EFFECT OF ADDITIVE ELEMENTS ON MAGNETIC-PROPERTIES AND IRREVERSIBLE LOSS OF HOT-WORKED ND-FE-CO-B MAGNETS

There has been limited work on the effects of alloying elements on the properties of hot-worked anisotropic magnets. The coercivity mechanisms for sintered and rapidly solidified Nd-Fe-B magnets are different, and additives can have different effects on magnetic properties. The present study was conducted to clarify the effects of various alloying elements on the properties of hot-worked magnets. Ribbons of composition (Nd(13.6-x)R(x)) (Fe(77.6-y)T(y)Co2.8)B6.0 (R = Ce and Dy; T = Al, V, Cu, Ga, Zr, Nb, Mo, and Sn; x = 0, 1, and 2; y = 0, 0.5, and 1.0) were prepared by melt spinning. Anisotropic magnets were made at 1073 K with 55.6% reduction in height by die upsetting. Room-temperature magnetic properties and irreversible losses after exposure at 323-473 K were determined. The results showed that small amounts of Al, V, Cu, and Ga enhanced the remanence of the magnets, while Dy, Al, Ga, Zr, Nb, and Mo improved the coercivity. Dy, Ga, and Mo additions were effective in increasing the heat resistance temperature (HRT), defined as the temperature where the irreversible loss is 3%. HRT is dependent on initial intrinsic coercivity and the squareness ratio (H(k)/(i)H(c)) of the demagnetization curve. An equation relating these parameters is given. An HRT of 453 K was obtained with a suitable alloy composition.