the broad availability of very inexpensive materials frominternational markets. We have recently resumed our operations to meet rising demand forREEs, which is expected to grow continuously through the next several years.
9
The current issue of
Material Matters™
begins with an article by Karl Gschneidner, Jr. (AmesLaboratory, U.S. Department of Energy), who discusses the historical production of REEmaterials and their current shortage in the global market. In the following article, Julia Chan(Louisiana State University) describes highly correlated lanthanide intermetallics, providingan overview of material properties and a brief analysis of the molten metal flux techniqueused for single crystal growth. Finally, Dhanesh Chandra (University of Nevada, Reno) reviewsREE-based battery materials, highlighting structures and properties of hydride-formingmetal alloys as well as the role of lanthanide substitutions in optimizing their performance innickel-metal hydride electrodes.Each article in this issue is accompanied by a list of relevant materials available from Aldrich®Materials Science. This issue also includes a comprehensive list of REE products suitablefor electronics and energy-related research. For additional product information, visit us at
. We welcome your comments, questions, new product suggestions,and custom requests (
matsci@sial.com
).
References
(1) Kane, T.J. and Byer, R.L
Optics Letters
1985
,
10
, 65.(2) Ronda, C.R.; Jüstel, T.; Nikol, J.
J. Alloys Compd.
1998
,
275
, 669.(3) Voorhoeve, R.J.H.; Remeika, J.P.; Freeland, P.E.; Matthias, B.T.
Science
1972
,
177
, 353.(4) Sagawa, M.; Fujimura, S.; Togawa, N.; Yamamoto, H.; Matsuura, Y.
J. Appl. Phys.
1984
,
55
, 2083.(5) Kitto, M.E.; Anderson, D.L.; Gordon, G.E.; Olmex, I
Environ. Sci. Technol.
1992
,
26
, 1368.(6) Suess, H.E. and Urey, H.C.
Rev. Mod. Phys.
1956
,
28
, 53.(7) Castor, S.B. and Hedrick, J.B. in
Industrial minerals & rocks-Commodities, markets, and uses
, 7
th
ed.; SME: Littleton, Colo-rado, p 769.
(8) Hedrick, J.B.
Rare Earths
U.S. Geological Survey Minerals Information
1996.
(9) Humphries, M.
Rare Earth Elements: The Global Supply Chain
CRS Reports
2010
,
R41347.
About Our Cover
Rare earth materials have been a driving force behind the digital revolution and are keycomponents in a variety of modern electronic devices. Two examples of this are thedysprosium- and neodymium-containing magnets found in hybrid electric vehicles andneodymium- and yttrium-based materials used in lasing applications. The central motif of evolving gears represents the progression of technology fueled by the development of advanced materials.
For questions, product data, or new product suggestions, contact Aldrich Materials Science at
matsci@sial.com
.
Materials Science
31
Y o ur M a t e r i a l s M a t t e r
Your Materials Matter.
Do you have a compound that you wish Aldrich® Materials Science could list to help materials research? If it is needed to accelerate your research, it matters—send your suggestion to
matsci@sial.com
and we will be happy to give it careful consideration.
Jeff Thurston, PresidentAldrich Chemical Co., Inc.
Table of Contents
Articles
The Rare Earth Crisis—The Supply/Demand Situation for 2010–2015
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
32Discovery and Single Crystal Growth of Lanthanide Intermetallics—Interplayof Synthesis and Physical Properties
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
43Metal Hydrides for NiMH Battery Applications
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Featured Products
Rare Earth Metal Salts
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(A list of rare earth halides, nitrates, acetates, and acetylacetonates)
High-Purity Metals for Molten Flux Growth
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(A selection of metals for use in single crystal growth)
Materials for Magnetic Refrigeration
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(Metallic materials that exhibit magnetocaloric behavior)
Rare Earth-based Permanent Magnets
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(Sm- and Nd-containing magnetic disks)
Rare Earth Alloys for Hydrogen Storage and Battery Applications
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(A list of metal alloys for energy applications)
Rare Earth Metals
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(Powders, foils, ingots, and chips of rare earth metals)
Rare Earth Oxides
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(A selection of rare earth bulk oxides and nanopowders)
Dr. Mark Allendorf of Sandia National Laboratories kindly suggestedthat we offer 2,2’-Diamino-4,4’-stilbenedicarboxylic acid (
) as a linker for the synthesis of metal organicframeworks (MOFs). High surface area materials like MOFs are of interest for a variety of applications, including gas storage andsensing, catalysis, and gas separation. Stilbene derivatives havepreviously been used to synthesize 2- and 3-dimensional zinc-containing networks that exhibit photoluminescent behavior.
1
Stilbene-functionalized MOFs have also been used in scintillationapplications for the detection of ionizing radiation.
2
The use of afunctionalized linker—such as this diamino derivative—enablespost-synthetic modification of an existing framework,
3
potentiallyallowing access to new MOF structures with unconventionalproperties.
References
(1) Bauer, C.A.; Timofeeva, T.V.; Settersten, T.B.; Patterson, B.D.; Liu, V.H.; Simmons, B.A.;Allendorf, M.D.
J. Am. Chem. Soc.
2007
,
129
, 7136.(2) Doty, F.P.; Bauer, C.A.; Skula, A.J.; Grant, P.G.; Allendorf, M.D.
Adv. Mater
.
2009
,
21
, 95.(3) Wang, Z.; Cohen, S.M.
Chem. Soc. Rev.
2009
,
38
, 1315.
2,2’-Diamino-4,4’-stilbenedicarboxylic acid
C
16
H
14
N
2
O
4
FW 298.29
NH
2
H
2
NHOOOHO
mp ...........................................................200 to 205 °C
500 mg
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Rare Earths: Crucial Elements for Advanced Technologies - Material Matters v6n2
Read technical, expert micro-reviews on rare earth elements. Topics include the rare earth crisis, single crystal growth of lanthanide intermetallics and metal hydrides for battery applications.
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