Grain Boundary Diffusion Process Research Articles

Novel mechanism of the grain boundary diffusion process with Tb based on the discovery of TbFe2 phase

The grain boundary diffusion process (GBDP) has proven to be an effective method for enhancing the coercivity of sintered Nd-Fe-B magnets. However, the limited diffusion depth and thicker shell structure have impeded the further development of magnetic properties. Currently, the primary debates regarding the mechanism of GBDP with Tb revolve around the dissolution-solidification mechanism and the atomic substitution mechanism. To clarify this mechanism, the microstructure evolution of sintered Nd-Fe-B magnets during the heating process of GBDP has been systematically studied by quenching at different temperatures. In this study, it was found that the formation of TbFe2 phase is related to the dissolution of Nd2Fe14B grains during GBDP with Tb. The theory of mixing heat and phase separation further confirms that the Nd2Fe14B phase dissolves to form a mixed phase of Nd and TbFe2, which then solidifies into the (Nd, Tb)2Fe14B phase. Based on the discovery of the TbFe2 phase, the dissolution-solidification mechanism is considered the primary mechanism for GBDP. This is supported by the elemental content of the two typical core-shell structures observed.

Elevated temperature magnetic microstructures and demagnetization mechanism for grain boundary diffused dual-main-phase (Nd, Ce)-Fe-B magnets

The combination of dual-main-phase (DMP) (Nd, Ce)-Fe-B magnets and grain boundary diffusion process (GBDP) is currently a research topic for obtaining high-cost performance materials in rare earth permanent magnet fields. The novel structural features of GBDP (Nd, Ce)-Fe-B magnets give a version of different domain reversal processes from those of non-diffused magnets. In this work, the in-situ magnetic domain evolution of the DMP magnets was observed at elevated temperatures, and the temperature demagnetization and coercivity mechanism of the GBDP dual-main-phase (Nd, Ce)-Fe-B magnets are discussed. The results show that the shell composition of different types of grains in DMP magnets is similar, while the magnetic microstructure results indicate the Ce-rich grains tend to demagnetize first. Dy-rich shell with a high anisotropic field caused by GBDP leads to an increase in the nucleation field, which enhances the coercivity. It is found that much more grains exhibit single domain characteristics in the remanent state for GBDP dual-main-phase (Nd, Ce)-Fe-B magnets. In addition, the grains that undergo demagnetization first are Ce-rich or Nd-rich grains, which is different from that of non-diffused magnets. These results were not found in previous studies but can be intuitively characterized from the perspective of magnetic domains in this work, providing a new perspective and understanding of the performance improvement of magnetic materials.

Grain boundary diffusion mechanism in Dy-diffused Nd–Fe–B sintered magnets

Grain boundary diffusion (GBD) is an effective method to enhance the thermal stability of Nd–Fe–B based permanent magnets. When developing a high-performance magnet, it is essential to carry out a study on its mechanisms, in order to reveal the distribution regulation of diffusion solutes and microstructural evolution. In the present work, the phase-field method is applied to investigate the thermodynamic features and the heavy rare-earth Dy migration in a Dy-diffused Nd–Fe–B magnet during the GBD process. In the simulation process, the grain phase transformation and volume diffusion were taken into consideration and the effects of the diffusion mode, initial diffusion source concentration, grain size, and grain boundary (GB) width were explored in a set of magnet models with various grain sizes. An optimized fitting function was introduced to evaluate the solute distribution in grain boundaries and the effective diffusion coefficient. It is shown that the diffusion mode and the GB width have significant impacts on the effective diffusion coefficient. The results provide a theoretical scheme concerning the quantitative evaluation of GBD efficiency based on thermodynamic analysis.

