Rare Element Resources
Bear Lodge Project
Canadian NI 43-101 Technical Report
October 9
th
, 2014
10135-200-46 - Rev. 0
19-5
Magnets
– Rare earth magnets are generally considered to be the fastest growing
segment of the market for rare earths with the elements neodymium, praseodymium,
dysprosium, terbium and samarium being the most commonly used. Rare earth
permanent magnets generate a particularly strong and consistent magnetic field
relative to their size and, therefore, have been an important enabling technology for
electronic miniaturization and for recent generations of particularly powerful electric
motors. Use of rare earths in a magnet’s formulation also generally enhances its
resistance to de-magnetization. In many ways, permanent magnets and their design
and fabrication are still an emerging technology, and several market sources suggest
that the availability of more magnet materials from non-Chinese sources could
actually drive demand and increase applications that use rare earth magnets
(“supply-push” demand growth instead of the usual “demand-pull” growth).
The most common rare earth magnets are neodymium-iron-boron (NdFeB) magnets
and samarium-cobalt (SmCo) magnets. Dysprosium and terbium are used mostly in
NdFeB magnets to enable the use of these magnets in higher temperature
applications. SmCo magnets are often used in applications where the magnets must
be able to resist de-magnetization even when hit with strong electromagnetic pulses
from outside sources. These magnets enable specialized defense applications.
A typical alloy composition (by weight) for a NdFeB magnet is approximately 29% Nd,
66% Fe, 1% B, 3% Dy, 0.75% Nb, and 0.25% Al. A typical SmCo alloy composition is
35% Sm, 60% Co, with Fe and Cu making up the remaining 5%.
Historically, the largest use of NdFeB magnets was in computer disk drives. As this
technology gives way to solid-state data storage in personal computers and as
alternative energy increases its share of global electrical power generation, it is
thought that the largest future application will likely come from use of these magnets
in wind turbines.
Many market sources predict that the most rapid growth in rare earth consumption will
be in the magnet sector with most forecasts in the 8-10% per annum range between
now and 2020.
