Batch - Ce, La, Nd

Although their generic name may not suggest it, rare earths are widely distributed in the earth's crust and occur in many rock formations including basalts, granites, shales and silicates - albeit in low concentrations. To date in excess of 160 minerals have been identified as containing rare earths, but in the case of most of these they have only been confirmed as possessing minor concentrations. In fact, there are only a handful of minerals that are sufficiently rich in rare earth elements to be exploited on a commercial scale. These are bastnaesite, monazite, xenotime, ion adsorption clays and apatite. This paper shows where these rare earths are deposited and gives industry statistics.