Strategic grain boundary diffusion process for high-performance Ce-containing sintered Nd-Fe-B magnets

Sintered Nd-Fe-B magnets are an important driver of green technology, and the grain boundary diffusion process (GBDP) has become the most economically efficient method to improve the overall magnetic properties of sintered Nd-Fe-B magnets. In the work, to further reduce the utilization cost of sintered Nd-Fe-B permanent magnets with high performance, the strategic GBDP was explored based on the demagnetization characteristics of Nd-Fe-B permanent magnet materials in motors. The peculiar fact about the process was that the diffusion source was deposited on a part of the c-plane, that is, the strategic selected area grain boundary diffusion process (S-SAGBDP). With the objective of addressing the edge demagnetization, the diffusion source was initially deposited only at the edges of the c-plane. Despite the overall magnetic properties and temperature coefficients of the diffused magnet were significantly enhanced, the serious deteriorations of squareness and surface magnetic field were particularly worrying. Consequently, the central area of the magnet was simultaneously strengthened. The squareness and demagnetization property of the magnet after S-SAGBDP were greatly improved, and the amount of heavy rare earths was reduced by 25%. The above work clearly illustrates the practical value of S-SAGBDP, which is helpful to develop the cost-effective and commercial-grade sintered Nd-Fe-B magnets.

A cost-effective dual-layer grain boundary diffusion strategy to significantly enhance coercivity of sintered Nd-Ce-Fe-B magnets

In an attempt to obtain cost-effective sintered Nd-Ce-Fe-B magnet and overcome the coercivity-remanence trade-off challenge caused by heavy rare earth (HRE) diffusion, a novel dual-layer coating method has been proposed for the grain boundary diffusion process (GBDP). A high coercivity increment of 8.56 kOe is achieved by dual-layer coated DyHx/Pr80Al20 (DH/PA) diffusion with 0.8 wt% DyHx and a slight remanence reduction from 12.85 to 12.71 kG. Although the DyHx diffused magnet has a coercivity increment of 9.24 kOe, it consumes twice as much DyHx as the DH/PA diffused magnet at the great sacrifice of remanence. This can be attributed to the formation of continuous grain boundary phase and thin Dy-rich shell via microstructural observations. Further TEM characterization indicates that the amorphous triple junction grain boundary phase (TJP) gradually transforms into the crystalline Nd2O3 structure after GBDP. The coexistence of cubic-Nd2O3 phase and hexagonal-Nd2O3 phase found in the dual-layer coated Pr80Al20/DyHx (PA/DH) diffused magnet creates a more intricate grain boundary phase structure, hindering the diffusion of Dy. Comparably, the formation of single cubic-Nd2O3 (Ia3̅ structure) grain boundary phase in the DH/PA and DyHx diffused magnets is an important reason for the significant increase in coercivity. Based on the evaluation of magnetic performance and cost, the DH/PA diffused magnet achieves a higher price-performance ratio (PPR). This cost-effective bilayer grain boundary diffusion strategy provides a valuable reference for high PPR Nd-Ce-Fe-B magnet fabrication.

Anisotropic grain boundary diffusion process in textured sintered and hot-deformed Nd-Fe-B magnets

A systematic study of the dependence of the Grain Boundary Diffusion Process (GBDP) on texture using Dy and Dy-Nd-Cu in microcrystalline sintered and nanocrystalline hot deformed Nd-Fe-B magnets was performed. Diffusion parallel or perpendicular to the texture direction, the nominal c-axes orientation in the polycrystals, was investigated. By measuring thin slices from the respective samples, coercivity as a function of (i) magnet thickness and (ii) diffusion depth was obtained showing that GBDP efficiency depends on the diffusion direction, diffusion source as well as the grain morphology originating from the magnet production route. In nanocrystalline hot deformed magnets perpendicular diffusion is superior due to the platelet-like shape of the grains. Microcrystalline sintered magnets consist of equiaxed grains hence the main effects originate in anisotropic lattice diffusion and pole surface hardening. The magnetic properties are correlated with a comprehensive analysis of microstructure, chemistry and magnetization reversal.

