Buy Rare Earth Magnets
Where to Buy Rare Earth Magnets
Rare earth magnets have long been at the core of technological innovation, being utilized in cell phones, computers and audio equipment among others.
Rare earth magnets can also be found in motors and oil filters to help prevent engine wear. There are currently two main types of rare earth magnets: neodymium and samarium cobalt.
Neodymium
Neodymium rare earth magnets are among the strongest permanent magnets available and are widely utilized in various products like hard disk drives, loudspeakers, microphones and headphones as well as anti-lock brake sensors in cars.
These magnets are constructed using a mixture of neodymium, iron and boron atoms combined into a crystal structure to offer additional protection from demagnetization when heated or cooled.
To produce these powerful magnets, a process called isostatic pressing must be used. This involves depositing a thin layer of neodymium powder onto a special machine which compresses them together.
Time-consuming yet yields high-quality magnets, isostatic pressing requires treating neodymium material with an oven known as a sintering oven after isostatic pressing - an extremely delicate process requiring precise control.
After sintered, neodymium needs to be formed into various shapes such as discs, cylinders and rectangles - this process may take several hours.
Neodymium magnets have the capability of withstanding extreme temperature conditions due to their strong magnetic properties; this also makes them very durable; however, corrosion issues should still be taken into consideration.
Neodymium magnets come in various grades and we can assist in choosing the appropriate grade for your application. When working in high temperature environments, it is crucial that you understand how neodymium reacts to heat as this will impact its performance and efficiency.
Curie Temperatures should also be taken into consideration. These are temperatures at which neodymium magnets no longer possess magnetic properties and should no longer be used.
Curie temperature, measured in degrees Celsius/Fahrenheit, can be quite low for neodymium magnets. When this threshold is reached, magnetic atoms no longer align in one direction and therefore cease being ferromagnetic.
Neodymium magnets can be very dangerous due to their intense magnetic pull that draws objects quickly toward them and causes injuries when in contact with people. Therefore, it is advisable not to use these in areas where people might come into contact with them.
Samarium Cobalt
Samarium cobalt magnets are an ideal choice if your application requires high temperature tolerance or corrosion-resistance, being part of the rare earth family and second only to neodymium in terms of temperature limits.
Neodymium magnets are more resistant to corrosion than their neodymium counterparts, making them suitable for use in environments prone to corrosion where neodymium magnets might not perform as effectively. Furthermore, these magnets come in numerous sizes and shapes that allow you to custom design them according to your specifications.
Samarium Cobalt (SmCo) permanent magnets are produced via the sintering process, and, like any sintered material, are susceptible to cracking.
These magnets are widely utilized across applications that span automobiles, marine vessels, medical applications and hi-tech computer and electronics applications where temperatures range significantly - often outperforming their neodymium counterparts which only offer limited tolerance to temperatures above or below their maximum operating temperature range.
The highest-performing SmCo magnets are composed of an alloy that comprises 35% samarium and 60% cobalt, along with small amounts of iron, copper, hafnium and zirconium for improved heat treatment responses.
These samarium cobalt magnets typically offer energy products between 16 MGOe and 25 MGOe and feature an excellent reversible temperature coefficient - typically below 0.03 percent/degree C.
Rare earth magnets can be purchased either bonded or sintered for extremely close tolerances, with the latter offering lower costs but with increased maximum energy output. Bonded rare earth magnets tend to be less costly.
Samarium cobalt magnets come in two series, Sm2Co17 and SmCo5 or Series 1-5 of age hardening types; although SmCo 2-17 series magnets may be harder to calibrate due to being more complex.
Rare earth magnets are among the strongest available, offering strong magnetic forces with greater resistance to corrosion and oxidation than their neodymium counterparts - making them suitable for numerous applications.
Ceramic
Ceramic rare earth magnets are permanent magnets made from an alloy composed of neodymium, boron and iron alloys, used to construct magnetic assemblies for use in many different applications.
Neodymium and boron are both lanthanide minerals found in the ground. Their production can have profound environmental and health ramifications, such as soil pollution, habitat destruction and release of harmful gases and particles into the air.
Rare earth elements possess a strong magnetic moment due to the abundance of unpaired electrons present in their orbital electron structures, enabling atoms from this class to align in their f-shell and generate a magnetic field without experiencing cancellation of magnetization.
Rare earth metals are known for their unusually robust chemical makeup that makes them resistant to degradation, chemical reactions that could produce toxic compounds, and environmental elements that degrade metals quickly. This distinction accounts for their designation as rare earths.
Due to these properties, rare earth magnets are widely utilized across electronics and industrial applications, including holding objects in place and controlling motors and devices.
Magnets come in various forms, from neodymium-iron-boron (neo) magnets, samarium cobalt magnets and ferrite magnets made through powder metallurgy processes to be found commercially available.
Manufacturing requires grounding the materials into precise sizes before compacting them in steel or rubber molds for pressing at high pressure; this presses magnetic particles more closely together, improving alignment and increasing strength.
Sintereding of the magnets produced from rare earth metals is an established practice and helps increase both their strength and durability while simultaneously keeping their cost under control.
Neodymium magnets are by far the most sought-after and strongest of rare earth magnets, boasting stronger magnetization than both ferrite and alnico varieties. Their magnetic fields can reach as strong as 1.4 Teslas; enough powering an entire electric motor; making these metals essential components of modern technology.
Ferrite
Ferrite rare earth magnets are ceramic magnets with magnetic properties used widely across electronic devices. Their creation involves mixing ferric oxide (iron oxide) with other metals such as magnesium, aluminum, copper, barium or manganese for maximum magnetic attraction.
Ferrites typically feature gray or black hues, featuring polycrystalline structures arranged along one plane; however, their atomic orientations can also be aligned in different directions.
Rare earth elements - such as lanthanides, scandium, and yttrium - all belong to the rare earth family in the periodic table and can all be magnetized into creating strong permanent magnetic fields, similar to iron's permanent one that fades at a temperature known as Curie temperature.
As opposed to iron, lanthanides cannot be separated from their surrounding substances easily, meaning they must be combined with transition metals in order to form compounds with high Curie temperatures for magnetic applications. Neodymium magnets were introduced during the 1980s and remain one of the most popular rare earth magnets due to their affordability and strength.
Electrical brushes are used in numerous industrial and medical applications, from motors for cordless tools and electric guitars to audio speakers and magnetic resonance imaging technology. Furthermore, they are frequently found in computer hard drives and wind turbine generators.
Neodymium rare earth magnets can be coated with various materials to meet specific applications. While this doesn't impact their magnetic properties, corrosion protection is an added advantage of having coated magnets.
Samarium cobalt rare earth magnets are less prevalent than their neodymium counterparts due to being more expensive and having lower magnetic field strengths; however, they're frequently employed in industrial applications requiring high Curie temperatures.
Rare earth magnets should be protected from corrosion and other environmental influences in order to preserve their ferromagnetism, either by coating with stainless steel or by encasing in an epoxy resin encasing system.