Dysprosium

Given the significant interest on the LYC thread in Dysprosium by Jan Johnson and others - thought it was appropriate to post this here ...

Dysprosium (Dy, atomic number 66) is a heavy rare earth element. It makes up 0.9% of the REE resources and reserves.

Supply of dysprosium is estimated at 1,350 tonnes per year, 99% of which originates in China (Figure 183).


Most dysprosium is used in magnets (98%) as shown in Figure 184, where it essential to enable the use of NdFeB magnets at elevated temperatures. Other uses for dysprosium include lasers and the nuclear industry. Total world consumption for dysprosium is estimated at 850 tonnes, indicating a significant surplus. Dysprosium is perceived as one of the most significant raw materials in criticality studies (particularly those related to energy technologiesa) due to growing demand for permanent magnets for applications such as direct-drive wind turbines, combined with restricted supply.


Substitution of magnets is not possible for many applications at present, however this is a large area for research. Specific concerns over dysprosium have led to a large amount of research aimed at eliminating or reducing its use from NdFeB magnets. This has led to a reduction in the amount of dysprosium required to achieve the same magnetic performance, however complete a substitute has not been found.

The world outlook for dysprosium supply and demand is shown in Figure 185. The overall demand for dysprosium is expected to increase by around 9% per year. Supply is expected to just about keep up with demand, although the market balance will remain increasing tight as the decade progresses.




Major developments are noteworthy for magnets, approaches include reduction of dysprosium content, new or alternative magnetic materials, technology choices such as induction motors or geared systems. However, rare earth magnets are often still preferred due to the high performance offered.

http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/poli...es/docs/crm-critical-material-profiles_en.pdf