The contest to build the world's strongest magnet

Like all other material, magnets also have to go through some stages which are focused below. This really describes the production process neodymium magnets, intended for practical magnet users.

1. Proper combination of raw elements:

The fundamental compound used for manufacturing Neodymium magnets is Nd₂Fe₁₄B.  However the practical use differs from this. The proportion of the compounds like Iron, Cobalt, Neodymium and Neodymium are altered in order to get different types of Neodymium magnets suitable for different purposes. The element iron increases the coercivity of magnets, while adding more amount of Cobalt can improve the properties at elevated temperatures. Neodymium can result in an improved intrinsic coercivity, however Dysprosium can affect the strength of the Neo Magnets.  So a required composition is used depending on the application.

2. Melting

In this phase the chemical reaction will be heated in a vacuum to keep it away from contamination. A vacuum induction furnace is used in this process.

3. Milling

After going through jet milling process the material become a power having the small particles of about the size of 3 micrometers.

4. Pressing

In this step the powder is pressed with a die at elevated temperatures of nearly 725°C. Then it is compressed into another die, about half of its original height. Here the atoms align at parallel to the pressing direction which increases magnetization strength in the material.

5. Sintering

Through the process of sintering the powder metallurgy is compressed at elevated temperatures just below the melting point of the material. Here the particles of the material adhere to each other.

6. Machining

Using the process of grinding the sintered magnets can be cut into the preferred shape suitable for different application. The only drawback of the process is high material cost due to wastage of material in the process.  The wasted material of the process cannot be used for recycling purposes even. That is the main reason why machining is kept to a minimum to produce complex and uncommon Neodymium magnets shapes.

7. Plating

In this process the Neodymium magnets are plated with the layers of nickel, copper and nickel.  This is essential to improve the corrosion resistant capacity of the material. A Neodymium magnet with no plating can easily lose their magnetic attribute in the existence of moisture.

8. Magnetization

Here, though the Neodymium magnets have all the property for direction of magnetization, yet they are not at all magnetized. For developing the quality of magnetization, they are exposed to a very strong magnetic strength for a brief moment.  The coil and capacitors used in the magnetizing process are of really of huge voltage enable the material to grow the magnetic field of its own.  

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