METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR PRODUCING MAGNETIC RARE EARTH ALLOY POWDER, METHOD FOR PRODUCING BONDED MAGNET, METHOD FOR PRODUCING RARE EARTH SINTERING MAGNET, AND METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR IMPROVING PURITY OF INERT GAS

摘要

Rare earth magnetic alloy fine powders are manufactured by placing a mixture of a rare earth metal and a transition metal as raw materials in a crucible, induction heating it in an Ar gas atmosphere, melting metal elements contained in the above mixture, injecting an Ar gas at a predetermined pressure from above the molten alloy to expel the above molten alloy in a downward direction from the nozzle port of the above crucible, and applying a jet stream of an inert gas to the above expelled molten alloy to collide the above expelled molten alloy with the above inert gas so as to scatter the above molten alloy and solidify it by quenching. A rare earth bond magnet and a rare earth sintered magnet are produced using rare earth magnetic alloy fine powders obtained by the above process, which is rarely oxidized on the surface, almost spherical and uniform in diameter.