This is how China 'BUILT ITS EMPIRE,' expert reveals (about rare earth metals)

Recommendable!

Japan’s Deep-Sea Gamble For Rare Earths Amid China Tensions

Recommendable!

Alkali Treatment Implications for Microwave-Assisted Rare Earth Elements Extraction from Coal Mine Tailings

Good news! Rare earth elements are not rare!

"... discovered a new way to extract rare earth elements out of coal tailings, the cast-off soil and rock left behind by coal mining. Using a chemical treatment and a specially designed microwave reactor to control the temperature, the researchers have doubled the extraction levels previously possible. ..."

"... Pennsylvania alone, where the tailings for their experiment were harvested, contains an estimated 2 billion tons of coal tailings, according to their paper. ..."

From the abstract:

"Coal tailings represent a promising secondary resource of rare earth elements (REEs), yet efficient extraction is limited by their complex mineralogy. This study investigated the impact of alkali pretreatment on aluminosilicate structures in coal tailings and its implications for REE extraction via acid digestion. Precombustion coal refuse was treated with 5 M NaOH at varying solid-to-liquid (S/L) ratios (5, 50 g/L) and reaction times (5, 15 min), including a multistep (five-cycle) treatment under microwave conditions. At 180 °C, XRD, 29Si NMR, and thermodynamic modeling showed kaolinite transformed to hydrosodalite at high S/L ratios, while kaolinite completely dissolved at low S/L ratios.

Quartz maintained crystallinity but slowly transformed to amorphous silica during prolonged alkaline treatment. Compared to untreated tailings, light REE extraction was enhanced by a factor of ∼3 when kaolinite dissolved and by ∼2 when it converted to hydrosodalite; heavy REE extraction increased by ∼2 and ∼1.5, respectively.

Extending pretreatment time produced minimal additional enhancement, indicating that under microwave conditions, kaolinite concentration in alkaline solutions and hydrosodalite solubility in acidic solutions are the primary factors controlling REE release. Alkali pretreatment also promoted uranium removal prior to acid digestion, while REE extraction correlated strongly with Mg, Ca, Fe, and Ti release."

Scientific Breakthrough Could Double Rare Earth Elements Extraction : ScienceAlert

Rare earth element extraction can be doubled with this new technique (original news release) "New Northeastern research has identified a method of extracting rare earth elements from the mining waste product that is two to three times more efficient than previous approaches."

Alkali Treatment Implications for Microwave-Assisted Rare Earth Elements Extraction from Coal Mine Tailings (open access)

Graphical abstract

The Trump administration will take a 10% stake in USA Rare Earth company

The President is serious about rare earth minerals!

"The Trump administration will take a 10% stake in USA Rare Earth as part of a $1.6 billion debt-and-equity deal aimed at boosting domestic production of critical minerals, according to sources."

"The Trump administration is taking a 10% stake in USA Rare Earth (USAR.O), opens new tab as part of a $1.6 billion debt-and-equity investment package aimed at helping the company develop a domestic mine and magnet facility, two sources familiar with the deal told Reuters.

The deal and a separate $1 billion private investment will be unveiled on Monday ..."

Monday, January 26, 2026 - Join The Flyover

Trump admin to take 10% stake in USA Rare Earth in $1.6 bln deal, sources say

Japan Launches World’s First Deep-Sea Rare Earth Mining Test at a depth of about four miles

Good news!

"“Japan has launched the world’s first test to extract rare earth elements from deep-sea mud, aiming to reduce its reliance on Chinese supplies amid rising geopolitical and trade tensions.

Chikyu, a government-backed Japanese mining vessel set sail on Monday for waters near Minamitori Island, a remote coral atoll in the Pacific, to study seabed mud rich in rare earth elements at a depth of about four miles. If successful, the project would mark the first sustained attempt globally to lift rare-earth-bearing sludge from the ocean floor directly onto a ship.”"

Japan Launches World’s First Deep-Sea Rare Earth Mining Test - Human Progress

Japan launches world’s first deep-sea rare earth mining test

Japan to test rare-earth mining from deep seabed mud

The deep-sea drilling vessel Chikyu

How rare-earth mining in Texas could help US break ties with China

Good news! Round top! Maybe one of the largest deposits in the world!

French-American chemist makes major breakthrough in recycling of rare earths using sulphur

Good news! Amazing stuff!

A US company will start recycling rare earth metals from electronic waste in January 2026 with Maria Bartiromo

Good news!

US Treasury’s Bessent: America “Taking Back Our Sovereignty” on Rare Earths and Pharmaceuticals

Recommendable!

Remember China is not a free market economy, but an economy significantly controlled by the Communist Party of China.

"Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Breitbart Business Digest in an exclusive interview that the Trump administration is determined to end America’s dangerous dependence on China for critical materials and pharmaceuticals, describing the effort as “taking back our sovereignty.” ...

Bessent laid out a strategy of “de-risking, not decoupling” from China across strategic industries including rare earths, pharmaceuticals, semiconductors, steel, and shipbuilding.

How America Lost Its Rare Earth Industry

“It’s inexcusable,” Bessent said of America’s current vulnerability. “This is back to this unfettered free trade idea. The technology, especially in rare earth magnets, that’s being used against us — it was U.S. technology.”

The Treasury Secretary pointed out that the key technology in modern rare earth magnet production was invented by General Motors but was then later sold to a Chinese firm. The Chinese company was required to keep the business in the United States for five years. As soon as that period was over, they left the U.S. altogether.

“In a day, they moved it to China,” Bessent said. Since then, China deploys predatory dumping tactics whenever American companies attempt to establish rare earth facilities. “The Chinese come in, they flood the market with unfair competition, and no administration has done anything about it,” Bessent explained.

That cycle — Chinese dumping, followed by U.S. inaction — became a built-in deterrent to American investment. As a result, it became almost impossible to attract investment for rare earth production in the U.S. Would-be investors rationally feared the U.S. government would do nothing while the Chinese regime cooperated with Chinese rare earth makers to dump product on the global market at prices below the cost of production and bankrupt competitors in free market economies.

President Trump tried to address the issue in his first administration, Bessent noted, but environmentalists blocked the effort.

First Rare Earth Magnet Made in South Carolina in 25 Years

Now the administration is seeing breakthrough results. Bessent highlighted a facility in Sumter, South Carolina, where the first rare earth magnet manufactured in the United States in 25 years was recently produced. The plant represents 300 jobs, with 800 construction jobs created during its build-out. Bessent said the facility could expand to ten times its current size, potentially creating 3,000 jobs. ..."

Breitbart Business Digest

Official photo

The race for Greenland’s Mineral wealth

Recommendable! Discovered by the Vikings! 

Europe builds first large-scale rare earth production facility to cut China reliance

Good news! Long overdue! What were these laggards waiting for?

Why coal mining company Ramaco Says It Can Beat Its Government-Backed Rival For Rare Earth Supremacy in Wyoming

Recommendable! Remember, rare earth metals are not rare!

Conifer Motors builds motors by replacing rare earth magnets with iron magnets

Good news!

"... California-based Conifer Motors is trying to break that stranglehold by simply cutting rare earth materials out of the equation and making EV motors from one of the most abundant materials on Earth: iron. ...

Most electric motors are radial-flux. That is, they are cylindrical with magnets spinning around a central shaft, which makes them simple, reliable and scalable. Axial flux, on the other hand, is more like a flat disk. Like a tuna can (axial) instead of a soda can (radial). These motors generally run lower RPMs and produce more torque due to their wider radius and shorter magnetic path. ...

Conifer isn't trying to break into the electric car market with these new iron-based axial-flux motors. Instead, the company is focusing on smaller 1 to 25-hp (0.75-18.65-kW) electric motor applications for stuff like HVAC fans and pumps, tools and equipment, and even fun stuff like in-wheel motor designs for small electric vehicles and off-road toys – think scooters, ATVs, and urban delivery vehicles.  ...

Conifer's in-wheel design simplifies everything: no axles, no differentials, and no other powertrain bits, making the entire vehicle project less complex and less expensive with less energy loss in transmissions, CV joints and the like. It also has the potential for better traction control systems, as each drive wheel would have its own motor. ..."

Conifer builds iron motors to replace rare earth magnets

Conifer's in-wheel design could be used for a whole host of things, like riding lawn mowers

Japan to begin extracting deep-sea rare earths next year

Good news! Rare earth metals are not rare! China has only quasi monopolized the processing of rare earth metals.

"Japan will extract rare earth minerals from an offshore deposit in a first-of-its-kind pilot project that will begin January next year, Nikkei has learned.

The Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC) will station the Chikyu, a deep-sea scientific drilling vessel, 100 to 150 kilometers from the coast of Minami-Torishima Island, a coral atoll about 1,950 km southeast of Tokyo. ..."

Japan to begin extracting deep-sea rare earths next year - Nikkei Asia "First-of-its-kind project to tap world's 3rd-largest reserve of rare earth minerals"

The exploration vessel Chikyu will lower a pipe 5,500 meters below the ocean's surface to extract rare earths.

Brazil courts investment in rare earths as China alternative

Good news! Sometimes even a lefty like the Brazilian President Lula (age 79, a former labor union leader) understands business!

