Rare earth industry injects vitality and vitality into "new infrastructure"

SMM News: "New Infrastructure" is one of the recent buzzwords. The National Development and Reform Commission recently issued an article to further clarify that the "new infrastructure" is guided by the new concept of development, driven by technological innovation, based on the information network, and oriented to the needs of high-quality development. an infrastructure system that provides services such as digital transformation, intelligent upgrading, integration and innovation.

Compared with traditional infrastructure, "new infrastructure" mainly focuses on the construction of new infrastructure based on science and technology and digital information. it mainly includes seven fields, such as 5G infrastructure, UHV, intercity high-speed railway and urban rail transit, new energy vehicle charging pile, big data center, artificial intelligence, industrial Internet and so on. People in the industry believe that the areas of "new infrastructure" that directly promote the development of rare earths are as follows:

First, high-speed rail, urban rail transit trains. During the 13th five-year Plan period, permanent magnet rail transit in China will develop rapidly. Some data show that by 2020, the market share of permanent magnet synchronous transmission system for new high-speed rail and urban rail transit trains will reach 30% and 50% respectively. In addition, during the 13th five-year Plan period, the total size of urban rail transit planning lines is 7305.3 km. If all permanent magnet traction systems are used, about 1827 tons of NdFeB will be needed. The total demand for NdFeB in China's rail transit is about 4577 tons. According to the price of 450000 yuan / ton high-performance NdFeB, rail transit can drive a NdFeB market of 2.06 billion yuan during the 13th five-year Plan period.

The second is Ni-MH battery. Ni-MH battery is the main application field of rare earth hydrogen storage alloy. 95% of the global rare earth hydrogen storage alloy is supplied by China and Japan. The output of hydrogen storage alloy in China exceeds 70% of the total global output. Ni-MH batteries are mainly used in mobile phones, notebook computers, cameras, electric vehicles, new energy vehicles and other fields. In Ni-MH batteries, rare earths account for 32.2%, while lanthanum, cerium, neodymium and praseodymium account for 20.2%, 8%, 3% and 1%, respectively. The demand for hydrogen storage alloys for a hybrid electric vehicle is about 10 kilograms, while in general, the amount of mixed rare earth metals is calculated according to 30% of the amount of hydrogen storage alloys, that is, each vehicle consumes about 3 kilograms of rare earths.

Third, industrial robots. According to the Robot Industry Development Plan (2016-2020) issued by the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the density target of domestic industrial robots is to reach 1.5 million people by 2020, and the market space for industrial robots will be further expanded in the future. The core components of industrial robot are controller, permanent magnet synchronous servo motor and reducer. It takes 25 kilograms of high-performance NdFeB to build a 165-kilogram welding robot.

In addition to the above "new infrastructure" areas that directly promote the development of rare earths, the "new infrastructure" areas that indirectly promote the development of rare earths include the construction of 5G base stations, wind power development, driving permanent magnet generators, new energy vehicles and so on. It is expected that during the 14th five-year Plan period, with the continuous implementation of national strategies such as strategic emerging industries and "Internet plus", emerging industries such as intelligent manufacturing, high-end equipment, new energy vehicles, industrial robots, 3D printing and other emerging industries will be accelerated, and the application and development space of rare earth magnets and other materials will be broader.

The field of "new infrastructure" to promote the development of rare earths needs to be designed from the top level, and constantly improved and implemented to promote the development of rare earths in a more standardized and modern direction. Judging from the information published, the state will promote the in-depth development of the rare earth industry around the industrial applications of environmental desulphurization and denitrification, hydrogen storage and the application of new LED technology, new energy vehicles and wind power equipment, and is expected to focus on the application of new technologies such as rare earth permanent magnets, luminescence and catalysis.

The acceleration of "new infrastructure" provides an opportunity for the development of China's rare earth industry, and the demand for rare earth materials in the domestic market is increasing rapidly. For example, the high-speed rail and urban rail transit industry equipped with advanced permanent magnet traction system, as a strategic emerging industry, will transform the resource advantages of rare earths into economic advantages. There is also a huge demand for rare earth permanent magnet materials in low-carbon industry, and rare earths are expected to play a key connecting role in the field of industrial Internet, injecting vitality and vitality into the "new infrastructure".

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