Quote:
Originally Posted by Paul
Despite their name, Rare Earth elements are not actually that rare, its just a misname thats stuck over the centuries.
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Correct, technically they ‘rare; at all, but they all have very similar chemical properties, (check where they are on the periodic table, well other than Scandium), and only exist in nature as similar compounds, which means that separating and isolating each one tended to be a laborious and costly exercise.
Hence the name. Historically.