The first element to be discovered was Yttrium.

The first rare earth mineral

discovered was gadolinite, which is a compound consisting of cerium, yttrium,
iron, silicon, and other elements.
Yttrium was discovered in 1794 by the Finnish mineralogist and chemist Johan
Gadolin, in a mineral that was later named in his honor gadolinite.
The general formula of bastnaesite is Ce(CO3)F. Bastnaesite is another
major REE ore mineral containing mostly the LREEs cerium, lanthanum,
praseodymium, and neodymium. Of the HREEs, only Y is regularly found. It
occurs in a variety of igneous rocks, such as carbonatites, vein deposits,
contact metamorphic rocks, and pegmatites (Gupta and Krishnamurthy
2005). Major ore deposits are generally related to carbonatite intrusions.
Carbonatites are often found in relation to alkaline intrusives.
The generalized chemical formula of xenotime is (YPO4). Xenotime, in
contrast to monazite and bastnaesite, generally contains, besides Y,
appreciable amounts of the HREE (Heavy Rare Earth Elements: Y, Tb, Dy, Ho,
Er, Tm, Yb, and Lu). Xenotime is an accessory mineral in pegmatites and
other (non-basic) igneous rocks, but also is common in metamorphic rocks.
The rare earths are divided into the lanthanide group, and the elements
scandium and yttrium.
After physical processing of bastnaesite (ideal formula (Ce, La, Y)CO3F), a 60
% concentrate is obtained. This can be upgraded by leaching with
hydrochloric acid to 70 % REO, while eliminating calcium and strontium
carbonates. After calcination, the percentage of REO can be upgraded to 85
90 %. This occurs because calcination removes the carbon dioxide (Gupta and
Krishnamurthy 2005).
Xenotime (ideal formula YPO4) is processed differently by using concentrated
sulphuric acid. The double sulphate precipitation is not possible, because
yttrium and the heavy rare earths are very soluble. The rare earth phosphates
are converted into water soluble sulphates by leaching xenotime
concentrates in concentrated H2SO4 at 250300 C for onetwo hours. The
sulphate solutions are directly used for separation. In an alternative process,
the fine-ground xenotime is treated by fusing it with molten caustic soda at
400 C, or by mixing it with sodium carbonate and roasting at 900 C for
several hours. The hydroxide residue is dissolved in hydrochloric acid and
filtered to remove impurities such as silica, cassiterite etc. The rare earths are
precipitated as oxalates by adding oxalic acid. The oxalates are oxidized to
rare earth oxides (Gupta and Krishnamurthy 2005).
For processing of gadolinite (ideal formula (Ce, La, Nd, Y)2FeBe2Si2O10), the
ground ore is leached with nitric or hydrochloric acid. The rare earths are
precipitated as oxalates by adding oxalic acid, which makes possible the
separation of associated iron and beryllium. Concentrated sulphuric acid or
mixtures of sodium hydroxide and sodium peroxide have also been applied to
attack the ore (Gupta and Krishnamurthy 2005).
Euxenite (ideal formula (Y, Ca, Ce)(Nb, Ta)2O6), is treated by reductive
chlorination, which is followed by distillation of the chlorides to separate the
rare earths, titanium, niobium and tantalum. Solvent extraction can be used
to remove tantalum and niobium chlorides and the rare earths from the
chlorination residue (Gupta and Krishnamurthy 2005). The ore mineral can
also be treated by fusing it with ammonium bisulphate or caustic soda, or by
digestion with hydrofluoric acid or sulphuric acid, or mixtures of the two

(Gupta and Krishnamurthy 2005). Also digestion in hot sodium hydroxide has
been tried. The hydroxides formed are dissolved by dilute hydrochloric acid.
Soda ash is added to precipitate a complex carbonate precipitate. This in turn
is leached with dilute sulphuric acid, to selectively solubilize the rare earths.
The rare earths are then subsequently precipitated as oxalate by adding
oxalic acid (Gupta and Krishnamurthy 2005).
The applications of yttrium are diverse. It is used in alloys (e.g., with
magnesium, chromium, molybdenum and zirconium). Yttrium YVO4-Eu and
Y2O3-europium phosphors are the standard red components in color
televisions and monitors (Hammond 2015). Yttrium oxide is used in lenses for
cameras to make the glass heat and shock resistant.
Yttrium oxide is considered to be one of the most important oxides due to its
vast commercial applications.
The microwave and radar applications are in the form of yttrium-iron garnet
(YIG) and its aluminum counterpart yttrium-aluminum garnet (YAG), which is
used for lasers.
One of the first high-temperature superconductors (superconducting at 183
C) discovered was YBa2Cu3O79 (Wu et al. 1987) (Fig. 5.1).
Yttrium-aluminum garnet, with a hardness of 8.5, is used as a gemstone
(imitation diamond). In small amounts (0.10.2 %), yttrium can be added to
chromium, molybdenum, zirconium and titanium to the reduce grain size of
these metals. Magnesium and aluminum alloys possess increased strength
when small amounts of yttrium are added. Also the metal is used as a
deoxidizer for vanadium and other non-ferrous metals (Hammond 2015).
Europium and yttrium oxide (Y2O3):europium phosphors both yield red color in
television tubes, and many hundreds of thousands of pounds of this
compound have been used for this application. It is evident that both the
YVO4 and Y2O3 rare earth oxides have potential commercial applications.
Yttrium is also finding applications in the design and development of lasers
operating in the infrared spectral regions. This element is used as a catalyst
for ethylene polymerization. It has wide applications in ceramic and glass
formulas because its oxide offers a very high melting point, improved shock
resistance, and low expansion characteristics on glass.

