Rare: The High-Stakes Race to Satisfy Our Need for the Scarcest Metals on Earth

by Keith Veronese

How will your life change when the supply of tantalum dries up? You may have never heard of this unusual metal, but without it smartphones would be instantly less omniscient, video game systems would falter, and laptops fail. Tantalum is not alone. Rhodium. Osmium. Niobium. Such refugees from the bottom of the periodic table are key components of many consumer products like cell phones, hybrid car batteries, and flat screen televisions, as well as sophisticated medical devices and even weapon systems. Their versatile properties have led manufacturers to seek these elements out to maximize longevity, value, and efficiency, but not without a human price. In addition to explaining the chemistry behind rare earth metals, Rare delves into the economic and geopolitical issues surrounding these "conflict minerals," blending tales of financial and political struggles with glimpses into the human lives that are shattered by the race to secure them. In the past decade, the Congo has been ravaged by tribal wars fought to obtain control of tantalum, tungsten, and tin supplies in the region, with over five million people dying at the crossroads of supply and demand. A burgeoning black market in China, Africa, and India is propped up by school-age children retrieving and purifying these metals while risking their lives and health in the process. Fears of future political struggles inside China, the world's largest supplier of these metals, have already sent the United States, Great Britain, and Japan racing to find alternative sources.Will scientists be able to create lab substitutes for some or all of these metals? Will Afghanistan be the next big supplier of rare metals? What happens when the limited supply runs out? Whatever the answers, it is clear that our modern lifestyle, dependent on technology, is far from stable.

Genres: Nonfiction, Science, Technology, Business, Politics, Economics, Nature

280 pages, Hardcover

First published January 6, 2015

Reviews

[John · Rating 2 out of 5]

Reviewed for Library Journal.

There's lots I'm going to say in my LJ review, but considering this was an "uncorrected proof" copy, I *hope* they'll correct the thousands (no joke) of typos and errors that are rampant in this book. From simple mistakes like typing "w" when he meant to type "we", to blatantly wrong things like citing the North American Space Agency (a very poor guess at what NASA actually stands for). Beyond all that, this book is just completely confused as to its aim. The author never specifies whether he's talking about rare earth elements (a distinct set of 17 elements, or so he presents it) or elements that are actually rare (gold, platinum, palladium, and sort-of-but-not-really silver). Either way, graphene (an allotrope of carbon) most certainly does not fall into either category. Lastly, the author often makes analogies that are aimed to make this book more accessible to the general (non-scientifically-savvy) public. Unfortunately, while the analogies are technically correct, they are so far off that they really only confuse the original message. The audience of this book is people who are already interested in science and thus should understand the basics, but the author talks to them as if they had never had a science class in their lives. Lack of cohesion, lack of direction, lack of order, and a surplus of extraneous information left this book quite unenjoyable.

[Zeb Kantrowitz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Do you know what the seventeen “rare earth” elements are, do you care? Well you should. The first two are element 21 (scandium) which is used in mercury vapor and metal halide lamps. The second is element 36 (Yttruim)is used in YAG lasers, spark plugs and semiconductors.

Many of the other fifteen are also used for lasers and specialized magnets that are used in cyclytrons and colliders. Though most of the “rare earth metals (REM)” are not all that rare, some like tantalum (73) Niobium (41) Molybdenum(42) Osmium(76) and Rhodium(45) are all necessary for modern cell phones, hybrid car batteries, and flat TV (high definition). They could be made with other metals but they wouldn’t be as efficient or last as long as they do.

These metals were mined and purified in both Europe and America until the 1960s when there was a major find in China near the Mongolian border. The Chinese realized how important these metals were and at first sold them at such low prices (supported by the Chinese government and many mined by former Nationalist soldiers, criminals and opponents of the government). Because it is such an expensive process to purify these metals, once other developers were forced out of business, it became unprofitable to restart competing mines.

Therefore at this time China controls the creation and sale of these metals and is the world’s only major producer at this time. There is a major deposit of these metals (conflict minerals) in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC, capital Kinshasa) but the Civil-War there has been under control of the rebels for most of the 21st Century.

