Neodymium magnets are also called as rare-earth magnets. These magnets have got brilliant strength and used only for specific applications such as lifting heavy objects. It is advisable not to drill and machine these magnets. There are several reasons to it. In this article, we will tell you whether the use of drilling and machinery makes the magnet more productive?
Drilling causes magnet to break
There are many neodymium magnets for sale and you can get the magnets in reasonable prices. Neodymium magnets are usually made up of alloy of neodymium, boron and iron. Alloys made up of these magnets are used in manufacture of professional loudspeakers, microphones and hard drives of a computer.
Drilling of the magnet causes them to break. This type of activity emits tiny particles of metal in powdered form that is flammable. This flammable powder can get ignited by the heat produced due to the friction of the drilling. The dangerous impact can also melt or burn anything that is kept nearby. There are a few instances when people who attempted to drill through a neodymium magnet found the drill bits in a melted form.
Reduces its magnetic power
Drilling or cutting a rare-earth magnet in two halves will not provide you two magnets, but metals with nil magnetism. These magnets become no longer usable. The reason behind disappearance of magnetic power is loss of the alignment of their magnetic fields or dipoles.
For effective magnetism, the magnetic field of the magnets has to be properly aligned in one direction. Heat gives energy to the dipoles of the magnets and set them free of their bonds and aligns them in different directions.
Not good for respiratory tract
Metallic oxides produced during the drilling and machinery process are airborne in nature and go into the body via inhalation. These harmful particles cause ‘metal fume fever’ to the workers who are involved in the metallurgical process. These symptoms often cause mimic diseases such as pneumonia, influenza etc.
Magnetic particles can react to the skin and causes skin burns and rashes. If these particles make a way into your body by way of food and drink, then the toxic nature of neodymium can prove to produce detrimental effects on the overall health.
The heat produced while machining or drilling a neodymium magnet builds some amount of heat that causes it to demagnetize. Hammering a magnet to give it a proper shape also does the same effect on the magnet as heat does. It thus becomes very important not to perform any of these operations (drilling or machining) unless and until you don’t have that expert skills and experience in drilling.
So these are some of the impact of drilling and machining on the neodymium magnets. Machining will be expensive and can increase the project lead times. There are some applications where you a stock magnet will not be of help, and in those cases you can perform drilling and machining operations on the magnet. Also, you can consult professionals to discuss the objectives of the project and explain them the magnet machining procedure to make a wise choice.