| Mossander separated a previously unidentified rose coloured oxide from cerite in 1841. He believed that the oxide contained a new element which he names didymium, as it was the inseparable twin brother of lanthanum. Although, von Welsbach successfully separated didymium into two elemental components, neodymia and praseodymia in 1885, it was not until 1925, when neodymium was separated into a raltively pure form. Occurrence Neodymium is found in misch metal for which it comprises about 18%. It is also found in minerals such as monazite and bastnasite, which are the most common sources for rare earth metals. Refining It can be refined by separating neodymium salts from other rare earths by ion-exchange or solvent extraction. Alternatively it can be obtained by the reduction of anhydrous halides such as NdF3 using calcium metal, while other separation methods are also available. | 
Goodfellow
