Hey there! If you’ve ever been curious about how the tech world is tackling the high costs of rare earth elements, I’ve got some exciting news for you. Researchers at the Korea Institute of Materials Science (KIMS) have come up with a groundbreaking way to make high-performance permanent magnets without using those pricey heavy rare earths. This development, led by Dr. Tae-Hoon Kim and Dr. Jung-Goo Lee, is detailed in the journal Acta Materialia.
Now, why is this such a big deal? Well, permanent magnets are crucial for making electric vehicles (EVs) and robots. Traditionally, producing these magnets has meant relying heavily on rare earth elements, mostly sourced from China, which drives up both dependency and costs. But here’s where KIMS’s innovation shines. They’ve developed a two-step grain boundary diffusion process that skips the need for these expensive materials.
Let me break it down for you. First, they thermally infuse a high-melting-point metal into the magnet. Once that’s done, they cool it down and infuse it again, this time with a more affordable light rare earth material, specifically Praseodymium. What’s really clever about this method is how it prevents abnormal grain coarsening during the process—a problem that’s been a headache for improving efficiency and magnetic performance in the past.
This new approach ramps up the magnet’s coercivity, which means it can perform just as well as those made with heavy rare earths. In practical terms, magnets made using this method can achieve performance grades that match commercial standards, from 45SH to 40UH.
If this technology hits the market, it could slash production costs and boost efficiency for industries like electric vehicles, drones, and advanced transportation. Dr. Tae-Hoon Kim shared his thoughts, saying, “Right now, using expensive heavy rare earth elements in magnets for EV motors and high-end home appliances seems unavoidable. But with heavy rare earth resources concentrated in specific regions and their high costs, researchers worldwide have been working hard to find alternatives. Progress has been slow, but this new technology could change the game, freeing the industry from its reliance on heavy rare earths and putting South Korea at the forefront of magnet technology.”
