The characterization of the initial raw material was also studied by Raman analysis. According to the results, it was found that the optimum conditions for Sc recovery are the following: C\({}_{\text{acid}}\) = 5 M, S/L = 10%, T = 25 \({}^{\circ}\)C, and t = 1 h, with a scandium recovery about 50%. ## References  
* Ochsenkuhn-Petropulu et al. 1994 Ochsenkuhn-Petropulu, M.; Lyberopulu, T.; Parissakis, G. Direct determination of landthanides, yttrium and scandium in bauxites and red mud from alumina production. _Anal. Chim. Acta_**1994**, _296_, 305-313. * Ochsenkuehn-Petropoulou et al. 2018 Ochsenkuehn-Petropoulou, M.; Tsakanika, L.-A. ; Lymperopoulou, T.; Ochsenkuehn, K.-M.; Hatzilyberis, K.; Georgiou, P.; Stergiopoulos, C.; Serifi, O.; Tsopelas, F. Efficiency of sulfuric acid on selective scandium leachability from bauxite residue. _Metals_**2018**, \(8\), 915. * Liu and Li 2015 Liu, Z.; Li, H. Metallurgical process for valuable elements recovery from red mud--A review. _Hydrometallurgy_**2015**, _155_, 29-43. * Shang et al. 2018 Shang, W.; Koivula, R.; Wiikinkoski, E.; Xu, J.; Hietala, S.; Lehto, J.; Harjula, R. Efficient and Selective Recovery of Trace Scandium by Inorganic Titanium Phosphate IonExchangers from Leachates of Waste Bauxite Residue. _ACS Sustain. Chem. Eng._**2017**, \(5\), 3103-3114. * Ye et al. (2018) Ye, Q.; Deng, B.; Luo, J.; Rao, M.; Peng, Z.; Jiang, T. Extraction of scandium from scandium-rich material derived from bauxite ore residues. _Hydrometallurgy_**2018**, _176_, 62-68. * _Rare Earth Elements Determination by Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry after Alkaline Fusion_
* Munculwane
* Mintek (2002) Mintek, 200 Malibongwe Drive, Randburg 2194, South Africa; hlengiwem@mintek.co.za  
There is an increasing worldwide demand for rare earth elements (REEs) in new technology applications such as electronics, superconductors, lasers, computers, rechargeable hydride batteries, artificial diamonds, glass and ceramics, and space applications. Some of the world's most exotic and innovative technologies that play a significant role in our day-to-day life owe their success to rare earths. Although REEs are present in low concentrations in most minerals (over 190 minerals containing significant amounts of REEs), the primary resources of REEs are only three minerals, namely bastnaesite, monazite, and xenotime. The determination of REEs in geological and metallurgical samples is extremely important, as they are the source materials for all REEs products. In order to improve the accuracy and precision of REEs and Y measurements by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), the following conditions must be fulfilled: complete digestion of refractory phases and minerals in the samples, low procedural blanks, separation of interfering matrix, and elimination of molecular and direct isobaric interferences on the mass of the analytes of interest. Conventional methods that use hotplate or high-pressure Parr Bombs and a mixture of HCL-HNO3-HF-HCLO4 [1,2] are effective, but can take days to achieve complete dissolution of samples that contain highly refractory phases, which is unacceptable in the mining and metallurgical industry. Such difficult samples necessitate high-temperature alkaline flux fusion, as it offers a faster and more efficient alternative to acid digestion. This paper presents an accurate, precise, rapid, and reliable method for rare earth element analysis by ICP-MS with low detection limits, wide linear dynamic range, and simple operation [3], which involves no sample pre-concentration and is, therefore, able to deliver data rapidly. The analytical performance of the improved method was evaluated in terms of limit of detection (LOD), limit of quantification (LOQ), linearity, accuracy, and precision. The procedure was tested successfully on various REEs rock type certified reference materials and the results obtained were in reasonable agreement with published certificate values. ## References  
* Baker et al.