Bastnaesite carbochlorination process with fluorine fixation agents:An approach for low-waste rare earth extraction

Xue Haiyue; Lv Guozhi; Wang Long; Ren Jiawei; Zhao Xinxin; Wang Song; Zhang Tingan

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Bastnaesite carbochlorination process with fluorine fixation agents:An approach for low-waste rare earth extraction

Updated：2026-03-13

- Bastnaesite carbochlorination process with fluorine fixation agents:An approach for low-waste rare earth extraction
- Chinese Journal of Chemical Engineering Vol. 89, Issue 1, Pages: 47-58(2026)
- Affiliations：
  
  School of Metallurgy, Northeastern University, Shenyang 110819, China
- Author bio：
  
  Corresponding authors. E-mail addresses: lvgz@smm.neu.edu.cn(G. Lv)
  zta2000@163.net(T. Zhang).
- Funds：
- DOI：
  CLC：
- Received：20 May 2025，
  
  Revised：2025-08-13，
  
  Accepted：14 August 2025，
  
  Online First：01 September 2025，
  
  Published：2026-01
- Accepted：
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Xue Haiyue, Lv Guozhi, Wang Long, et al. Bastnaesite carbochlorination process with fluorine fixation agents:An approach for low-waste rare earth extraction[J]. Chinese Journal of Chemical Engineering, 2026, 89(1): 47-58.
DOI：

Xue Haiyue, Lv Guozhi, Wang Long, et al. Bastnaesite carbochlorination process with fluorine fixation agents:An approach for low-waste rare earth extraction[J]. Chinese Journal of Chemical Engineering, 2026, 89(1): 47-58. DOI：

摘要

Abstract

As an important strategic rare-earth resource

bastnaesite has long been a global research focus. The carbochlorination process

as an efficient and low-cost extraction method

can be applied to treat bastnaesite

achieving ideal rare-earth extraction results in just one-step reaction. By using inexpensive chlorine gas as the chlorinating agent

it avoids lengthy procedural steps and the generation of acid-base waste liquids. Based on this

we propose a novel carbochlorination process for bastnaesite involving a fluorine-fixing agent. Thermodynamic data for the carbochlorination process of bastnaesite were calculated using the group contribution method. Thermodynamic feasibility was verified through Gibbs free energy. The effects of different chlorination times

fluorine-fixing agent dosages

chlorine flow rates

and chlorination temperatures on the carbochlorination process of bastnaesite were investigated. Experimental studies showed that under optimal chlorination conditions

a temperature of 800

◦

a duration of 60 min

a fluorine-fixing agent dosage of 10%

and a chlorine flow rate of 10 L·min

- 1

the chlorination rates of rare-earth elements

and Fe in bastnaesite reached 96%

99%

98%

and 99%

respectively. The reaction mechanism was explored and analyzed based on characterization results such as mineral phase composition

micromorphology and thermogravimetry of water-washed residues under different chlorination conditions. Additionally

kinetic experiments were conducted at varying reaction temperatures and chlorine flow rates

revealing that the carbon-chlorination process is primarily controlled by chemical reactions.

关键词

Keywords

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