Samarium Cobalt Magnets
Samarium Cobalt magnets (SmCo) are composed of Samarium, Cobalt and Iron. Samarium is element number 62 on the Periodic Table and is one of the Lanthanide series of rare earth metals. Rare earth magnets are extremely strong for their size, are metallic in appearance and tend to be made into many different shapes such as rings, blocks and discs.
Samarium Cobalt is more expensive that neodymium but has the significant advantage of working at high temperatures (up to 350 C). Just as important is the fact that these magnets don’t rust. One notable disadvantage, however, is that samarium cobalt magnets are very brittle and allowing two magnets to jump together will certainly cause either or both to shatter.
At Guy’s Magnets we stock Samarium Cobalt magnets in grades from 18-32 (MGOe of 18-32).
Samarium cobalt is the choice of the world’s F1 racing teams who use these heat tolerant magnets in the braking systems of their cars as they will remain active at high enough temperatures to cope with the severe braking conditions that make F1 cars’ ceramic bakes glow with heat!
These magnets are also used in the oil business, as they are able to cope with the extreme temperatures produced by drilling through solid rock.
Bonded Samarium Cobalt is made by using binders, such as epoxy resins, to hold the powder in place rather than sintering the alloy (compressing it under very high pressure into a mould). This means that they are less brittle than normal Samarium Cobalt magnets but also less powerful.
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