2025年10月22日星期三
[REEs] Timeline of China’s rare earth refining technologies and Concept of Parallelization
中国稀土精煉技術的時間表與平行化概念。 平行化概念上有前景，但在化學和後勤上很難大規模實施。目前，平行化可以應用於現有技術，以加快流程，而 Copilot 再次指出，對於平行操作，需要大規模的重新設計和資本投入。廢物管理和環境控制亦令平行設置更複雜，特別是在處理放射性或有毒副產品時。這個領域正朝向更具選擇性和效率的方法發展，未來可能支援平行模組──但目前，精確性仍比速度更重要。
In 1978, a group of Chinese engineers visited major U.S. aerospace firms—Lockheed Martin and McDonnell Douglas—to observe advanced technologies, including rare earth applications. While their names weren’t publicly disclosed, this visit marked a pivotal moment in China’s rise in rare earth processing.
Lockheed Martin and McDonnell Douglas were among the key destinations. These firms were leaders in aerospace and defense, heavily reliant on rare earth elements for high-performance magnets, guidance systems, and alloys. The engineers toured facilities and observed how rare earths were integrated into advanced manufacturing and defense technologies.
While the visit was officially framed as general industrial observation, it’s believed the engineers gained insights into 1. Applications of rare earths in high-tech systems, 2. Basic refining and separation techniques and 3. Supply chain integration and strategic value of rare earths.
These learnings were later adapted and scaled in China, which aggressively invested in rare earth mining, refining, and export infrastructure throughout the 1980s and 1990s
Here’s a timeline of China’s rare earth refining technologies from 1978 to 2025. It highlights key milestones—from the pivotal U.S. visit to the rise of advanced separation methods and global dominance.
Timeline Highlights
1978: Chinese engineers visit Lockheed and McDonnell Douglas, gaining insights into rare earth applications.
1980s: China adopts solvent extraction techniques, laying the foundation for industrial-scale separation.
1990s: Major expansion of refining infrastructure; China becomes the world’s leading exporter.
2000s: Environmental reforms and consolidation of rare earth firms improve efficiency and reduce pollution.
2010: Export quotas trigger global concern and push other nations to seek alternatives.
2015: Quotas end; China begins strategic stockpiling and invests in domestic tech.
2020s: Advanced methods like membrane separation and metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) emerge.
2025: China maintains global leadership, focusing on sustainability and innovation.
This timeline reflects not just technological evolution but also strategic policy shifts that helped China dominate the rare earth supply chain.
Parallelization
Above also shows that US does have the refining technology for the rare earth metals. But it is an old technology. Parallelization can theoretically accelerate rare earth metal separation. Parallelization might help:
Data-driven optimization: AI and machine learning can parallelize simulations to find optimal separation conditions faster.
Modular pilot plants: Some labs are experimenting with modular systems that could run parallel separations for different REE groups (e.g., light vs. heavy rare earths).
Recycling streams: End-of-life product recycling might allow parallel processing of different feedstocks, since the input composition varies more than mined ores.
Copilot points that parallelization is conceptually promising but chemically and logistically difficult to implement at scale. For the time being, parallelization can be applied to the current technology as to speed up the process, while Copilot again points out that for parallel operation, massive redesigns and capital investment are needed. Waste management and environmental controls also complicate parallel setups, especially when dealing with radioactive or toxic byproducts. the field is moving toward more selective, efficient methods that could support parallel modules in the future—but for now, precision trumps speed.
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