Because of the major costs in smelting these metals another supply has come onto the world market. This market is based in places like India and Africa, where the rest of the world has created “dumps” for old computers, cell phones and the like. The problem with this ‘alternate source’ is that its’ major work force is children. In the countries where these dumps are, it’s cheaper to hire children to break up the equipment and find the ‘rare metals’.

This makes many children their family ‘bread winner’ and they can’t go to school because they have to work. These metals can be poisonous like arsenic and antimony, in that they are dangerous over a period of time. So these children are slowly poisoned as is the area around the dumps from the leaching of these metals into the ground waters and destroy the environment and local animals. There is no existing international organization that is involved in this trade, so China will have the world over a barrel for many decades to come.

Zeb Kantrowitz zworstblog.blogspot.com

[Jason Pettus · Rating 5 out of 5]

[Reprinted from the Chicago Center for Literature and Photography (cclapcenter.com). I am the original author of this essay, as well as the owner of CCLaP; it is not being reprinted illegally.]

It was in T.C. McCarthy's great science-fiction novel Germline that I was first introduced to the concept of rare metals -- basically the same class of elements as more well-known items like aluminum and titanium, but found in even tinier amounts in the natural world, and that up to our modern age had been virtually useless as a practical material -- and the coming military wars that will eventually be fought over their deposits mostly in central Asia, because of it turning out that such ultra-contemporary items as cellphones and tablet computers simply cannot be made without them. And now here's an entire nonfiction book on the subject, from the always reliable "science for the masses" publisher Prometheus, which walks us step by step through everything you might ever want to know about the subject -- from their original discoveries in the Victorian Age, to the actual science behind why they're so valuable in electronics, what this has to do with plutonium and nuclear reactions, why that relationship fueled a lot of these discoveries during the Cold War between the US and Soviet Union, and a lot more. Just a bit too technical at points, which would be my only complaint, mostly this is a fascinating and easy-to-follow guide to an obscure but hugely important subject, one that will be in the headlines every day once our grandchildren are adults; and for anyone who is curious about what makes the teeny-tiny devices of our modern world work as well as they do, this is well worth picking up.

Out of 10: 9.6

[Ben Gigone · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting read on a topic I knew literally nothing about. There is a good amount of digression but is well-peppered with interesting theses and speculation. I enjoyed the inclusion of geo and socio-political histories, though the scientific breakdowns often felt like article abstracts.
Asteroid mining sounds mad cool.

[Kevin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some interesting content. Poorly written and edited.

[Ian · Rating 2 out of 5]

On the whole I was disappointed with this. From the title I had thought the book would be about the rare metals, their sources, and their strategic and economic significance. Some of that was covered, but the author went off on tangents all over the place. One over-lengthy section provided a detailed description of how a hobbyist might extract rare metals from disused electronic goods and was followed by what, for me, was a more interesting but unfortunately much shorter section about people in developing countries forced to make a living by recycling such material from waste dumps, at great cost to their own health and the local environment. A moderately interesting section on the potential mineral wealth of Afghanistan was preceded by an unnecessarily long diversion into poppy growing and the opium trade, as well as what seemed a very simplistic account of that country's current economic problems. Although the author clearly knows his own subject, he was prone to making impressionistic remarks whenever he ventured away from his main topic, which was often. To quote one example amongst many, the author partly explains the fact that many 19th century discoveries of elements were made by Swedish and Finnish scientists by claiming "The two countries, both allied under the Swedish flag at this time, also benefited from a comparatively strife free nineteenth century while England, (sic) France and Spain were constantly embroiled at war at home and abroad." The nineteenth century was a time when Great Britain completely dominated the world economy and contributed a wholly disproportionate share of the world's scientific and technical advances, and the period from 1815 to 1914 was a period of relative peace between the European powers that some historians refer to as the "Pax Brittanica". The book also suffers from a number of proof-reading errors. For example NASA is referred to as the "North American Space Agency," and at one point the word "electrons" is rendered as "elections." This all contributes to creating the impression of a rather hurried, ill-planned effort.