Experimental and calculational analysis about the influence of the grain boundary diffusion depth on the magnetic properties of a sintered Nd-Fe-B magnet

The grain boundary diffusion process (GBDP) has been widely applied to increase the coercivity of Nd-Fe-B magnets. After GBDP with Dy/Tb-rich diffusion sources the thickness of the Dy/Tb-rich shell formed on the epitaxial layer of the 2:14:1 main phase grain decreases from the magnet surface to the center. However, the influence of the Dy/Tb-rich shell gradient distribution on magnetic properties has not been thoroughly studied. In this work, a sintered Nd-Fe-B magnet was subjected to GBDP with Pr60Tb10Cu30 alloy at 860°C for various diffusion times (3 h, 6 h and 9 h). The coercivity improves rapidly from 884 kA/m (without GBDP) to 1533 kA/m after GBDP of 3 h. The coercivity further increases to 1741 kA/m with increased diffusion time to 6 h. But only marginal coercivity enhancement (rising to 1803 kA/m) can be obtained by further prolonging the diffusion time to 9 h. Microstructure analysis indicates that the long diffusion time leads to the surface grain coarsening, which degrades the diffusion efficiency. Meanwhile, micromagnetic simulation indicates that if the thickness of the Tb-rich shell in magnet center is less than 4 nm, the coercivity increases significantly with the enhanced thickness uniformity of the Tb-rich shell. But if the thickness of the Tb-rich shell in magnet center is higher than 4 nm, the coercivity cannot be improved effectively by further increasing the thickness uniformity of the Tb-rich shell. The results in this work clarify the mechanism of the magnetic property dependence on the diffusion time and help to optimize the GBDP parameters in the future.

Micromagnetic simulations of Nd-Fe-B hot-deformed magnets subjected to eutectic grain boundary diffusion process

The grain boundary diffusion process (GBDP) is one of the most efficient treatments for increasing the coercivity (Hc) of Nd-Fe-B magnets. However, this enhancement typically occurs at the expense of remanence (Mr). In this study, micromagnetic simulations were performed to quantify this tradeoff in hot-deformed Nd-Fe-B magnets subjected to the GBDP using a Nd-based eutectic alloy. The GBDP was imitated in a series of models with a gradually increasing volume fraction of the infiltrated Nd-rich nonmagnetic phase. This infiltration reduced the remanence and grain connectivity via the remaining thin magnetic intergranular phase (IGP), which in turn increased the coercivity. We distinguished between the roles of exchange and magnetostatic interactions in this coercivity enhancement. Furthermore, the simulated Mr vs. Hc curves defined realistic limits for coercivity that depended on the IGP magnetization, which was estimated to be 0.9 ± 0.1 T by reproducing experimental Mr vs. Hc data from the literature.

Synergistic effects of the surface grain coarsening and the grain boundary phase magnetism on the magnetic properties of Re-Fe-B (Re: Rare earth elements) magnets after the grain boundary diffusion

The grain boundary diffusion process (GBDP) is one of the most popular methods to enhance the coercivity of Re-Fe-B (Re: Rare earth elements) magnets. The surface grain coarsening is the common characteristic for the sintered Re-Fe-B magnets after GBDP. However, the effect of the coarse surface grains induced by GBDP on the magnetic properties has not been thoroughly studied. In this work, sintered Nd-Ce-Fe-B magnets were subjected to GBDP with Pr70Cu30 alloy and Pr60Tb10Cu30 alloy, respectively. The size of the coarse surface grains on the Pr70Cu30 alloy diffused magnet surface is far larger than that on the Pr60Tb10Cu30 alloy diffused magnet surface. The diffusion depth decreases with the size increase of the coarsened surface grains. Micromagnetic simulation reveals that for the magnet with the non-ferromagnetic grain boundary phase, increasing the polar surface grain size decreases the coercivity. However, the coercivity increases with the coarsening of the polar surface grain size for the magnet with a ferromagnetic grain boundary phase. Magnetic properties of the magnets after GBDP are synergistically affected by the polar surface grain size and the grain boundary phase magnetism.

