Sources of the lanthanoids and actinoids

The world s resources of rare earth metals lie mainly in deposits of bastnasite in China and the US. The chart 

The demand for the rare earth metals increased over the last two decades of the 20th century, and the demand for cerium oxides in motor vehicle catalytic converters (see equations 26.39 and 26.40) has been a major contributing factor. In 2001, the major use (34% of the total consumption) for rare earth metals in the US was in glass polishing and ceramics. Petroleum catalysts and catalytic converters 

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Atom and ion sizes and the lanthanoid contraction Spectroscopic and magnetic properties Sources of the lanthanoids and actinoids... 

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