How Shaped Neodymium Magnets Are Manufactured

Rare-earth magnets are widely known for their immense strength and numerous manufacturing applications. Precisely speaking, neodymium has unparalleled power and permanence over other rare-earth elements. Magnets containing neodymium, also called Neo magnets, come in various shapes such as arc, block, disc, cylinder and countersunk. Magnets of a specific shape are generally chipped from a manufactured standard block. During the producing process, atomic particles with their electron spin are put through a delicate and complex arrangement. After mine first, the raw material is crushed to a particulate substance and blend carefully through the grinding and alloy mixing process. This is how the manufacturer comes up with various grades of raw material.

Each grade of crushed material has unique magnetic properties. Therefore, different grades are of unique power of resistance against high temperatures and other environmental factors. Moreover, some grades are stronger and durable while others are not. The third step is pressing. The mixture is compressed together into a form and then followed by the fourth step called particle alignment. The producer of Neomagnets uses a very big electromagnet to align the material particles of the pressed mixture. This allows magnetization to be possible afterwards. After the alignment has taken place properly, the sintering procedure follows to ensure that the aligned particles are firmly locked into place. Note that special machines are required for all the machining procedures above.

Milling and cutting is the next necessary step in order for a refined mixture. Many magnets manufacturers use jet milling, which consists of highly pressurized gas put in an inert atmosphere. Expert millers can beat the scale of plus/minus 0.05 mm. They can manage to work with higher level of tolerance. Soon after producing finished arc magnets as well as other particular shapes, they are plated and connected with optional materials like epoxy, nickel, zinc, ABS plastic or copper. The aim is to protect the nascent and naked products from rusting; otherwise they are corroded rather fast. Neodymium magnets are alloys of iron, neodymium and boron, whose alloying property leads to their susceptibility to corrosion and collision. When it comes to collision and breakage, the underlying material feature is that atoms inside the magnet want to pull away from each other. There is no technical solution but to handle it cautiously. Therefore, safety information or handling guide must be attached with the final product.

Proper magnetization process takes place when all the steps mentioned above have been completed successfully. When a magnet is magnetized, it is given magnetic properties. The direction of particle alignment is considered and set up during the alignment phase. After magnetization is completed, neodymium arc magnets and other shapes must be sampled and tested through a quality assurance procedure. If they pass this process they are then considered ready for distribution and sale. Nowadays, it is easy to find a number of online retailers and distributors supplying neodymium magnets. But not all commercialized magnets have premier quality and good service. It is very important to check a vendor to see if it can provide polymorphic, customized, thermoduric neodymium magnets with good price, quality and turnaround time.

By Stanford Magnets

Stanford Magnets has been involved in R&D, manufacturing and sales of permanent magnets since the mid 1980s. We are supplier of rare earth permanent magnetic products such as neodymium magnets, and other non-rare earth permanent magnets. We have provided various customers in different fields, such as NMR (Nuclear Magnetic Resonance), loud speakers, wind turbines and mechanical devices, large quantities at very competitive pricing.