Magnet recycling partnerships to be advanced.
Ionic Rare Earth’s subsidiary, Ionic Technologies, has secured two grants totaling $1.7 million from the UK government to advance the European rare earth supply chain (PDF). The first grant aims to expand the partnership between Ionic and fellow UK-based metal and alloy manufacturer Less Common Metals (LCM) and Germany-based magnet manufacturer Vacuumschmelze (VAC) to produce magnets from recycled rare earths: Ionic plans to recover rare earth oxides from magnetic swarf supplied by VAC. The oxides are then set to be reduced to metals and alloys by LCM to then re-supply VAC’s magnet production.
The second grant seeks to propel a joint project by Ionic, the Materials Processing Institute, and Swansea University to establish better methods to demagnetize end-of-life rare earth magnets. According to the company, faster and more efficient demagnetization reduces recycling costs.
Ionic began full-scale production at its demonstration rare earth recycling plant in Belfast earlier this year (we reported). The first feedstock of magnets was sourced from decommissioned wind turbines. As a joint venture with LCM and automotive manufacturer Ford, the plant is set to receive a steady supply of end-of-life magnets, including from electric vehicles. Ford aims to produce 600,000 electric vehicles in Europe annually by 2026; 70 percent of these are set to contain components originating from its drive train manufacturing plant in Halewood, UK. Oxides produced by Ionic and refined by LCM are set to supply the plant.
Photo: iStock/WhiteBarbie
