Investigation of an innovative recycling process for Rare Earth magnets

Department

Department of Applied Science and Technology (DISAT)  and Department of Energy (DENERG), Politecnico of Turin

Main research activities/topics/projects

 Currently, the scarcity of rare earth elements is a significant issue due to the essential role of Nd-Fe-B permanent magnets in various technological applications. The global dependence on rare earth elements and the high costs associated with manufacturing these magnets present both environmental and economic challenges. As the demand for rare earth permanent magnets continues to increase, concerns about resource depletion, energy consumption, and waste generation are becoming more urgent. Developing new recycling methods for Nd-Fe-B permanent magnets is vital to address these challenges. Implementing effective techniques to recover and reuse rare earth elements from discarded or obsolete devices could substantially reduce the need for mining new resources, thereby minimizing the environmental impact associated with extraction and processing.

Therefore, the issue of permanent magnets highlights the need to find alternative and sustainable ways to produce, utilize, and recover these critical materials. Advancing novel recycling strategies is crucial for tackling the challenges related to resource scarcity, environmental concerns, and economic instability, contributing to a more sustainable future and fostering new opportunities in the green technology sector.

The research to be conducted at the Politecnico di Torino laboratories, involving the Brazilian post-doc candidate, aims to explore an innovative recycling method for rare earth magnets. This method utilizes gas atomization to melt scrap magnets and produce recycled Nd-Fe-B powders, which can then be used to manufacture new magnets. Gas atomization is a promising industrial production technique with several advantages, including high productivity and lower costs compared to other methods.

However, a limitation of gas-atomized powders is their relatively low magnetic properties. To enhance these properties, the research will also examine the effects of heat treatments and reactions in a hydrogen atmosphere, such as hydrogen decrepitation (HD) and the hydrogenation-disproportionation-desorption-recombination (HDDR) process. Additionally, the impact of additives in Nd-Fe-B permanent magnets, like Cu-containing low-melting-point alloys or other grain refiners, will be evaluated.

The activity will foresee the production of different powder batches by means of a gas atomizer. Powders will then be fully characterized in terms of chemical, physical and processing properties (i.e: rheology, laser absorbance, etc…). The following step of the activity will be the evaluation of the processability, mainly by means of Additive Manufacturing techniques, in order to investigate the best performing process for the production of final magnets.

Working language

The working language can indifferently be either Italian or English

Special entry requirements

Skills in the characterization of magnetic properties of metal powders and sintered components 

 Broad knowledge in the field of Material Science 

 Expertise in Industrial Engineering, material processing and fabrication methods

 Experience with Project management

 Experience with Intellectual property

 Leadership and proven ability to conduct his/her own research activities

 Excellent communication and organizational skills

Duration in months (min-max)

Post Doc: 9-12