Engineering topics
Publications and source records attributed to Nlebedim, Cajetan I..
A magnetic ink composition for three-dimensional (3D) printing a bonded magnet is provided. The magnetic ink composition includes magnetic particles, a polymer binder and a solvent. A 3D printing method for fabrication of a bonded magnet using the magnetic ink composition is also provided.
Samarium-cobalt sintered magnets offer excellent magnetic properties, thermal stability, and corrosion resistance. They are used in a variety of defense and civilian applications, especially when elevated operation temperatures (e.g., 200 ºC to 550 ºC) are required. However, the utilization of these materials is restricted by their brittleness. Improving their mechanical resilience would make them more cost-effective, efficient, and robust in decarbonization and other function-related applications while reducing the pressure on critical material supply chains. In this paper, we engineer a series of novel heterogeneous microstructures, such as laminated coarse grain (CG)/fine grain (FG) and core/shell CG/FG microstructures, to produce unprecedented combinations of superior mechanical and magnetic properties without altering the chemical compositions of the magnets or common heat treatment procedures. Further, a 60% flexural strength enhancement is obtained using heterogeneous Sm 2 (CoFeCuZr) 17 sintered magnets with little impact on their magnetic properties. The mechanically robust heterogeneous Sm-Co sintered magnets have a minor (e.g., less than 4.6%) reduction in the energy product (BH) max due to a slightly reduced squareness of the demagnetization curve, with no decrease in either the remanence (B r ) or the intrinsic coercivity (H ci ). The flexural strengths of these heterogeneous Sm-Co magnets depend on the volume ratios and mean grain sizes of the FG/CG regions, as well as their microstructural architectures. The fine-grained regions act as mechanical strengthening sites, which can be strategically used when designing the magnet for different applications. This technology is highly compatible with existing magnet manufacturing processes and thus can be adopted readily by the magnet industry.
Samarium-cobalt alloys are used in some of the strongest permanent magnets, particularly for applications between about 200 and 550°C, but the utilization of these materials is restricted by their brittleness. Improving their mechanical resilience would allow them to be used more widely and, in some cases, substitute for neodymium-based magnet alloys which are subject to supply-chain risks. In this work, we have engineered a series of novel microstructures with bi-modal grain size distributions to achieve unprecedented combinations of mechanical and magnetic properties. Improvements up to 73% are obtained in the flexural strength of Sm 2 (CoFeCuZr) 17 sintered magnets, with negligible impact on the magnetic properties. Our mechanically-robust, high-performance Sm-Co magnets are made without changing the chemical compositions of the materials or their heat treatment procedures, making them highly compatible with existing manufacturing processes.
A bulk high performance permanent magnet comprising a neodymium-iron-boron core having an outer surface, and a coercivity-enhancing element residing on at least a portion of said outer surface, with an interior portion of said neodymium-iron-boron core not having said coercivity-enhancing element therein. Also described herein is a method for producing the high-coercivity bulk permanent magnet, the method comprising: (i) depositing a coercivity-enhancing element on at least a portion of an outer surface of a neodymium-iron-boron core substrate to form a coated permanent magnet; and (ii) subjecting the coated permanent magnet to a pulse thermal process that heats said outer surface to a substantially higher temperature than an interior portion of said neodymium-iron-boron core substrate, wherein said substantially higher temperature is at least 200° C. higher than said interior portion and is of sufficient magnitude to induce diffusion of said coercivity-enhancing element below said outer surface but outside of said interior portion.