2017-Sustainable Industrial Processing Summit
SIPS 2017 Volume 1. Barrios Intl. Symp. / Non-ferrous Smelting & Hydro/Electrochemical Processing
| Editors: | Kongoli F, Palacios M, Buenger T, Meza JH, Delgado E, Joudrie MC, Gonzales T, Treand N |
| Publisher: | Flogen Star OUTREACH |
| Publication Year: | 2017 |
| Pages: | 264 pages |
| ISBN: | 978-1-987820-61-4 |
| ISSN: | 2291-1227 (Metals and Materials Processing in a Clean Environment Series) |
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The Use of Rare Earth Elements as Agricultural Enhancers
Antonio Zamuner Filho1;1FEDERAL UNIVERSITY OF GOIáS, Catal�o, Brazil;
Type of Paper: Regular
Id Paper: 38
Topic: 6
Abstract:
Rare Earth Elements (REE) are substances with physicochemical properties and characteristics of similar occurrence, 15 of them belonging to the series of Lanthanides, which together with Yttrium and Scandium total 17 elements. These, in turn, can be found in carbonates, oxides, silicates and phosphates and, particularly in Brazil, in Monazite and carbonatites. Due to the source material and the production methods used in the mines containing these minerals, it is expected that REE levels will be found in their products and by-products. In this scenario, the generation of tailings is inherent to any process of mineral processing and constitutes materials that do not present economic value, considering aspects of current market supply and demand. In this way, any initiative for its reduction or use can bring benefits, both from a financial and socio-environmental point of view, a challenge for sustainable development. China, the country with the largest REE reserve in the world, has been researching and using, since the 1970�s, fertilizers containing REE in their formulations for the development of plants. In Brazil, although a world-wide exponent of agriculture, there are no reports of such use on a commercial scale, except indirectly via phosphate fertilizers and soil acidity corrective, given that these inputs are capable of presenting REE contents as a function of the raw material source. In this context, the present research aims to carry out a systematic bibliographic review on the subject, seeking to understand the process of using the REE in the development of plants with a focus on the Brazilian potential for its use.