Analysis on coercivity enhancement mechanism of grain-boundary-diffused and Dual-alloyed Nd-Fe-B Magnets

With the rapid development of application fields, such as the green energy industry, has resulted in increased demand for magnetic characteristics, especially the coercivity (Hcj). In this paper, two types of (Nd, Dy)-Fe-B magnets with comparable Hcj values were prepared using by grain boundary diffusion (GBD) method and dual alloy (DA) method. The composition, microstructure, domain structure, and magnetization reversal process of GBD and DA magnets were subjected to comparison. Additionally, an analysis of the specific coercivity mechanism was also conducted by fitting the Brown's equation. The results of composition and microstructure analysis revealed the formation of core-shell structural grains were formed in both GBD and DA methods. Specifically, the GBD method exhibited a higher concentration of Dy in the shell, constituting 26.8 % of the total rare earth (RE) content. In contrast the DA magnets had Dy accounting for 15.8 % of the total RE content in the shell. This discrepancy was identified as the primary factor contributing to the superior efficiency in enhancing the coercivity (Hcj) observed in the GBD method. The fitting results showed that GBD magnets were more inclined to nucleate in the core region in grain, whereas DA magnets nucleate at the edge of the grain shell layer. Both the observation of magnetic domains and magnetization reversal processes analysis revealed that the demagnetization process in GBD magnets is more uniform, which leads to better squareness. Our finding can provide theoretical and experimental basis for the preparation of high-performance Nd-Fe-B magnets.

Solid-liquid phase separation diffused Nd-Fe-B sintered magnets by using DyH3 nanopowder realize high-efficiency coercivity improvement and overcome thickness limit

In this study, new grain boundary diffusion (GBD) technology is applied to Nd-Fe-B sintered magnets with different thicknesses utilizing DyH3 nanopowder. The weight ratio is 0.25 wt.%. For comparison, the GBD processes include solid-liquid phase separation diffusion (SepD) and solid-liquid phase simultaneous diffusion (SimD). The magnetic properties and microstructure of GBD magnets with different thicknesses are thoroughly investigated. The comprehensive magnetic properties of SepD magnets are higher than SimD magnets. When the magnets are 8 mm thick, the SepD magnet obtains a coercivity of 18.10 kOe, which is higher than the SimD magnets (17.00 kOe). It was determined that SepD can manufacture thick magnets with excellent coercivity. In SepD magnets, the Dy element diffusion distance is deeper than in SimD magnets. For SepD magnets, there are core-shell structures formed in the surface region, while there are anti-core-shell structures that are unfavorable to magnetic properties in the surface region of the SimD magnets. The enhanced coercivity and temperature stability of the SepD magnets is primarily due to the more continuous core-shell structures produced by the deeper diffusion depth of the Dy element. This study will provide more theoretical guidance for the application of SepD in magnets with different thicknesses.

The reinforcement strategy of electrophoretic deposition coating assisted by PVP for grain boundary diffusion of Nd-Fe-B magnet

In this study, we aimed to enhance the quality of electrophoretic deposition (EPD) coatings for Nd-Fe-B grain boundary diffusion (GBD) by addressing issues related to the adhesion and densification of coating. We introduced a novel approach by incorporating polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP) into an alcohol suspension containing TbH3 nano-powders. The addition of PVP resulted in the formation of a dense coating with superior adhesion and a smooth surface. To evaluate the effectiveness of the EPD coating with PVP, we compared the EPD rate of the TbH3 nano-powders alcohol suspension with and without PVP. The EPD rate of the suspension with PVP exhibited a significant 30-fold increase compared to the suspension without PVP, indicating a substantial improvement in the electrophoretic efficiency. Based on our experimental findings, we recommend depositing the EPD coating at a voltage of 120 V and adjusting the deposition time accordingly to achieve a desired coating weight percentage of 1.0 wt% with a thickness of approximately 30 μm. Following the GBD process, the coercivity of the magnet with PVP increased from 1131 kA/m to 1896 kA/m, which improved the high-temperature stability of the magnet. Overall, our research offers a promising approach to overcome the limitations associated with EPD coatings for GBD applications, providing a potential solution for enhancing the performance and industrial viability of these coatings.

