China's CREIA convenes a November 2026 hydrogen storage conference in Xiamen, spotlighting rare earth alloys and Beijing's expanding downstream supply
Element Profile
Lanthanum
Symbol
La
Atomic number
57
Group
Light rare earth
Properties
Density
6.15 g/cm³
Melting point
920 °C
Boiling point
3464 °C
Crustal abundance
39 ppm
Supply Risk
Supply risk
Medium
Geological scarcity
Low
Primary economic driver
Oil refining catalysts, optical glass & NiMH batteries
Overview
About Lanthanum
Lanthanum (La, atomic number 57) is the first element of the lanthanide series and one of the most abundant rare earths. Oil refineries use it in cracking catalysts, and it also goes into optical glass, nickel-metal hydride batteries and water treatment. Because ores hold far more lanthanum and cerium than the market needs, lanthanum sits at the heart of the rare earth industry's balance problem.
What lanthanum is
Lanthanum is a soft, silvery, ductile metal that can be cut with a knife, according to Los Alamos National Laboratory. It is more reactive than the other lanthanides and gives off hydrogen gas in water. REEx groups it with the light rare earth elements.
The Royal Society of Chemistry notes that the pure metal has no commercial use of its own. Its alloys and compounds do the work. The physical properties listed on this page come from the same RSC periodic table.
Discovery and name
Swedish chemist Carl Gustaf Mosander discovered lanthanum in 1839 at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm. He found it in a sample of cerium oxide taken from the mineral cerite, and he waited until 1840 to publish. The name comes from the Greek lanthanein, meaning "to lie hidden," because the element had been concealed inside cerium (RSC; LANL).
Why refineries rely on lanthanum
Fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) units break heavy oil molecules into lighter fuels. The U.S. Geological Survey says rare-earth-enriched catalysts are essential to that cracking step and let refineries get significantly more product from each barrel. USGS identifies those refining catalysts as lanthanum-based.
The catalyst's active material is a zeolite. Adding lanthanum ions to zeolite Y makes it more stable in FCC service, according to the introduction of a 2021 study in RSC Advances. It also slows the damage the zeolite takes during regeneration in hot steam. A 2018 review in the Journal of Sustainable Metallurgy estimated that FCC catalysts take about 13% of yearly global rare earth oxide production. In the United States, catalysts were the leading estimated end use of rare earths in 2025, per USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026.
Optical glass, batteries and other uses
- Optical glass. Lanthanum greatly raises the refractive index of glass and is widely used in camera lenses (USGS). Special glasses for camera, microscope and telescope lenses can contain up to 40% lanthanum oxide by weight, according to the 2018 review. Lanthanum oxide also improves the alkali resistance of special glasses (RSC).
- Nickel-metal hydride batteries. NiMH battery anodes use a lanthanum-based alloy. USGS says hybrid cars with these batteries use as much as 10 to 15 kilograms of lanthanum per vehicle. To keep alloy costs down, makers often use mischmetal in place of pure lanthanum, according to the 2018 review.
- Hydrogen storage. A lanthanum-nickel alloy absorbs hydrogen and can store it for hydrogen-powered vehicles (RSC; LANL).
- Water treatment. Lanthanum binds dissolved phosphate into a solid that can be filtered out, and Binnemans and Jones (2015) describe lanthanum and cerium chlorides as an emerging water-treatment use. Lanthanum-modified bentonite clay is used to control phosphorus in lakes, and a review in Water Research by Copetti and colleagues counted about 200 applications worldwide. Lynas lists wastewater treatment among lanthanum's uses on its product page.
- Mischmetal and steel. Mischmetal, a mixed light rare earth alloy, is about 20% lanthanum and is used in lighter flints (RSC). USGS says lanthanum, cerium, neodymium and praseodymium are used in steelmaking to remove impurities.
- Lighting. Lanthanum compounds give off light close to sunlight and are used in studio and cinema lighting (RSC).
Older descriptions, including an earlier version of this page, list automotive catalytic converters as a main lanthanum use. USGS ties converters mainly to cerium. Lanthanum oxide has a supporting role in some converter designs, where patents such as U.S. Patent 4,591,580 describe it stabilizing the alumina support at high temperature.
Where lanthanum comes from
Lanthanum is recovered as a byproduct of mining for other rare earths (Binnemans and Jones). It comes out of the ground with the other light rare earths in bastnaesite and monazite. RSC puts lanthanum at about 38% of bastnaesite and about 25% of monazite. USGS says carbonatite deposits have been the world's main source of light rare earths since the 1960s. China's largest rare earth mining operation is Bayan Obo in Inner Mongolia, which produces iron ore along with bastnaesite and monazite (USGS PP 1802-O).
