Electronics rare earth metals, what byproducts do the manufacturers produce and what is the impact on the environment? The environmental impact is a hefty one. Take for example Cerium and Neodymium. These are rather abundant metals, but China produces 90% of them, even though they only have 30% of the earth’s reserves. Why? Purportedly, nobody else is willing to pay the environmental price required for the techniques that are used to refine them. This involves crushing and dissolving in sulfuric acid on an industrial scale, and it produces a considerable amount of toxic byproduct.
Something to think about if you are designing electronics with rare earth metals.
20200617/https://getpocket.com/explore/item/the-dystopian-lake-filled-by-the-world-s-tech-lust
Also, please note the interior factory pictures. The paint on the wall looks all bent up, there is an odly placed fan? Look, the answers are obvious right here. The refining chemicals are caustic and the strip the paint right off the walls and ceiling. AND, by using only cheap means of air movement, without proper filtration and purification, unlike in Western industrial electroncis manufacturing environments, the chemicals have no impedance to do their damage. Imagine what all that exposure is doing to the workers themselves? Sad but true.