Magnetics Business & Technology - May/June 2023 - 20

FEATURE ARTICLE
HRL Labs Project for ARPA Seeks to Improve Heat Resistance of Magnets
Artist's expanded view of SLAM project magnets fitting into rotor for electric vehicle motors. Copyright 2023 HRL Laboratories
HRL Laboratories, LLC, has begun work on the surface laser
architected magnets (SLAM) project to improve magnets within
electric vehicle motors, a new Advanced Research Projects
Agency-Energy (ARPA-E)- funded effort.
In current EV motors, notes HRL, permanent magnets can
present design obstacles due to the heat generated during operation.
Expensive heavy rare-earth elements like dysprosium
and terbium are added to conventional magnets to prevent
demagnetization at elevated temperatures and maintain performance.
" The
SLAM project aims to increase the temperature capabilities
of magnets. By tailoring permanent magnet architectures,
we can mitigate demagnetization and minimize the use of
costly, heavy rare-earth elements largely sourced non-domestically, "
said Brennan Yahata, HRL's principal investigator
on SLAM. " We're targeting magnet and motor power density
improvements specifically at the operating temperatures of
these magnets. Magnet and motor architecture is an exciting,
high-value research area in permanent magnet material solutions
for EV manufacturers. This kind of technology can create
opportunities to rethink electric motor design. "
Yahata also said that in contrast to other research efforts that
seek entirely new magnet materials, HRL's approach is to improve
existing magnets by tailoring material architecture at the
microstructure level.
HRL will work with General Motors to apply the latest laserbased
manufacturing methods to engineer magnets for use in
electric vehicles. Over the course of the 3-year, $2.6M program,
HRL will develop and fabricate improved magnets and GM will
integrate them into electric motors and test their performance.
" By applying additive manufacturing technology to selectively
target the surface, we can not only use a minimal amount of
rare earth elements but also effectively apply them where they
are needed most, " said Raymond Nguyen, HRL materials engineer
and fabrication lead on SLAM.
20 Magnetics Business & Technology * May/June 2023
Based in Malibu, California, HRL is a corporate researchand-development
laboratory owned by The Boeing Company
and General Motors specializing in research into sensors and
materials, information and systems sciences, applied electromagnetics,
and microelectronics. It was established in 1948 as
Hughes Research Laboratories and today is known as one of
the world's premier physical science and engineering research
laboratories. Now located on several campuses in southern
California, it has over 250,000 sq ft of laboratory space and
10,000 sq ft of Class 10 clean room.
See www.hrl.com.
HRL's approach is to reduce the use of heavy rare earths
by locally optimizing the crystallographic orientation of the
microstructure on the magnet's surface. Using laser-based
post-processing methods, it magnetically hardens the weakest
points on a NdFeB magnet surface against demagnetization,
which enables higher torque and more energy efficient motors.
By increasing demagnetization resistance, the extent of usable
magnetic energy produced at elevated operating temperatures
can be increased up to 2X in permanent magnets.
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