Dysprosium Research Paper

Dysprosium (Dy), like any other natural element, is formed when a supernova occurs. A supernova is a rare celestial event wherein a dying star emits, in an extremely bright and short-lived manner, vast amounts of energy. When a supernova explosion occurs, elements heavier than iron are expelled out into space, eventually reaching Earth.

According to Britannica, this silver rare Earth element was first discovered with holmium and other lanthanides in 1886 by a French chemist, Paul-Emile Lecoq de Boisbaudran. Boisbaudran named his discovery after the Greek word “dysprositos,” meaning difficult to obtain. Furthermore, according to Royal Society of Chemistry, pure samples of dysprosium weren’t available until in the 1950s when Frank Spedding developed a more efficient and reliable way of separating rare Earth metals from each other, a method called ion-exchange chromatography.

Located in the lanthanide series or F-block and period six, Dysprosium has a total of 66 protons and electrons while 97 neutrons. It has a total atomic mass of 162.50 g/mol.
To be precise, dysprosium is crucial in the production of iPhones as it facilitates signal transmissions, satellite guidance, phone circuity, speakers, and vibration unit. Due to this high demand, it is strenuous to acquire more dysprosium or to recycle it since recycling electronics means having to smash, shred, and grind them which, thenceforth causes the elements in the device to turn into powder. In fact, ecologist Thomas Graedel of Yale University describes the process and materials as, “very aggressive solvents or very high-temperature molten metal processing. It’s not simple.” That being said, the recycling of dysprosium includes using a combination of hollow fiber membranes, organic solvents, and neutral extractants to selectively recover