There were some interesting sections, for example the chapters about the potential future exploitation of the Arctic and Antarctic, and the section on possible future undersea mining, and I now know a bit more about the rare metals than I did. Overall though this book contains too much superfluous and poorly thought out material.

[InspireSeattle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Our Western civilization is driven by technology, and much of that technology requires rare earth metals, also known as rare earth elements, or REEs. Today, a great deal is written about the difficulties in obtaining REEs, and the politics surrounding them. Wanting to learn more, I picked up Keith Veronese’s 2015 book Rare: The High-Stakes Race to Satisfy Our Need for the Scarcest Metals on Earth.

For the record, the 17 REEs are cerium, dysprosium, erbium, europium, gadolinium, holmium, lanthanum, lutetium, neodymium, praseodymium, promethium, samarium, scandium, terbium, thulium, ytterbium, and yttrium. (Knowing this will make you the life of any party.) Visually, REEs are nearly indistinguishable, with a “relatively bland, shiny silver exterior.” Ironically, REEs are not that rare, being relatively abundant in the Earth's crust. The term “rare” comes from REEs typically being scattered in minute quantities, requiring the processing of enormous amounts of raw ore to obtain REEs at usable purity levels, which is expensive and destructive.

REEs “often cost ten or more times the price of their less efficient, more common counterpart” metals. REEs are critical to many technologies, from medical technologies (MRIs, laser scalpels, cancer drugs, etc.) to defense technologies (satellite communications, guidance systems, aircraft structures, etc.), to “green” energy (wind turbines, electric vehicles, etc.), magnets, cellphones, computers, miniaturized electronics, telecommunications, transportation systems, and more. REEs, with their ability to improve the performance of other metals, have a wide array of uses, allowing products to be smaller and lighter. Most often, the amount of REEs used in a product is small, but in some cases, the quantity used is surprisingly high. For example, “there are over thirty pounds of rare earth metals inside each Toyota Prius,” and wind turbines use over 500 pounds.

Veronese writes about how China dominates the REE market. “China holds one-third of the planet’s rare earth supply, but the vast number of mining and refining operations ongoing within its borders allow China to account for roughly 97 percent of the available rare earth metals market at any given time.” The bulk are found in Bayan Obo, an area within Inner Mongolia on the northern edge of China. Veronese writes that China spent years building the infrastructure to control this market, as well as strategically undercutting global REE prices to gain market share. As China aggressively moved to expand REE operations, Veronese writes that “the US faltered,” and is now struggling to reestablish REE production within the US.

Veronese explains that there are many “man-made” REEs. “These elements are products of scientists and engineers slamming atoms and particles together at speeds of thousands of feet per second.” The pursuit of nuclear weapons helped drive this approach to REE production. Veronese explains how nuclear reactors operate, as well as the problems they create, including the creation of large amounts of spent radioactive fuel.

Veronese delves into the reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel to obtain REEs. These efforts come with many dangers, such as the “extreme destructive capacity” of nuclear waste, the risk of terrorist attacks on waste sites, how this waste can be used to fabricate dirty bombs, and the massive cost of decontamination if something goes awry. Veronese explains how our current approach with this waste is to “bury spent fuel rods in desolate areas for future generations to contend with.” He writes about the many “deep geological repositories...spread across the globe,” which use preexisting rock and salt formations within massive caves for storage. In attempts to prevent leakage, “gaps between metal caskets and their radioactive cargo are filled with cement, crushed salt, and soil to isolate the waste and prevent future movement.” This is done to ensure a “physical impasse between radioactive material and human life, while preventing any leaks into the groundwater supply.” The US has only one active geological repository, located in Carlsbad, New Mexico. Veronese is clearly a supporter of nuclear energy, and writes, “as a whole, it is quite safe.” He strongly lobbies for the option of processing the spent nuclear waste to obtain REEs, and calls today’s current strategy of just burying the nuclear waste “for the next hundred thousand years” both “shortsighted and irresponsible.” He sees this approach as helping America become a leader in REE production.

