Quantifying the Praseodymium Recycling Supply in China and Its Improvement Strategy

Abstract

Praseodymium (Pr) is a critical mineral for the global clean energy industry. The global demand for Pr continues to increase. China possesses the largest proven reserves and highest production of Pr worldwide. However, a future Pr supply-demand gap still could occur in China. Developing a circular economy and promoting material recycling are considered solutions to the potential supply constraints. This study adopts a material flow analysis method and combines it with the recycling input rate (RIR) indicator to estimate the potential quantities of the Pr recycling supply in China from 2011 to 2020. The key findings are as follows: (1) From 2011 to 2020, 7.902 × 104 t Pr entered the anthropogenic cycle system in China from the supply side, of which 1.639 × 104 t Pr originated from recycling; (2) 1.369 × 104 t Pr was recycled from NdFeB magnet production scraps, with the RIR remaining stable at approximately 17%; (3) theoretically, 2.7 × 103 t Pr could be recycled from end-of-life (EoL) products, and the RIR of EoL products could increase from 0.04% to 5.17%. In view of the major challenges in realizing Pr recycling from EoL products, this study proposes improvement strategies to promote Pr recycling in China. They include improving the extended producer responsibility of China, progressively establishing consumer responsibility for relevant products, and guiding the industry to formulate recycling-related technical specifications and industry standards.

Keywords

• praseodymium
• recycling
• material flow analysis
• recycling input rate