As demand for AI and advanced electronics grows, the industry faces mounting pressure to reduce its reliance on scarce rare earth materials.

Much has been written and said in all areas of the world and in all walks of life about the challenges facing the world of technology. Whether it is developing and harnessing AI (artificial intelligence), utilizing electric vehicles, reducing pollution to leave a smaller carbon footprint, or training the next generation of employees to fill the multitude of jobs required to manufacture the advanced technologies that all the above will require, the number and magnitude of all these challenges is staggering. It is nothing, however, compared to the granddaddy of them all: creating the next generations of technology without depleting rare earth minerals.

Rare earths are front-page news today, but regrettably the focus is more toward geopolitical wrangling among countries that have them and those that do not. But all the saber-rattling among competitors fails to address the root challenge: how can new technologies be developed that perform the functions we want while using far less – or no – rare earths?

First, what are rare earth minerals? They include minerals that most people have heard of, such as cobalt, lithium, manganese, graphite, and silicon derived from quartz. There are far more than those, however, most with names that are hardly household: neodymium, praseodymium, dysprosium, terbium and samarium, to name a few, are among the ones used to form industrial-quality magnets, sometimes for high-heat applications. These can be found in the battery of just about any hybrid or electric vehicle.

And then there are rare earth elements, such as yttrium, europium, cerium, lanthanum and gadolinium among them, each used in different applications ranging from LED television and smartphone screens to MRI displays. Besides these rare earth minerals/elements, there is ever-increasing demand for other critical metals such as copper, silver, gold, indium and nickel.

By leveraging the above, advanced technologies have been developed and refined into highly manufacturable devices. As the name indicates, however, “rare” earth minerals, elements and metals are limited in supply and require a disproportional effort to extract and refine. When “rare” is combined with “disproportional effort,” and then “geopolitics” is added, the mix is a problematic combination that at some point will warrant a full-court press to meet the challenge of developing new technologies that do not deplete rare earths, are easier to extract, and reduce geopolitical saber-rattling for all concerned.

While replacing rare earth minerals in electronics and technology is an increasing challenge, it by no means will be a quick or easy process, especially if Big Tech is less concerned than it should be. This challenge, to me, is eerily similar to the late 1990s when the European Union (EU), via edict, banned lead in most electronics. Industry screamed it could not be done, but then the R&D commenced, and within a decade, lead was virtually eliminated from electronics. The only difference between then and now is that there is no entity like the EU to decree it shall be done.

Another similarity to the lead-free electronics initiative is the number of end-applications and industries – from critical high-reliability aerospace and military systems to consumer-oriented fare – competing for rare earths. Back in the 1990s, aircraft and autos were beginning to become electronics-rich. The demand for personal computers and cellphones was exploding, and telecommunications and server growth were exponential. Today, electronic vehicles of all types and sizes, home and garden tools powered by batteries, and server farms to support AI are all growing leaps and bounds, growth that looks to continue in the foreseeable future. All of this puts more demand for rare earths.

Possibly, the current geopolitical environment will result in a gauntlet being thrown down. Too often in contemporary politics, it is “ready, shoot, aim,” and if that approach results in rare earths being accessible to only a few countries, technologies that do not require them will then need to be developed. With hope, it will not come to that, and entrepreneurial technologists will see benefits that warrant the herculean effort to design out rare earth minerals.

However, as we all think about the challenges we have and the resulting opportunities they may create, replacing rare earth minerals in electronics and technology in general should be high on the list. High on the list of challenges and needs, but equally, it should be high on the list of opportunities that will create future profitability and the well-being of the planet.

Peter Bigelow has more than 30 years’ experience as a PCB executive, most recently as president of FTG Circuits Haverhill; peterbigelow@msn.com. He is vice chair of the PCEA PCB Management Symposium, taking place April 28 at PCB East.