Mining is only the first step. The mixed ore has to be separated into individual elements by solvent extraction or ion exchange, and that step is where the rare earth supply chain concentrates. The IEA reported in October 2025 that China accounted for about 91% of separation and refining of the magnet rare earths. That figure covers neodymium, praseodymium, dysprosium and terbium, not lanthanum. Outside China, Lynas mines ore at Mount Weld in Western Australia, processes it at its plant in Kuantan, Malaysia, and lists lanthanum among its products as of October 2026.
The balance problem: more lanthanum than the market needs
Rare earth producers mine ore mainly to get neodymium and praseodymium for magnets. The same ore yields much larger amounts of lanthanum and cerium. Researchers Koen Binnemans and Peter Tom Jones call this mismatch between demand and natural abundance the "balance problem" in a 2015 paper.
For Western mining companies, the paper said, lanthanum and cerium content often lowers the value of the ore and can be a nuisance. Cerium is the worst case. In 2015 the authors judged the lanthanum market roughly in balance, thanks to NiMH batteries and optical glass. Their 2018 follow-up review classed both lanthanum and cerium as oversupplied. It expected falling use in NiMH batteries and fluorescent lamp phosphors to add to the lanthanum surplus.
The proposed fixes are new high-volume uses. They include phosphate removal from water, heat stabilizers for PVC plastic, and mischmetal additions to aluminum and magnesium alloys. The 2015 paper argues that no single measure solves the problem.
Export controls and supply risk
Lanthanum was not on the lists of rare earths China placed under export licensing in April 2025 or added in October 2025, according to USGS. The April list covered samarium, gadolinium, terbium, dysprosium, lutetium, scandium and yttrium. The October list covered europium, holmium, erbium, thulium and ytterbium. China suspended those controls in November 2025, before they took effect. Under MOFCOM Announcement No. 70, the suspension was set to run until November 10, 2026.
Lanthanum is abundant, so its supply risk lies in where separation capacity sits rather than in the ore. The U.S. government has treated it as worth stockpiling. The National Defense Stockpile's fiscal year 2025 plan listed 1,100 tons of lanthanum as a potential acquisition (USGS).
Recycling
The Royal Society of Chemistry puts lanthanum's recycling rate below 10%. USGS reported that limited quantities of rare earths were recovered from batteries, magnets and fluorescent lamps in 2025. Earlier USGS work describes recovery efforts for spent NiMH batteries and FCC catalysts. Honda expected its battery program to recover 80% of the rare earth metals in used batteries. German researchers worked on recovering lanthanum from spent FCC catalysts.
Why the price is hard to see
Rare earths do not trade on major commodity exchanges, according to Metals-Hub. Rare earths, lanthanum included, are sold in private deals, and the prices quoted in the press are assessments from price reporting agencies. USGS draws its lanthanum oxide series from Argus Media. A quoted price describes only the grade, market and date it was assessed for.
What drives lanthanum demand and supply
Lanthanum supply rises and falls with mining for neodymium and praseodymium. Demand rests on refinery catalysts and optical glass, and on how fast NiMH batteries give way to lithium-ion. New bulk uses such as water treatment are the main way the industry can absorb the surplus.
Frequently asked questions
What is lanthanum used for?
Lanthanum is used in fluid catalytic cracking catalysts at oil refineries, in high-refractive-index optical glass for camera lenses, and in the anodes of nickel-metal hydride batteries. Smaller uses include phosphate removal in water treatment, hydrogen storage alloys, mischmetal for lighter flints and steelmaking, and studio lighting.
Why do oil refineries use lanthanum?
Lanthanum stabilizes the zeolite in fluid catalytic cracking catalysts, which break heavy oil into lighter fuels. It helps the catalyst survive the hot steam of regeneration, and USGS says rare-earth catalysts let refineries get more product from each barrel.
What is the rare earth balance problem?
Producers mine light rare earth ore mainly for neodymium and praseodymium, but the same ore yields much larger amounts of lanthanum and cerium. Demand for those two does not keep up, so they pile up as surplus. Researchers call this mismatch the balance problem.
Where does lanthanum come from?
Lanthanum is a byproduct of mining bastnaesite and monazite for other rare earths. China's Bayan Obo mine is the country's largest rare earth operation, according to USGS. The IEA reported in October 2025 that China handled about 91% of separation and refining of the magnet rare earths. That figure does not cover lanthanum. Outside China, Lynas processes Western Australian ore in Malaysia and lists lanthanum among its products as of October 2026.
Does China restrict lanthanum exports?
Lanthanum was not among the rare earths China placed under export licensing in April 2025 or added in October 2025, according to USGS. Its supply risk comes mainly from where separation capacity sits rather than from the ore.
Primary Uses
- Fluid catalytic cracking catalysts (oil refining)
- Optical and camera lens glass
- NiMH battery anodes
- Water treatment (phosphate removal)
- Mischmetal and steelmaking
- Hydrogen storage alloys
Producing Projects
Companies
Found in Products
REEx Intelligence
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