Element category: lanthanide
Cerium is a soft, ductile, malleable metal which is very reactive in air or water, belonging to the lanthanide group. Cerium is also the most abundant of the rare earth elements, making up about 0.0046% of the earth's crust.
Cerium is often used in the pyrophoric ferrocerium alloy used for lighter flints. It also can be used as a component for the carbon electrodes of arc lamps which are used in the motion industry.
Ceria (Cerium Oxide, CeO2) is the most widely used compound of cerium. The main application of ceria is as polishing compounds.