source：Logistics Middle East
University of Birmingham announces a three-year research project with Bentley Motors to deliver a sustainable source of rare earth magnets
The University of Birmingham has announced a three-year research project with Bentley Motors to deliver a sustainable source of rare earth magnets for electric and hybrid vehicles for one of the world's most sought-after luxury car brands.
The GBP2.6m ($3,62m) RaRE (Rare-earth Recycling for E-machines) project is funded by the Office for Low Emission Vehicles (OLEV) and delivered in partnership with Innovate UK. It involves six partners who will establish the first end-to-end supply chain of recycled rare earth magnets in the UK.
Rare earth magnets are found in almost every appliance that uses electricity to generate motion. In the last 30 years, their use has increased exponentially, and although they are increasingly important in the transition to a low carbon economy, less than 1% of these magnets are recycled.
RaRE will build on an innovative technology developed by Professor Allan Walton and Professor Emeritus Rex Harris of the University of Birmingham's Magnetic Materials Group. It is the only research group in the UK focussed on processing and recycling permanent rare earth magnetic materials.
Nick Mann, Operations General Manager at HyProMag, added: 'RaRE is an exciting project and a fantastic opportunity. HyProMag's recycling technologies allow us to produce NdFeB magnets with a much lower embedded carbon cost than using virgin supply and with independence from Chinese supply and we are working closely with our major shareholder Mkango Resources to further grow the business. We are proud to be working with established, innovative and renowned companies in the RaRE project with whom we can showcase the technologies of the RaRE project as a whole – recycled magnets being used for cutting edge products in a prestige application.'
The technology, called Hydrogen Processing of Magnet Scrap (HPMS), extracts rare earth metals from waste electronics by breaking them into a powder that is easily separated from the remaining components.
The technology was patented by the University of Birmingham Enterprise and subsequently licensed to HyProMag Ltd, the Birmingham researchers' company. HyProMag has since received substantial investment from Mkango Resources, fully funding HyProMag's contribution to RaRE.
The project will develop a process to recycle magnets extracted from computer hard drives to make rare earth magnets for use in bespoke ancillary motors and involve HyProMag scaling up the recycling techniques developed at the University of Birmingham.
The University will also provide cast alloys, which HyProMag will blend with secondary materials to produce the 'sintered' magnets formed by press moulding the metal powders.
Jon Bray, R&D Manager, Office for Zero Emissions Vehicles, commented: 'We are excited to be supporting this innovative project as part of our ambition to put the UK at the forefront of the design, manufacture and use of zero emission vehicles.'