Magnetic properties of Ce-containing Pr/Nd-Fe-B sintered magnets by diffusing Nd-Dy-Al alloy

In this study, 5% wt Ce-containing sintered Pr/Nd-Ce-Fe-B magnets were processed by grain boundary diffusion (GBD) with NdxDy90-xAl10 alloy (x = 0, 10, and 20 correspond to N0, N10, and N20, respectively). After the GBD process, the coercivity of magnets increased from 1,124.7 to 1,656.4, 1,673.9, and 1,584.8 kA/m, for N0, N10, and N20, respectively. Microstructure analysis revealed continuous RE-rich intergranular phases around matrix grains, which by weakening the magnetic coupling effect between ferromagnetic matrix grains, thus, leads to coercivity improvement. N10 had the same coercivity enhancement as N0, while the Dy utilization for N10 is lower than that for N0. The SEM results showed that the inclusion of Nd leads to the formation of a network of low-melting grain boundary phases, providing channels for subsequent Dy diffusion. A CeFe2 phase was found in the 5% wt Ce-containing magnet, which hindered diffusion due to its high melting point; in order to inhibit the negative impact of CeFe2 and reveal the diffusion mechanism in the Ce-containing magnet, DyH3, as a diffusion source, was applied to 5% wt-Ce-containing magnets simultaneously; after the GBD process, Nd10Dy90Al10 alloy, as a diffusion source, has better coercivity enhancement than DyH3, due to the deeper diffusion of the Dy element in the Nd10Dy90Al10 diffusion.

Coercivity enhancement via synergetic effect of dual-alloy and grain boundary diffusion strategies in Nd-Fe-B permanent magnet

A combined Nd-Rich dual-alloy and subsequent DyH2- grain boundary diffusion process (GBDP) method is proposed to improve the coercivity of Nd-Fe-B permanent magnet with reduced heavy rare metal consumption. Microstructure analysis shows Nd element was enriched in the grain boundaries and formed continuous grain boundary phases upon dual-alloy treatment, which is beneficial to decouple exchange effect between grains and provide effective channels for the subsequent diffusion of Dy during GBDP. As a result of the synergetic effect of dual-alloy and GBDP method, the coercivity was enhanced significantly by 67 %, from 1103.25 to 1842.74 kA/m. Further Electron Probe Micro-Analysis (EPMA) and Energy Dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) characterizations revealed that the enhancement mechanism lies in the fact that Dy-rich shell is much thinner and deeper from surface to interior in the magnet treated by dual-alloy and GBDP combination. The continuous Dy-rich shell prevented the reversed magnetic domain nucleation and contributed to higher effective coercivity enhancement. The present work offers a practical modification method in Nd-Fe-B permanent magnet with the merits of lower heavy rare earth consumption, easy handling and reduced production cost.

Improvements in properties of NdFeB magnets obtained via magnetron sputtering and thermal diffusion

The grain boundary diffusion process (GBDP) of Dy and DyAl on sintered NdFeB magnets was conducted via magnetron-sputtering deposition of Dy and DyAl films to enhance coercivity (Hcj). The magnetic properties, microstructure and anti-corrosion properties of Dy-surface-alloying NdFeB magnets obtained via magnetron sputtering and thermal diffusion were evaluated. The Hcj of the Dy95Al5–NdFeB magnet increases by 32.68%, while the remanence declines slightly. Furthermore, X-ray diffraction and microstructural analysis confirm the formation of Dy-rich shells, the higher-magnetic-anisotropy field of hard (NdxDy1−x)2(FeAl)14B magnetic phases and an optimised grain boundary structure, contributing to the Hcj enhancement of the magnet. The elemental distribution and diffusion mechanism of the magnets are also discussed. Moreover, the corrosion resistance of the Dy95Al5–NdFeB magnet is substantially improved by enhancing the electrochemical stability and optimising the distribution and morphology of the intergranular phases. The findings of this study are of substantial importance in the development of low-heavy rare-earth sintered NdFeB magnets.