In general, the steps involved in mining and processing can be summarized as

follows:
1. Mining of rare earth ores is possible from the predicted mineral deposits of
a specific location.
2. Extraction of rare earth materials and their oxides from the deposits
requires a comprehensive mining survey of the proposed sites [2].
3. Separation of rare earth ore into individual rare earth oxides is necessary.
4. Refinement of rare earth oxides into rare earth materials with different
purity levels is not only complex but also costly. Higher purity levels will
further increase the cost.
5. Converting rare earth oxides into alloys requires specific procedures for
different applications.
6. Conversion of alloys into rare earth compounds that can be used for
various commercial, industrial, and defense applications requires specific
procedures. Deployment of rare earth alloys such as neodymium-ironboron has potential commercial and industrial applications. These

magnets are widely used in the design and development of electric motors
and generators deployed in electric and hybrid electric vehicles because of
their light weight and compact size.
7. Quality control procedures that involve visual inspections, verification of
parametric values, and reliability data for the rare earth material are
necessary for some defense applications.

Comminution is particle size reduction of materials. Comminution may

be carried out on either dry materials or slurries. Crushing and grinding
are the two primary comminution processes.
Sizing is the general term for separation of particles according to their
size.
Flotation mineral separation
Hydrometallurgy is a method for obtaining metals from their ores. It is
a technique within the field of extractive metallurgy involving the use
of aqueous chemistry for the recovery of metals from ores,
concentrates, and recycled or residual materials. Leaching, solution
concentration and purification, metal recovery.
Leaching involves the use of aqueous solutions to extract metal from
metal bearing materials which is brought into contact with a material
containing a valuable metal.
After leaching, the leach liquor must normally undergo concentration of
the metal ions that are to be recovered. Additionally, undesirable metal
ions sometimes require removal.
Metal recovery is the final step in a hydrometallurgical process. Metals
suitable for sale as raw materials are often directly produced in the
metal recovery step. Sometimes, however, further refining is required if
ultra-high purity metals are to be produced. The primary types of metal
recovery processes are electrolysis, gaseous reduction, and
precipitation.
Pyrometallurgy is a branch of extractive metallurgy. It consists of the
thermal treatment of minerals and metallurgical ores and concentrates
to bring about physical and chemical transformations in the materials
to enable recovery of valuable metals. Calcining, roasting, smelting,
refining.
Calcination is thermal decomposition of a material.
Roasting consists of thermal gas-solid reactions, which can include
oxidation, reduction, chlorination, sulfation, and pyrohydrolysis.
Smelting involves thermal reactions in which at least one product is a
molten phase.
Refining is the removal of impurities from materials by a thermal
process. This covers a wide range of processes, involving different
kinds of furnace or other plant. The term, 'refining' can also refer to
certain electrolytic processes. Accordingly, some kinds of
pyrometallurgical refining are referred to as 'fire refining'.
Penambahan 0,1-0,2% Y dapat menghaluskan ukuran butir pada chromium,
molybdenum, zirconium, titanium, manganese, and aluminum alloy untuk
meningkatkan kekuatan.

Pada proses sintering, akan terbentuk fasa cair Si-Y-O-N. saat pendinginan yttrium
oxide nitride akan membentuk microcrystalline intergranular bond diantara butir yang
dapat menghambaht pertumbuhan crack.
Europium- yttrium oxide phosphor menghasilkan warna merah. Ketika dikenai
proton, senyawa fosfor tersebut akan menyala terang.
Yttrium oxide memiliki titik leleh yang sangat tinggi sehingga masih stabil ketika
digunakan pada temp tinggi.
Yttria dapat menstabilkan fasa kubik dari zirconia pada temp tinggi. YSZ juga
digunakan pada refraktori karena memiliki kekuatan yang tinggi, thermal crack dan
chemical resistance yang baik pada temp tinggi.
Adanya oxygen defect pada YSZ menghasilkan electrical resistivity yg cocok
digunakan sebagai sensor oksigen pada industrial furnace (molten glass, molten steel/
metal), system pembuangan kendaraan bermotor. Juga dapat digunakan sebagai
sensor SO2.
YIG dapat menjadi filter microvawe dan dapat digunakan sebagai transmitter/
transducer energi suara karena memiliki efisiensi yang tinggi.