Remember: Rare earth metals are not rare, but China has monopolized its processing!

I bet the usual suspects will protest again if the mining takes place in the Amazon rainforest, i.e. preserve the Amazon rainforest and save its indigenous people etc. Don't be distracted! There are reasonable solutions for these concerns!

"Brazil is courting global capital to develop the world's second-largest reserves of rare earths, looking to become an alternative supplier amid Chinese export controls that have throttled shipments of the critical minerals.

"We want to strengthen the research and exploration of critical minerals," Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said in May. "This is now the focus of the entire world. Brazil cannot afford to miss this opportunity." ..."

Brazil courts investment in rare earths as China alternative - Nikkei Asia "Global developers rush to tap the country's largely undeveloped reserves"

Inside Europe’s biggest rare earth facility outside of China

Good news, but way too late! It will still take years for this new facility to be fully operational! Better late, than never!

This invisible Norwegian mine could solve Europe's rare earth problem

Very recommendable! This will probably become Europe's largest rare earth mine and processing center.

Why does China dominate the world market for processed rare earth minerals with a share of about 85%?

It is Western stupidity! Too much government overregulation and environmentalism prevents the processing of rare earth in Western countries.

One could also say Western countries offloaded the processing to China to satisfy green activists!

"... While China only controls about 30 percent of the rare earth minerals known to exist on the planet, they process about 85 percent of it. This is down from a peak of 97 percent a few years ago.

The reason why they are able to dominate is partially because of American bureaucracy and hypocrisy. Our bureaucracy creates mountains of red tape that must be navigated in order to get these elements out of the ground (or ocean) and into useable form, in large part due to environmental concerns. ..."

Breitbart Business Digest

Study finds US coal ash contains $8.4B or 11 million tons in rare earth elements

Good news! One man's trash is another man's treasure!

Extinct, millions of years old volcanoes: untapped sources of rare earth elements

Good news! Let the rare earth rush begin!

Remember “Rare earth elements aren’t that rare”

"Scientists have simulated the actions of a volcano to conclude that extinct volcanoes across the globe are likely full of rare earth elements that could help supply the world’s growing demand for these difficult to extract resources. ..."

".... “We have never seen an iron-rich magma erupt from an active volcano, but we know some extinct volcanoes, which are millions of years old, had this enigmatic type of eruption,” ...

... “Our findings suggest that these iron-rich extinct volcanoes across the globe, such as El Laco in Chile, could be studied for the presence of rare earth elements.” ..."

"... The researchers simulated volcanic eruptions in the lab by sourcing rocks similar to those from iron-rich extinct volcanoes. They put these rocks into a pressurised furnace and heated them to extremely high temperatures to melt them and learn more about the minerals inside the rocks.

This is how they discovered the abundance of rare earth elements contained in iron-rich volcanic rocks. ...

China has the biggest deposit of rare earth elements on the planet, while Europe's largest deposit of rare earths is in Sweden. Australia has a world-class deposit at Mount Weld in Western Australia and others near Dubbo and Alice Springs. ..."

From the abstract:

"A surging rare earth element (REE) demand calls for finding new REE resources. Iron oxide-apatite (IOA) deposits have substantial REE potential, but their REE enrichment mechanisms remain uncertain, hindering REE exploration. The dominant process of IOA deposit formation is also hotly debated. Here, we use novel layered piston-cylinder experiments to address these questions. Seventeen magmatic FeP–Si immiscibility experiments, across 800–1150 °C, and at 0.4 and 0.8 GPa, reproduced many natural textural (e.g., dendritic magnetite) and geochemical (e.g., DLFeP–LSiTi/Fe  < 1) features of IOA deposits. Magmatic-hydrothermal fluid bubbles and iron oxide-bubble pairs formed as well. The results strongly support FeP–Si immiscibility as a controlling factor in IOA deposits, although not mutually exclusive with other models. Light REE partition into FeP liquids, preferentially to heavy REE, explaining the light REE enrichment of IOA deposits. Some DLFeP–LSiREE values reach above 100, much higher than previously reported. Hence, any FeP rich rock that experienced magmatic Fe-Si immiscibility (e.g., IOA, nelsonites) is expected to be light REE enriched and should be considered as a REE exploration target."

Extinct volcanoes: untapped sources of rare earth elements

Extinct volcanoes a 'rich' source of rare earth elements, research suggests (original news release)

Silicate and iron phosphate melt immiscibility promotes REE enrichment (open access)

Figure 1 (a) Previous immiscibility experiments doped with trace elements, overlain by our new experiments (triangles, squares, and pentagons).  ... (b) The layered set-up of representative experiments.