Terra Magnetica

The Beginning Of The End For Rare Earth Permanent Magnet Motors?

2. October 2009

Okay, okay, so maybe I’m exaggerating just a little… but if the news from Japan today is anything to go by, perhaps we’re not far off. According to a report at TradingMarket.com, Japan’s Daikin Industries has teamed up with Professor Shigeo Morimoto from Osaka Prefecture University, to create an electric motor that produced high torque [...]

The Windbelt: A New Non-Turbine-Based Wind Energy Generator

23. September 2009

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Earlier this week I came across a rather interesting new technology from Humdinger Wind Energy, LLC. Based in Honolulu, this company claims that “from enabling smart buildings to reducing the cost of wind energy”, they are “researching & developing the world’s first non-turbine harvesting technology, the Windbelt™ generator”. Wind power without a wind turbine? Definitely [...]

Guest Lecture: Fundamentals of Permanent Magnets – Denmark, Oct 9, 2009

22. September 2009

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During my trip to Europe next month, I will have the honor of giving a guest lecture at Aalborg University’s Institute of Energy Technology, in Aalborg, Denmark. Taking place in the afternoon of October 9, 2009, the lecture is titled ‘Fundamentals of Permanent Magnets: Materials, Basic Design Considerations & Applications“. Co-hosted by the local IEEE [...]

7 Lesser Known Applications of Rare Earth Permanent Magnets

28. August 2009

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Earlier today, I posted an article over at RareMetalBlog after the question of non-defense applications of rare earth permanent magnets came up. Certainly most of us are aware of the use of such materials in motors and generators, but there are hundred of other applications for such magnets – and not just in the form [...]

New Mixed Rare Earth Permanent Magnet Material Shows Promise

10. August 2009

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Recently I came across a May 2009 presentation published by the US Department of Energy’s [DoE] Ames Lab, on a new mixed rare earth-based [MRE-Fe-B] permanent magnet [PM] alloy, for high temperature applications. The work forms part of the DoE’s multi-year FreedomCAR project, with a number of specific goals: Production of magnet materials for PM [...]

Wireless Electricity: Finally A Reality?

24. July 2009

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The BBC reported today on a system that can deliver power to electrical and electronic devices at significant distances away from the source, without the need for wires or cables. Eric Giler from Witricity demonstrated the use of the system to charge cell phones and other devices during the TED Global event in Oxford, UK. [...]