Yttrium oxide has a wide range of downstream applications and the domestic product structure needs to be optimized.

Yttrium oxide, also known as yttrium trioxide, has a chemical formula of Y2O3 and appears as white slightly yellow cubic crystals or powder. Yttrium oxide is insoluble in water, insoluble in alkali, and soluble in acid. It easily absorbs carbon dioxide and water when exposed to the air. It has excellent properties such as high dielectric constant, good corrosion resistance, and good heat resistance.

The preparation methods of yttrium oxide mainly include: using the mixed rare earth solution obtained by decomposing yttrium niobium ore as the raw material, and using the extraction method; using metallic yttrium as the raw material, using the uniform reduction method; and using the thermal decomposition of yttrium oxalate, etc. Yttrium oxide is an important raw material for the preparation of magneto-optical crystals such as yttrium iron garnet and yttrium aluminum garnet; it can be used to manufacture optical glass, thin film capacitors, superconducting materials, etc.; it can be used as phosphor, ceramic material additive, picture tube coating, and refractory material Stabilizers, etc. Yttrium oxide is widely used in display, lighting, laser, electronics, advanced ceramics, high-performance alloys, atomic energy, aerospace and other fields.

According to the “Yttrium Oxide Industry In-depth Market Research and Investment Strategy Suggestions Report 2021-2025” released by the Industrial Research Center, overseas In the market, the main yttrium oxide manufacturers include American Elements, Japan’s FUJIMI, Canadian Rare Earth Corporation, Belgium’s Solvay, etc. In the Chinese market, the main yttrium oxide manufacturers include Minmetals Rare Earth Group, Longyium Technology, Ganzhou Rare Earth Mining, Ganzhou Qiandong Rare Earth Group, Ganzhou Chenguang Rare Earth, Jiangyin Jiahua New Materials, etc.

In addition to supplying domestic market demand, the yttrium oxide produced in my country is also exported to overseas markets. my country’s export volume of yttrium oxide is far greater than its import volume. Since 2015, my country’s yttrium oxide export value has fluctuated greatly, but the import value has continued to grow, and the import unit price is much higher than the export unit price. Taking 2019 as an example, the average price per ton of yttrium oxide exported by my country was less than US$3,900, but the average price per ton of imported yttrium oxide exceeded US$133,000. It can be seen from this that my country’s yttrium oxide industry mainly produces mid-to-low-end products. The productivity of high-end products is insufficient, and demand still depends on imports.

Yttrium oxide ceramics are made from high-purity yttrium oxide powder (purity higher than 99.99%) and are produced by hot pressing sintering, vacuum sintering, hydrogen atmosphere sintering and other methods. It has excellent thermal properties, excellent light transmittance and electrical insulation. It has the characteristics of good resistance to plasma erosion and can be used as high-performance optical materials and semiconductor materials to manufacture high-temperature windows, fairings, radomes, infrared hoods, luminescent media, resist materials, lenses, crucibles, etc., and is used in Infrared detection, semiconductor, lighting, display, medical, military, scientific research and other fields.

Industry analysts said that yttrium is a rare earth metal element and is scarce in the earth’s crust. Looking at my country’s yttrium oxide import and export market, my country mainly produces mid- to low-end yttrium oxide, which is not conducive to companies improving profitability and also causes a waste of domestic rare earth resources. In the future, high-purity yttrium oxide with higher added value and yttrium oxide ceramics produced with high-purity yttrium oxide as raw materials are important directions for upgrading the industry structure.