Rare earth elements and their importance for economy and safety

Abstract

Rare earth elements (REEs) are a group of elements of fundamental importance for the industry, including especially high-tech solutions. Lack of alternatives for this group of materials in some applications used in the armaments industry results in rare earth elements having a substantial impact on safety of highly developed countries. A complicated situation on the market of rare earth elements, arising out of the Chinese monopoly on the extraction and sale of REE-bearing minerals as well as huge price fluctuations caused by political turmoils contribute to the fact that the technology of extraction, processing and usage of rare earth elements is addressed in many scientific works. The article describes basic information regarding the rare earth elements, including technological, industrial and political conditions.