Application of the HDDR method for recycling of Nd-Fe-B magnets

In the light of tremendous technological development, rapidly grows the demand for raw materials. The Rare Earth Elements have been recognized by the US and Europe as critical ones [1]. The waste of electrical and electronic equipment becomes an urban ore - an important source of precious metals. Nd-Fe-B magnets, widely used in hard disc drives, electric motors and other devices, are considered to be very valuable for recovery because their chemical composition is based mostly on the critical elements (Nd, Dy, Pr). The HD (Hydrogen Decrepitation) and HDDR (Hydrogenation, Disproportionation, Desorption and Recombination) methods are widely tested as a prospective procedure for processing of scrap sintered Nd-Fe-B magnets into new, resin-bonded magnets [2].