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Ytterbium

Description: Ytterbium has a silvery luster and is soft, malleable, and ductile. Even though the element is relatively stable, it should be stored in tightly sealed containers to avoid exposure to air and moisture. Ytterbium is readily attacked and dissolved by dilute and concentrated mineral acids and reacts slowly with water.

Source: Ytterbium can be found in a variety of rare minerals along with other rare earths. It is recovered commercially primarily from monazite sand, which contains about 0.03%. In recent years, ion-exchange and solvent extraction techniques have greatly simplified the separation of rare earths from one another.