Comparative study of Pr/PrFe/PrAl grain boundary diffusion processed Nd–Ce–Fe–B sintered magnets with high Ce substitution: Evolutionary microstructure and magnetic responses

Owing to high natural abundance, surplus stockpile and low price of Ce, the Nd–Ce–Fe–B magnet possesses outstanding advantages as a novel permanent alternative with reduced critical rare earth (RE). However, the wide application of Nd–Ce–Fe–B magnet with high Ce substitution is still impeded by the low-coercivity issue. Here we report a comparative study of Pr/PrFe/PrAl grain boundary diffusion processed (GBDP) Nd–Ce–Fe–B sintered magnets to unravel the evolutionary microstructure and magnetic responses towards higher coercivity. Via Pr diffusion-induced microstructural engineering, continuous REFe2 and RE-rich/Fe-lean intergranular phases coexist at a long diffusion depth, with concurrent formation of thick Pr-rich shell surrounding RE2Fe14B grains. The resultant magnetic performance with Hcj = 14.4 kOe, Br = 13.2 kG, and (BH)max = 41.0 MGOe reaches the highest level reported so far upon high Ce substitution of 40 wt%, revealing that Pr GBDP successfully manages to overcome the coercivity-remanence trade-off. For PrFe GBDP, significant quantities of Fe are redistributed to inevitably form Ce-rich REFe2 precipitates at the outmost diffusion surface, which retard the diffusion efficiency and limit the depth of continuous Pr-rich GBs/shells compared to pure Pr diffusion. For PrAl GBDP, extra Al induces ferromagnetic RE–Fe–Al phase to replace REFe2 phase at a deeper diffusion depth, which limits the coercivity increment. Further micromagnetic simulations coincide with the experimental results, revealing the priority of regulating non-ferromagnetic GB phase towards high-coercivity Nd–Ce–Fe–B. Above findings not only deepen our understanding on distinct metallurgical behaviors of Pr/PrFe/PrAl diffusion, but also delight future work on developing Ce-rich Nd–Ce–Fe–B magnets.

Significant Progress for Hot-Deformed Nd-Fe-B Magnets: A Review.

High-performance Nd-Fe-B-based rare-earth permanent magnets play a crucial role in the application of traction motors equipped in new energy automobiles. In particular, the anisotropic hot-deformed (HD) Nd-Fe-B magnets prepared by the hot-press and hot-deformation process show great potential in achieving high coercivity due to their fine grain sizes of 200-400 nm, which are smaller by more than an order of magnitude compared to the traditional sintered Nd-Fe-B magnets. However, the current available coercivity of HD magnets is not as high as expected according to an empirical correlation between coercivity and grain size, only occupying about 25% of its full potential of the anisotropy field of the Nd2Fe14B phase. For the sake of achieving high-coercivity HD magnets, two major routes have been developed, namely the grain boundary diffusion process (GBDP) and the dual alloy diffusion process (DADP). In this review, the fundamentals and development of the HD Nd-Fe-B magnets are comprehensively summarized and discussed based on worldwide scientific research. The advances in the GBDP and DADP are investigated and summarized based on the latest progress and results. Additionally, the mechanisms of coercivity enhancement are discussed based on the numerous results of micromagnetic simulations to understand the structure-property relationships of the HD Nd-Fe-B magnets. Lastly, the magnetization reversal behaviors, based on the observation of magneto-optic Kerr effect microscopy, are analyzed to pinpoint the weak regions in the microstructure of the HD Nd-Fe-B magnets.

