Chinese research suggests coal as a rare-earth source for the future

A new study reveals significant rare-earth element concentrations in coal from the Chongqing and Yunnan regions.

A newly released preprint paper suggests that coal waste in China may provide over 5000,000t of rare earth elements (REE) annually within the next decade. This would double the current annual output.

The study says that Chinese coal from closed mines in Chongqing and Yunnan contains significant concentrations of critical rare-earth elements (CREY), particularly praseodymium (Pr), neodymium (Nd), gadolinium (Gd), terbium (Tb), and dysprosium (Dy).

While the paper shows positive recoverable reserves and suggests that this process could match conventional deposits, commercialisation of REE extraction from coal has not yet been proven.