Projects

October 2024
REEVALUATE
Less Common Metals (LCM) Ltd, UK, is leading an initiative called "Industrial Scrap-to-Magnet" in collaboration with Ionic Technology and Vacuumschmelze (VAC) through the REEVALUATE project. The initiative aims to develop high-quality NdFeB magnets using 100% recycled heavy and light rare earth elements (REEs) with full traceability. This project addresses the anticipated surge in demand for REEs by 2040 due to the increasing adoption of clean energy technologies, electric vehicles, and electronic devices. The project will focus on reclaiming pre-consumer industrial scrap from magnet manufacturing and material processing stages, which account for 36% of valuable RE content. VAC will provide pre-consumer magnet scrap, while Ionic Technologies will use patented technology to produce high purity RE oxides from the scrap at their Demonstration Plant. LCM, the only industry in the Western world producing RE metals and alloys for permanent magnet production companies, will then use unique technologies to reduce the oxides to RE metals/alloys and supply them back to VAC at the required specification for magnet production. In addition to this, the byproduct scrap formed during material processing at LCM will be further processed at Ionic and will continue in the loop. The successful outcome of the REEVALUATE project will establish a sustainable, circular supply chain for REEs in the UK, supporting the magnet industry and the country's NetZero ambitions.
October 2024
October 2024
REEmelt
The HPMS process, developed by the University of Birmingham and now licensed by HyProMag Limited provides an efficient way of liberating magnets from end of life components. Inevitably some of the material liberated is not suitable for short loop recycling, however the material still has value and does not necessarily need to go to a full long loop recycling route. LCM have the equipment, technology and knowledge to melt some of these materials which could then be put back in to a magnet making process. This route would still offer large benefits for CO2e when compared to magnets made from primary material, but would also add an ability to modify the alloy from end of life magnet to recycled magnet making. This project aims to characterise and process materials taken after HPMS liberation and then blend them back in at different points to create new magnets, demonstrated in a magnetic filtration device built by UK market leader Adey.
October 2024
January 2024
SUPREEMO
The SUPREEMO project will capitalise on the knowledge generated by previous R&D projects – SecREEts, SUSMAGPRO, Enviree, Eurare, REE4EU ) – to establish the first sustainable and resilient pre-commercial European Rare Earth Elements (REEs) value chain (TRL7), leveraging European primary sources as feedstock. The SUPREEMO partners aim to develop sustainable, cost-competitive processing, refining, and RE permanent magnet production technologies in a responsible manner, adhering to local and international safety regulations. The developed solutions will bolster the European industrial leadership and enhance autonomy in critical strategic value chain, ensure a secure supply of raw materials. This aim will be achieved by reaching specific objectives considering five main technology stages: beneficiation, extraction, separation and purification and conversion of REEs.. Start date: January 2024 / End date: December 2027
January 2024
November 2023
EMPRESS
Achieving the required step-change improvements in resource efficiency for critical materials for magnets demands significant changes to the way the materials and their production processes are designed. This project aims to demonstrate the viability of using the latest artificial intelligence methods coupled with quantum simulations to rapidly identify improved magnet materials that rely less on critical materials, and use the new capability to enhance an existing commercial material by reducing or removing at least one critical element. Start date: November 2023 / End date: October 2024
November 2023
October 2023
Ford/Ionic
Ionic Technologies, Less Common Metals (LCM) and Ford will establish a demonstration circular supply chain for Rare Earth Elements (REEs) in the UK, by utilising innovative technologies to create high specification magnets containing 100% recycled REEs for use in Electrical Vehicles (EVs). Start date: October 2023 End date: March 2025
October 2023
December 2022
Multimag
Multi-functional, multi-material magnetic components and structures for electrification. MultiMag aims to create new design tools, high-performance materials, and multi-material additive manufacturing processes. These advancements will enable the production of lightweight components for electric machines, resulting in improved performance, enhanced energy efficiency, and reduced lead times. The project takes a holistic approach to additive manufacturing, focusing on creating multimaterial, multi-functional structures and components for electric machines. Start date: December 2022 End date: November 2025
December 2022
May 2021
PASSENGER
PASSENGER (Pilot Action for Securing a Sustainable European Next Generation of Efficient RE-free Magnets) is pioneering a novel method to create permanent magnets without the use of rare-earth materials. LCM is responsible for casting the initial ingots, which require precise and complex compositional control, to be transformed into magnets. Additionally, LCM has devised an innovative strip casting technique for the desired magnetic alloy, ensuring the right magnetic properties through a unique composition developed in collaboration with the project consortium. This approach holds significant potential for rapid scaling. The end date of this project is April 2025, check out the PASSENGER site for more information: https://passenger-project.eu/.
May 2021
November 2020
UK Rare earth magnet base
Less Common Metals was awarded funding by Innovate UK to conduct a feasibility study to identify the requirements for a fully integrated supply chain for Rare Earth Permanent Magnet production in the UK. Innovate UK drives productivity and economic growth by supporting businesses to develop and realise the potential of new ideas. The project enabled LCM to evaluate raw material sources, production of concentrates and separation into individual rare earths, prior to processing into metals on site, and then alloys for supply to a magnet production facility.
November 2020
January 2020
3DREMAG
The project goal was to upscale and introduce to the market a new NdFeB powder better suited for 3D printing technology. NdFeB magnets contain around 30 wt-% of Nd and Dy, both classified as critical raw materials by the EU. The developed powder enables 3D printing of optimized magnet configurations for e-drives needed in future mobility applications with reduced waste. This will be the first high performance spherical NdFeB powder in the market tailored for use in 3D printing.
January 2020
JUNE 2019
SUSMAGPRO
Working collaboratively with 18 project partners, this project enabled the consortium to identify, separate, recycle and demonstrate recycled magnets at pilot scale with several highly skilled professionals based in different locations across the EU. The aim of this project was to develop a recycling supply chain for rare earth magnets in the EU and to demonstrate these new materials on a pilot scale within a range of application sectors. Three of the main application sectors targeted include automotive, electronics and wind turbines.
JUNE 2019
MAY 2019
SECREETS
This project started in 2018 and came to a close in 2022. The aim was to establish a stable and secure supply of critical rare earth elements based on a sustainable extraction from European apatite sources used in fertiliser production. The focus was on Praseodymium (Pr), Neodymium (Nd) and Dysprosium (Dy) used in permanent magnets, as these are extremely critical for the European economy. Pilot processes were developed for the innovative extraction, separation and transformation of rare earth elements. These REEs will be supplied to application areas like automotive (electric vehicles), industrial motors (advanced manufacturing) and, potentially, clean energies (wind turbines).
MAY 2019
January 2019
UPGRADE
(Upscaling of a strip-cast process for Heavy Rare Earths). The goal of the UPGRADE project was to design and achieve a fine microstructure in the strip-cast ribbons that lead to high coercive NdFeB permanent magnets.
January 2019
December 2016
SCALE
SCALE (scandium-aluminum Europe) is a four-year EU Horizon 2020 funded project which aims to produce scandium compounds and scandium-aluminum alloys from EU metallurgical by-products. This was delivered through the development of hi-tech innovations, which will allow the extraction of scandium from European industrial residues. The equipment used will extract scandium sustainably from dilute mediums and convert them to pure oxides, metals and alloys at lower energy and material cost. LCM’s part in this project was to demonstrate industrial scale production of scandium-aluminium alloys by a novel production route. Various methods have been developed and LCM has successfully produced Sc-Al alloy with Sc content of 3-10%.
December 2016

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