RARE EARTHS CRITICAL FOR NATIONAL DEFENSE
By Harold Hough

Rare earths aren’t just important for our cell phones, computers, and DVD  players.  They are increasingly important in our national defense, which leaves the Department of Defense concerned that the United States may not have enough rare earths to wage a war, especially if China cuts off our supplies.

U.S. military technologies such as anti-submarine warfare, smart bombs, and night vision rely heavily upon rare earth elements.  But rebuilding an independent U.S. supply chain to protect the country from foreign dependency could take up to 15 years, according to a new report by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO).  The GAO report was commissioned to look at national security risks that could arise from our dependency upon rare earth elements.

Rare earth elements are also a critical part of devices such as lasers, radar, missile-guidance systems, satellites and aircraft electronics. And many military systems also rely upon commercial computer hard drives that use rare earth magnets.  Specific examples of rare earth-driven technologies include the navigation system for the M-1 Abrams battle tank, and the electric drive for the Navy's DDG-51 destroyers.   The GAO report states, "Defense systems will likely continue to depend on rare earth materials, based on their life cycles and lack of effective substitutes."  The rare earth element neodymium, for instance, is very magnetic and is used in everything from computer hard drives to wind turbines and hybrid cars.

The U.S. once supplied most of the global supply of rare earth elements, and also manufactured rare earth products such as the neodymium magnets.  But rare earth processing has largely shifted to China since the 1990s.  Fortunately, Mountain Pass, California is perhaps the largest non-Chinese rare earth deposit in the world.  The mine is currently processing old mine tailings and plans to mine cerium, lanthanum, praseodymium and neodymium oxides by 2012.  However, the situation was considered so critical a few years ago that the Navy even once considered helping fund the Mountain Pass mining and processing facility in 2006, in order to have a reliable U.S. supply of rare earth elements.

Unfortunately, Mountain Pass doesn’t supply all the rare earths that the Department of Defense needs.  It doesn’t produce “heavy” rare earths like terbium and dysprosium. Dysprosium is used in the production of lasers, nuclear control rods, and hard discs.   Terbium is used in solid state devices and as a stabilizer in fuel cells.  Just as important for national security, it is also a component of Terfenol-D, which, expands or contracts in the presence of a magnetic field.  This makes it critical for naval sonar systems.

Another rare earth deposit in Idaho - Diamond Creek - may solve some of the heavy rare earth shortage.  According to the GAO, without them the DOD will be unable to take full advantage of technological innovation.

Another problem is China’s dominance in the international rare earth industry.  Not only is it threatening to impose quotas on its exports, it controls much of the rare earth refining sector, which forces US mines to ship their oxides to China for refining. 

China is also investing in rare earth mining around the world.  At one time, it even tried to buy the Mountain Pass mine.  Although unsuccessful, China Minmetals Group of China has financed Upland Wings, Inc. and Wings Enterprises, Inc., which owns rare earth deposits at Pea Ridge, Missouri.  In 2009, the China Investment Corp bought a 17 percent stake in Teck Resources Ltd., which owns rare earth deposits in Iron Hills, Colorado.

Although the DoD doesn’t know how this Chinese influence impacts national security, it is producing a study on its dependency on foreign produced rare earths.  This study is due in September 2010.
However, there are solutions if the government is sufficiently concerned.  America could start stockpiling refined rare earth elements in the US National Defense Stockpile.  It could also encourage domestic production and refining.  According to the US Geological Survey, there are rare earth deposits in Lehmi Pass Idaho and Elk Creek, Nebraska; along with potential commercial deposits in Idaho, Montana and Wyoming.  The potential for a domestic rare earths industry is there if the Obama administration and Congress want it.