Cerium is used by glass artists as the best material for polishing glass. However, the US' supply is running short, causing prices to spike. Washington is home to the Glass Art Society & about a dozen cold-working shops, where workers put the finishing touches, such as polishing or etching, on pieces. About 90% of all glass pieces are cold worked using cerium, said artist John Kiley. Cerium oxide is one of the 17 rare-earth elements, but it is not all that rare. Current consumption totals about 45% of available supply according to Karl Gschneidner, a rare-earths expert & Iowa State University professor. China produces about 97% of all rare earths, he said. Nonetheless, in the past few years, prices have skyrocketed. His Glassworks, a North Carolina-based glassworking supplier that Larned uses, sold its stock of the loose powder form of cerium oxide for $10/per pound eight months ago. The same amount is now $66. China's prices began rising in 2007 due to more consumption of rare earths there & new export controls. Tighter controls of rare-earth production & trade came in response to environmental damage caused by mass-extracting rare earths.