But Veronese also covers many of the negatives around obtaining these metals, including multiple horrific mining wars, such as the Second Congo War (1998-2003), which resulted in “five million people killed as a result of the fighting.” Veronese discusses the “dirty recycling” of REEs, including how electronic waste is shipped to poor countries such as Ghana, India, and Malaysia, where their poor try to eke out a dangerous, toxic living in primitive recycling efforts. He also discusses the massive amount of chemicals needed in the processing of REEs, and how it can take up to 24 steps to process REEs into usable metals.

Staying on topic, Veronese touches on REEs’ potential as a “revolutionary energy source” and their use in superconducting magnets. But surprisingly, Veronese also goes off on many tangents, including the existence of “natural” nuclear reactors in Africa, attempts at counterfeiting gold, and using REEs as poison in assassination attempts. He provides examples of how to go about amateur recycling efforts and explains the history of platinum. He goes into opium farming in Afghanistan. He provides a brief explanation of the politics and technical issues around mining in Antarctica and Greenland, as well as mining the ocean’s floor. He even writes about mining on the moon and on asteroids.

Again, Western civilization relies on acquiring and using REEs, especially in our pursuit of “green” energy. Veronese closes with stating that “whether the acquisition comes at the cost of the environment, human lives, or political alliances is the question, with the answer coming in the decades to follow.” True enough. But sadly, Veronese fails to adequately cover many other common forms of environmental degradation that come with mining, such as erosion, sinkholes, loss of biodiversity and habitat, air and noise pollution, and the contamination of soil, groundwater, and surface water by chemicals emitted from mining processes. Often the ore for REEs is located in areas with limited and dwindling water supplies, where you can have REE mining, or water, but not both. When communities go dry due to the massive water usage of nearby open-pit mines, will their conservative voters end their blind support for the feverishly pro-mining Republican Party? A parched mouth might actually drive change, but, today, anyway, it’s hard to imagine.

[Lidja · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh.

[Nathan Albright · Rating 4 out of 5]

Admittedly, I would not consider myself to be as knowledgeable about the state of conflict metals or the current Chinese domination of the global trade in rare earth metals as I probably should be, but this book certainly provides plenty of insight about those subjects.  It so happens that rare earth metals are in some particularly interesting areas for some interesting reasons, and while there is a lot of speculation that exists about why this is the case, the fact that Greenland, Congo, and China (as well as the United States) are places where a lot of rare earth metals happen to be has a great deal of significance in the world, as it provides some play for geopolitics in how these resources are traded and developed.  It is clear that the author has spent a great deal of time reflecting on how materials are mined and the way they are put to use and how it is that scarcity and value and industrial use are all interrelated in strange ways.  If you have an interest in these matters then you will likely find much to appreciate in this book as well.

This particular book is a bit more than 200 pages and is divided into sixteen chapters.  The author begins by looking at the history between man and metal, going back a long time (1) before then looking at what makes rare earth metals rare (2).  This leads to a discussion about the way that China played the long game in order to ensure a dominance in the contemporary market for these metals (3) while also taking a look at what can be found in a single rock that makes rare earth metals such a fuel for conflict in Congo (4).  After that the author looks at the importance of the rare earth metals in the Cold War (5) as well as the way that some of them are created in nuclear reactors (6) in the process of controlled fission.  After that the author discusses the way that gold can be counterfeited (7) in clever ways and how some rare metals have been used to kill people in extremely unpleasant ways (8).  There is a discussion about the relationship between golf clubs, iphones, and tribal wars (9) as well as a look at the question of the concentration of these metals and what causes it (10).  The question of dirty recycling in poorer countries is the subject the author discusses next (11) and then the author discusses the way that rare earth metals could provide prosperity for Afghanistan if they were properly handled (12).  The author discusses platinum and its importance to the contemporary world (13) and then discusses what the next precious metals are likely to be (14).  Finally, the author discusses what happens when rare earth metals become too rare for contemporary industrial use (15) and how to make such matters more sustainable for the future (16), after which there is an epilogue, acknowledgements, and notes.

