Post by RupertPost by bob urzhttp://www.electronicproducts.com/Passive_Components/Magnetics_Inductors_Transformers/What_Makes_Rare-Earth_Magnets_So_Special_amp_How_are_they_made.aspx
bob
Post by RupertVery cool. I didn't know this info before. Makes me wonder why there
has been a shortage since they're manufactured from scratch rather
than "dug up".
No, the actual rare earth metals are dug up. the magnets are alloys.
The term "rare earth" is a little misleading, and I think of it
as something like a proper name.
Post by RupertProbably an artificial shortage.
1) Tim Worstall may actually know. He's in that business and
has a blog.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/timworstall/2012/10/27/something-strange-in-chinese-rare-earths-production/
2) This : http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/physics/hunting-elements.html
kinda goes into that subject briefly. Rare earth metals aren't all that
rare, they're just poorly distributed. Production is a lot
about the energy costs to extract them.
--
Les Cargill