AMPHIBIAN · Project

Cheaper Permanent Magnets Without Rare-Earth Materials for Energy Storage and Motors

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The best magnets in the world rely on rare-earth metals — stuff that's expensive, comes mostly from one country, and is an environmental nightmare to mine. Imagine if you could make magnets from cheap, abundant materials like ferrite (basically rust's cousin) that still perform well enough to power electric motors and energy storage devices. That's what this team figured out: a way to combine ordinary magnetic materials so they punch 40% above their weight class compared to standard ferrites. They even built a working flywheel energy storage device to prove it works.

By the numbers

40%

Enhanced magnetic performance over commercial ferrites

55 kJ/m³

Target energy product for improved ferrite magnets

Consortium partners

Countries in the consortium

Industry partners in consortium

SMEs participating

The business problem

What needed solving

Rare-earth permanent magnets are essential in motors, generators, and energy storage — but they depend on critical raw materials with unstable supply chains, high prices, and serious environmental costs. Companies using these magnets face margin pressure and geopolitical risk every time rare-earth prices spike. The industry needs magnets made from cheap, abundant, recyclable materials that still deliver competitive performance.

The solution

What was built

The project developed ferrite-based permanent magnets with 40% better performance than commercial ferrites, targeting energy products above 55 kJ/m³. They built and validated a flywheel energy storage demonstrator using these improved magnets, proving the technology works in a real application.

Audience

Who needs this

Electric motor manufacturers looking to reduce rare-earth material costsFlywheel energy storage system developersWind turbine generator manufacturers facing supply chain riskIndustrial automation companies using permanent magnets in actuators and sensorsAutomotive suppliers developing EV components with lower critical material dependency

Business applications

Who can put this to work

Electric motor manufacturing

mid-size

Target: Manufacturers of electric motors for industrial equipment, HVAC, or appliances

If you are a motor manufacturer dealing with volatile rare-earth prices eating into your margins — this project developed ferrite-based magnets with 40% better performance than standard ferrites. These magnets target energy products above 55 kJ/m³, which could let you replace some rare-earth magnets in medium-performance applications while cutting material costs and supply chain risk.

Energy storage systems

SME

Target: Companies developing flywheel or mechanical energy storage solutions

If you are an energy storage company struggling with the cost and supply uncertainty of rare-earth magnets in your flywheel systems — this project built and validated a flywheel demonstrator using their improved ferrite magnets. The technology was tested for performance against cost and resource efficiency criteria, offering a path to cheaper, more sustainable storage hardware.

Wind energy equipment

enterprise

Target: Wind turbine generator manufacturers looking to reduce rare-earth dependency

If you are a wind turbine manufacturer worried about critical raw material supply chains for your permanent magnet generators — this project produced scalable ferrite-based magnets targeting 40% improvement over commercial ferrites. With 4 industry partners already in the consortium, the manufacturing methods were designed to be cost-efficient and up-scalable from the start.

Frequently asked

Quick answers

How much cheaper are these magnets compared to rare-earth ones?

The project uses ferrite-based materials, which are fundamentally cheaper and more abundant than rare-earth elements. While specific cost-per-kilogram figures are not provided in the project data, ferrites are typically an order of magnitude cheaper than rare-earth magnets. The project explicitly targeted cost-efficiency and scalable fabrication methods.

Can these magnets be produced at industrial scale?

Yes, the project specifically aimed to implement up-scalable and cost-efficient fabrication methods for dense anisotropic ferrite-based magnets. With 4 industry partners and 3 SMEs in the 11-partner consortium, the manufacturing path was a core focus, not an afterthought.

What about patents and licensing?

The project builds on an existing patent (P201600092) from prior FP7 work. This patent covers the core technique for exploiting magnetostatic interactions in composite magnets. Companies interested in licensing should contact the coordinator (CSIC, Spain) to discuss terms and access.

What performance level do these magnets actually reach?

The project targeted energy products above 55 kJ/m³, which represents a 40% improvement over commercial ferrite magnets. A flywheel demonstrator was built and evaluated for performance validation.

Is this still at the lab stage or closer to market?

The project delivered a validated flywheel demonstrator containing AMPHIBIAN magnets, moving beyond lab-scale proof-of-concept. However, as a Research and Innovation Action (RIA) that ended in 2019, further engineering and commercial scale-up would be needed before market deployment.

What regulations or standards apply?

Permanent magnets for energy applications must meet sector-specific standards depending on the end use (motors, generators, storage). The project evaluated its demonstrator against cost, eco-friendliness, and resource efficiency criteria, which aligns with EU critical raw materials strategy and sustainability regulations.

Who are the industry partners involved?

The consortium includes 4 industry partners and 3 SMEs across 6 countries (Germany, Denmark, Spain, Italy, Norway, Slovenia). This mix of research organizations and companies suggests the technology has been validated with industrial input and real manufacturing constraints in mind.

Consortium

Who built it

The AMPHIBIAN consortium brings together 11 partners across 6 countries (Germany, Denmark, Spain, Italy, Norway, Slovenia), with a solid 36% industry ratio — 4 industry players and 3 SMEs alongside 5 research organizations and 2 universities. This is a well-balanced team for moving magnet technology from lab to factory floor. The coordinator is CSIC, Spain's top research council, which managed the earlier FP7 project that produced the foundational patent. The presence of industrial partners from major European manufacturing economies (Germany, Italy) signals that real-world production constraints were factored in from the beginning.

AGENCIA ESTATAL CONSEJO SUPERIOR DE INVESTIGACIONES CIENTIFICASCoordinator · ES
AARHUS UNIVERSITETparticipant · DK
INSTITUT JOZEF STEFANparticipant · SI
INSTITUTT FOR ENERGITEKNIKKparticipant · NO
UNIVERSIDAD COMPLUTENSE DE MADRIDparticipant · ES
PETROCERAMICS SPAparticipant · IT
CONSIGLIO NAZIONALE DELLE RICERCHEparticipant · IT

How to reach the team

The coordinator is CSIC (Agencia Estatal Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas) in Spain. SciTransfer can facilitate a warm introduction to the project team.

Order a report on this consortium See AGENCIA ESTATAL CONSEJO SUPERIOR DE INVESTIGACIONES CIENTIFICAS profile →

Next steps

Talk to the team behind this work.

Want to explore whether AMPHIBIAN's rare-earth-free magnets fit your product line? SciTransfer can arrange a technical briefing with the project team and help you evaluate licensing options.

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