Rare earth metals are certainly quite rare, but for some reasons they are concentrated in certain areas of the globe.  The author notes that these metals are largely nondescript and obscure but that they have some important uses that became important when they were found in large enough quantities to be commercially viable.  Unfortunately, that commercial viability depends on China at present, and it would take years or some dramatic efforts for other areas to ramp up their supply of the metals in commercially useful form, since ores have to be mined and then refined.  At any rate, this author has a wide knowledge of where rare earth metals come from, how they are used, and what trade and conflicts result from their existence in certain parts of the world.  This sort of knowledge is, no pun intended, quite rare, and it is the sort of knowledge that people who want to understand at least part of the danger of contemporary geopolitics and the dangerous items that are required for our level of technology would do well to read this book or others like it.

[Michelle Bizzell · Rating 1 out of 5]

I took a chance on this book because I didn't know much about rare earth minerals, but they sounded like they had a fascinating story. This book does not tell that story. This book was a disappointment from start to finish. 1.) It never made up its mind if it was about elements that are rare, like gold a platinum, or about "rare earth minerals," a whole separate group of elements and minerals. 2.) The coverage of history and geopolitical events in the world at large was so bad as to be offensive. I have a cursory knowledge of recent events in the Democratic Republic of Congo and modern China, and I still knew that the author was doing both countries a huge disservice in attempting to write about them. He glossed over the massacre of millions in a few brief sentences. He contradicted himself multiple times. It was bad. 3.) The actual science was equally terrible, although in a new and different way. He utterly failed to explain anything that was going in or to tell a single story from beginning to end. His citation of primary sources was poor, he didn't include a single interview, and he didn't visit any of the places described in the book.
After a long stretch of reading great science writing, this book demonstrates how not to write. 👎

[Haru Fujimura · Rating 4 out of 5]

A pleasant review of the importance of different metals to our everyday life. Many surprising facts, which are counter intuitive are presented, like Lanthanum being the metal component of nickel metal hydride batteries (which are common in electric and hybrid vehicles). As it comes from a chemistry point of view, the author makes several interesting remarks on safety for the at home metallurgist and recycler.

Personally, I found the ending chapter on space exploration and mining to be a bit pedantic, as if it was included for some conception of completeness.

I would include the book on a required reading list in an inorganic chemistry curricula

[Marc Hutton · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is only marginally about Rare Earth Elements. It is more like a rant about what the author wants to talk about only occasionally mentioning the rare earth elements as some type of spell to justify the books title. Just as the author claims to hold a PhD in Chemistry, so do I. I find the author’s attempts of explaining more complex chemical concepts to be comical at best and seriously lacking at worst. If you are expecting this book to explain today’s technical need for rear earth elements or even the political landscape around them you are going to find yourself wanting. This is a book that I not only want my money back for but the time I spent reading it as well.

[Cullen Haynes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rare, is no doubt a very interesting book.

At times it does read like a Uni science textbook, nonetheless it’s message is clear - nothing lasts forever. Rare metals are used everyday in a wide range of products; especially technology. Soon, they will be depleted, and what then?

Will scientists be able to come up with a suitable substitute? Or will they be able to find a way to duplicate that which we have. Whatever the answer, there is no doubt our insatiable need for speed, innovation and the cutting edge will be our ultimate driver...

[Steve Walsh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written and approachable for the non-scientist. This account of the forgotten yet critical elements of our everyday modern life educates without getting bogged down in the fine details of chemistry. The author does a stand-up job relating the trail of mineral importance throughout history and how the rare-earth elements will be the next power struggle for our planet.

[Judy Aulik · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reads like a magazine (not a journal) article expanded to book length. There was too much filler--like a near chapter's worth of discussion of Afghanistan--and the physical chemistry section was simplified to the point of boredom. Still, it's unlike anything else you'd find on your public library's shelf, and sometimes that's a good thing.

