Electrochemical routes for environmentally friendly recycling of rare-earth-based (Sm–Co) permanent magnets

Abstract

The consumption of critical raw materials, especially those in permanent magnets of Nd–Fe–B and Sm–Co-type, has significantly grown in the past decade. With predictions on further electrification growing exponentially the demand for these materials will even increase. This implies that efforts in assuring sustainability must involve recycling from secondary resources. In recent years the electrochemical approaches in recycling have been extensively investigated and applied owing to their advantages of high efficiency and selectivity, easy operation, low energy consumption, and environmental friendliness. In this paper, we investigate the Sm2(Co,Fe,Cu,Zr)17 permanent magnet leaching process using the anodic oxidation to be paired with the metal deposition on the cathode. Linear sweep voltammetry was performed from − 0.15 to 1 V versus Pt quasi reference electrode that indicated current peaks that would correspond to some preferential leaching of the crystal phases contained in the magnet. The latter was confirmed using the SEM/EDXS analysis. The continuous leaching of the Sm2(Co,Fe,Cu,Zr)17 magnet was performed at a direct current density of 2, 4 and 8 mA cm−2 at the time period of 0–240, 240–480 and 480–720 min, respectively. The ICP-MS results confirmed the leaching of all the metals from the original Sm2(Co,Fe,Cu,Zr)17 permanent magnet. The concentration of Sm3+, Cu2+, Fe2+ and Zr2+ increases linearly along with the leaching time. Reversely the concentration of Co2+ decreases linearly due to its consumption by electrodeposition of Co, Fe and Cu on the cathode. The presented paired electrochemical process could serve as a starting point for the recycling and recovery of critical raw materials without any acid usage and waste generation. Graphical abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.]