In a rapidly developing landscape of green technologies, the demand for permanent magnets is increasing, particularly for electric vehicles and wind turbines. These magnets typically contain rare earth elements like neodymium and dysprosium, whose extraction is costly and environmentally damaging. A British company, Materials Nexus, has recently unveiled MagNex, a new rare-earth-free permanent magnet developed through an artificial intelligence (AI) platform.
Permanent magnets are crucial for various industries, such as electric vehicles, wind turbines, robots, and drones. However, the rare earths needed for their production are in increasing demand, which could lead to shortages by 2030. To address this issue, Materials Nexus used its AI to analyze more than 100 million different compositions and created MagNex in just three months. This process was 200 times faster than traditional methods, which took decades to produce comparable magnets.
MagNex offers significant ecological and economic advantages. Although the exact composition of this new magnet has not been disclosed, Materials Nexus claims that MagNex costs only 20% of the production price of traditional rare-earth magnets and generates 70% less CO2 emissions. This innovation is not the first of its kind, but it surpasses previous attempts, such as that of Niron Magnetics, which took a decade to develop a high-performance rare-earth-free magnet that is still not ready for mass production.
This innovative approach could also be applied to other fields, such as semiconductors, supercapacitors, and catalysts. Using AI in material discovery opens up new perspectives to accelerate innovations, reduce production costs, and minimize environmental impact.
Dr. Jonathan Bean, CEO of Materials Nexus, expressed his enthusiasm for this breakthrough: "The announcement of MagNex marks a significant step in using AI to design materials of the future, which are less expensive, more efficient, and more sustainable than existing options." He noted that their platform has already attracted interest for various applications, including semiconductors, catalysts, and coatings.
Iain Todd, professor at the University of Sheffield, praised this achievement: "The combination of Materials Nexus's AI-driven approach to material discovery and the world-class facilities at the Henry Royce Institute has allowed the development of a new magnetic material at an incredible speed."
This discovery promises to transform not only the magnet sector but also other industries requiring advanced and sustainable materials. The use of AI in material science is already showing promising results and could revolutionize how new materials are discovered and produced.
Article author: Cédric DEPOND