The key difference between Neodymium magnet and Regular Magnet is that the neodymium magnet contains neodymium, iron, and boron as the key chemical elements whereas the regular magnet contains iron as the key chemical element.
Neodymium magnet is a form of strong magnet made from rare earth elements such as neodymium. It is an alloy of several metals such as iron, boron, etc. Regular magnets, on the other hand, are ceramic magnets that contain ferrite as the major compound. It contains a large percentage of iron(III) oxide along with some other metals such as barium. These magnets are popular because of the low cost and high power.
CONTENTS
1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Neodymium Magnet
3. What is Regular Magnet
4. Side by Side Comparison – Neodymium Magnet vs Regular Magnet in Tabular Form
5. Summary
What is Neodymium Magnet?
Neodymium magnet is a form of the rare-earth magnet having neodymium, iron and boron. It is a permanent magnet. It has an alloy of the mentioned metals in the form of Nd2Fe14B tetragonal crystalline structure. This magnet is the strongest commercial grade magnet that is available now. Therefore, these magnets can replace many other forms of magnets in modern products such as motors in cordless tools.
Neodymium is a ferromagnetic material; thus, we can magnetize it to become a magnet. However, the Curie temperature (the material at which the magnet loses its magnetism) of this element is very low. Therefore, in its pure form, it shows magnetism at very low temperatures. But if we make an alloy of neodymium with some transition metals such as iron, we can improve the magnetism of this material. This improved form is what we call “neodymium magnet”.
Figure 01: Neodymium Magnet Balls
There are several factors that determine the strength of this magnet. The major factor is the tetragonal crystalline structure of this alloy. Moreover, a neodymium atom also has a lar magnetic dipole moment due to the presence of 4 unpaired electrons. In addition to that, these magnets have exceptionally high remanence (strength of the magnetic field), coercivity (material’s resistance to become demagnetized) and energy product (density of magnetic energy). But the Curie temperature (the material at which the magnet loses its magnetism) is comparatively low.
What is Regular Magnet?
Regular magnets are the magnets that we use for regular purposes. Most of the times, we use ceramic (or ferrite) magnets as regular magnets. These magnets contain ferrite as the major component. Ferrite is a ceramic material. It mainly consists of iron(III) oxide. We blend this compound with some other metals such as barium, manganese, nickel and zinc. These components are ferromagnetic and electrically non-conductive.
Figure 02: A stack of Ceramic Magnets
In addition to that, these magnets have low remanence (strength of the magnetic field), coercivity (material’s resistance to becoming demagnetized) comparatively. But there are two types of ferrite magnets as hard ferrites and soft ferrites according to the coercivity (high and low respectively). Apart from that, the energy product (density of magnetic energy) is also very low comparatively. But the Curie temperature (the material at which the magnet loses its magnetism) is comparatively high.
What is the Difference Between Neodymium Magnet and Regular Magnet?
Neodymium magnet is a form of the rare-earth magnet having neodymium, iron, and boron whereas the regular magnets are the magnets, mostly ceramic (or ferrite) magnets that mainly consists of iron(III) oxide, that we use for regular purposes. Therefore, the key difference between neodymium magnet and regular magnet is the key elements that these magnets are made of. The other major difference between neodymium magnet and regular magnet is their properties due to the above composition. Neodymium magnets have exceptionally high remanence, coercivity and energy product while the regular magnets have a low remanence and energy product, comparatively. But there are two types of ferrite magnets as hard ferrites and soft ferrites according to the coercivity (high and low respectively). Moreover, the Curie temperature for neodymium magnets is lower than that of regular magnets.
The below infographic presents the difference between neodymium magnet and regular magnet in tabular form for quick reference.
Summary – Neodymium Magnet vs Regular Magnet
Magnets are materials that can attract some other materials. There are different forms of magnets; neodymium and regular magnets are two such forms. The key difference between Neodymium magnet and regular magnet is that a neodymium magnet contains neodymium, iron, and boron as the key chemical elements whereas a regular magnet contains iron as the key chemical element.
Reference:
1. “Neodymium Magnet.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 22 Aug. 2018. Available here
2. “Ferrite (Magnet).” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 18 Aug. 2018. Available here
Image Courtesy:
1.”Neodymium magnet balls 1140971″By © Nevit Dilmen, (CC BY-SA 3.0) via Commons Wikimedia
2.”Ceramic magnets”By Omegatron – Own work, (CC BY-SA 3.0) via Commons Wikimedia