Rare earth elements composition in surface sediment from Kelantan river

Abstract

Rare earth elements (REE) are a set of 17 chemically similar metallic elements including 15 lanthanides, scandium and yttrium. The objectives of this study are to determine the rare earth elements composition in the surface sediments from Kelantan River by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) and to assess the economic Enrichment Factor of each rare earth elements by using Clarke Value which based on its average crustal concentration. The result of economic Enrichment Factor (EF) can be utilized as a preliminary economic feasibility of rare earth mining along Kelantan River. 28 surface sediments were collected along Kelantan River, dried and near-total digested prior to ICP-MS analysis for REE quantification. The results show that the total REE in sediment fluctuated along the river but all REEs were lower than the typical mineable ore grades. In conclusion, the fluvial sediment mining of REE in Kelantan River is not economically feasible at the present time.