[Quincy Koetz · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was interesting and thought provoking but a bit meandering. Each chapter is stand-alone which is nice for casual/night-time reading. Looking forward to reading more about rare earth metals in the future.

[Claudio Arato · Rating 5 out of 5]

For what this, it is exceptionally well written and accessible. It is an ideal intro to rare earths and geopolitics for any layperson. It is broad in coverage and appealing. Well done.

[Scott Milam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of interesting stories and information. The organization of the book felt a bit disconnected at times.

[Gabija Maršalka · Rating 1 out of 5]

The first books which managed to annoy me so much in several pages so much that I started correcting scientific nonsenses in pencil to be able to read.

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Basically China owns all the rare earth metals that we need to survive as a modern species. Some of this book was really interesting and some of it fell flat for me.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

Could use some editing.

[Stefanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting enough, but overall, not especially cohesive.

[Randall Wallace · Rating 3 out of 5]

As Keith tells you, we all hold in our hands smartphones with over 40 grams of a rare earth called tantalum, but getting that tantalum through mining it from coltan in the Congo or getting other rare earths through repressive mining elsewhere around the world is a nasty story not discussed in this book. But give it up for the sleek cover; after the expensive fresh graphics I thought this book was going to teach me a lot. Nope… Most of us know that a lot of today’s high tech stuff we take for granted uses rare earth metals and China “kinda” owns the market this but what else will this book teach us? If you suffer through the rather tame pages of basic stuff you might glean some useful stuff, like how aluminum was until the mid 1800’s a rare sight; a parallel for isolation of today’s rare earths. And I learned the many ways in which modern chemistry owes great debts to the seemingly idiotic quest of alchemy (filtration, crystallization and distillation). Of interest, he refers to US dumping sites of electronic waste as “toxic colonies” where remediation will never happen due to permanent impoverishment. In the end, not a terrible book, but not a great one because sadly, without Nicole Sommer-Lecht’s great book cover design, this book disappoints.

[Correen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A compendium of information about rare earth metals, it is amazingly reader friendly. My interest in rare earth metals was piqued when my husband and I had a corporate client who was the last manufacturer in the U.S. of rare earth magnets. I was then fascinated by neodymium so when I saw this book, it drew me to it.

This is a very interesting topic as the metals are often unstable, dangerous, and difficult to isolate. Many are essential to our modern life-style and hard to find. China currently holds the largest supply but that could change at any time when other countries find ways of isolating metals in the ocean floor, or in other less hospitable places. Countries may struggle for rights to the metals in Antarctica or form agreements with countries to aid in isolating the metals. Some metals are being recycled from cell phones, computers, etc. China again has led the world in this often very dirty work.

So far, environmental groups have been surprising quiet on the mining and recycling of rare earth metals.
It will be interesting to watch this story unfold.

[Diana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating description of the world's increasing dependence on rare earth metals and the challenges and conflicts that arise due to the difficulty associated with their extraction and purification as well as their distribution among different countries and political states. The book strikes an excellent balance between the science, political commentary and history, with a sprinkling of pop culture thrown in to lighten the often dire predictions of scarcity and strife. A great read.

[Tuck · Rating 2 out of 5]

17 rare earth metals. this book will give you those, and some others 'hard to acquire', and looks at uses of these metals, their discoveries, china's role as main supplier now, cern and other science role in looking for more. and batteries. lots of typos in book, and some problems with storyline and transitions

[Vickie Backus · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting topic when based on the science of rare earth metals but slide into science fiction at the end. Needs to have a periodic table as a plate-existing plates are not talked about in the narrative.

[Pcox · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting

[Katie · Rating 2 out of 5]

While written on an interesting subject, the book did not go into enough detail for me. It was extremely repetitive and generally poorly written.

[Jason · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice look at Rare Earth metals and the race to find more and the impact on the world, they are used in a lot more places than smart phones....