Neodymium and Dysprosium - Comparison - Properties

This article contains comparison of key thermal and atomic properties of neodymium and dysprosium, two comparable chemical elements from the periodic table. It also contains basic descriptions and applications of both elements. Neodymium vs Dysprosium.

neodymium and dysprosium - comparison

Compare neodymium with another element

Compare dysprosium with another element

Neodymium and Dysprosium – About Elements

Neodymium

Neodymium is a soft silvery metal that tarnishes in air. Neodymium is not found naturally in metallic form or unmixed with other lanthanides, and it is usually refined for general use. Although neodymium is classed as a rare earth, it is a fairly common element.

Dysprosium

Dysprosium is a rare earth element with a metallic silver luster. Dysprosium is used for its high thermal neutron absorption cross-section in making control rods in nuclear reactors, for its high magnetic susceptibility in data storage applications.

Neodymium in Periodic Table

Dysprosium in Periodic Table

Source: www.luciteria.com

Neodymium and Dysprosium – Applications

Neodymium

The most important use for neodymium is in an alloy with iron and boron to make very strong permanent magnets. These magnets are widely used in such products as microphones, professional loudspeakers, in-ear headphones, high performance hobby DC electric motors, and computer hard disks, where low magnet mass (or volume) or strong magnetic fields are required. Larger neodymium magnets are used in high-power-versus-weight electric motors (for example in hybrid cars) and generators (for example aircraft and wind turbine electric generators). Neodymium is a component, along with praseodymium, of didymium glass. This is a special glass for goggles used during glass blowing and welding. The element colours glass delicate shades of violet, wine-red and grey. Neodymium is also used in the glass for tanning booths, since it transmits the tanning UV rays but not the heating infrared rays.

Dysprosium

Dysprosium is utilized in ferrites and magnetic alloys for microwave use. Dysprosium is increasingly in demand for the permanent magnets used in electric-car motors and wind-turbine generators. Special stainless steels alloyed with dysprosium are used in nuclear control applications, that is, nuclear reactor control rods. The candidate of a new absorber material for accident-tollerant control rods includes gadolinia (Gd2O3), samaria (Sm2O3), europia (Eu2O3), dysprosia (Dy2O3), hafnia (HfO2).

Neodymium and Dysprosium – Comparison in Table

Element	Neodymium	Dysprosium
Density	7.01 g/cm3	8.551 g/cm3
Ultimate Tensile Strength	155 MPa	220 MPa
Yield Strength	150 MPa	200 MPa
Young’s Modulus of Elasticity	41.4 GPa	61.4 GPa
Mohs Scale	N/A	N/A
Brinell Hardness	265 MPa	500 MPa
Vickers Hardness	350 MPa	550 MPa
Melting Point	1016 °C	1412 °C
Boiling Point	3074 °C	2567 °C
Thermal Conductivity	17 W/mK	11 W/mK
Thermal Expansion Coefficient	9.6 µm/mK	9.9 µm/mK
Specific Heat	0.19 J/g K	0.17 J/g K
Heat of Fusion	7.14 kJ/mol	11.06 kJ/mol
Heat of Vaporization	273 kJ/mol	230.1 kJ/mol