Grain boundary construction and properties enhancement for hot deformed (Ce,La,Y)-Fe-B magnet by a two-step diffusion process

The rare earth-iron-boron magnets based on high abundance rare earths (REs) show potential for cost-effective permanent magnets but their hard magnetic properties have to be greatly improved. The grain boundary diffusion process (GBDP) is known as an effective way to improve the coercivity of Nd-Fe-B magnets, however, the conventional diffusion method faces a challenge for Ce-based magnets since there is no enough continuous GB layer as the diffusion channel. Here, a two-step (Nd-Cu doping followed by Nd-Cu diffusion) GBDP was introduced for hot deformed (Ce,La,Y)-Fe-B magnet, and the excellent magnetic properties of μ0Hc=0.63 T, μ0Mr=0.68 T, and (BH)max=72.4 kJ/m3 were achieved. The Nd-Cu doping helps the formation of RE-rich GB layer, and then it acts as the diffusion channel for increasing the efficiency of the subsequent Nd-Cu diffusion and results in the increased volume fraction of continuously distributed GB phase, whose paramagnetism was verified by 57Fe Mössbauer spectrometry. Those paramagnetic GB phases help to form the discontinuous domain walls, as observed by Lorentz transmission electron microscopy, and break the magnetic exchange coupling of RE2Fe14B grains. It thus contributes to the coercivity enhancement of the hot deformed magnet with two-step diffusion, which is further proved by micromagnetic simulation. This study proposes a potential technique to prepare anisotropic hot deformed (Ce,La,Y)-Fe-B magnet with high cost-performance.

High-quality TbF3 coating prepared by suspension plasma spraying technique for improving the grain boundary diffusion efficiency of sintered Nd-Fe-B magnets

High-quality TbF3 coating used for the grain boundary diffusion process (GBDP) of sintered Nd-Fe-B was prepared by the suspension plasma spraying (SPS) technique. The obtained TbF3 coating with SPS process showed a dense and continuous structure with the uniform distribution as well as a good adhesion with the Nd-Fe-B substrate. Compared with the uncoated Nd-Fe-B magnet without heavy rare earth, the coercivity of TbF3 coated Nd-Fe-B magnet enhanced from 1160 kA/m to 1824 kA/m after the GBDP heat treatment. The microstructure and composition analysis indicated that the (Nd, Tb)2Fe14B shell formed at the periphery of Nd2Fe14B grains throughout the whole sample magnet. The shell with high magnetocrystalline anisotropy effectively suppressed the nucleation of reverse domain and repaired the defects on the grain surface of the sintered Nd-Fe-B magnets, thus enhancing the coercivity. As a consequence, the SPS technology has advantage of high depositing rate, flexible production process, good boundary adhesion and homogeneous-dense structure, which is expected to become a promising candidate way of depositing diffusion coating for the GBDP of sintered Nd-Fe-B in industrial production.

Synchronous enhancement mechanism of magnetic property for dual-main-phase Ce magnets by grain boundary diffusion with Pr-Al alloy

The Pr80Al20 (at%) alloy was diffused into the dual-main-phase Ce magnets (Ce/TRE = 40 wt.%, TRE: total rare earth) with different diffusion time by grain boundary diffusion process (GBDP). The magnetic property and the microstructure of a series of magnets with different diffusion time were investigated. The coercivity gradually increased as the diffusion time increased, while the remanence remained basically constant. The improvement of coercivity originated from the synergistic contribution of modified grain boundaries with decoupling effect and Ce-rich main phase containing Pr with improved magnetocrystalline anisotropy. The percentage of the irreversible portion and the nucleation field of the reverse domain calculated from recoil loops curves further confirmed that the diffusion of Pr80Al20 alloy enhanced the coercivity. The enhanced anisotropy of the Ce-rich grains compensates for the decay of the remanence carried by the diffusion-induced increase in the nonmagnetic grain boundary phase, which ultimately results in the remanence remaining essentially constant. The above phenomena further broaden the room-temperature applications of dual-main-phase magnets with high Ce content without heavy rare-earth grain boundary diffusion.