LG Innotek develops eco-friendly magnet

LG Innotek said on Monday that it has developed an eco-friendly magnet that has the strongest magnetic strength in the world in partnership with Sunglim Group Industry.

The eco-friendly magnet developed by LG Innotek can be used in vehicle motors, smartphone cameras, audio speakers, and wind power generators. One of its distinct features is that it reduced the use of heavy rare-earth (HRE) metals by 60 percent compared to existing products. The HRE metals are essential components in maintaining magnetism at high temperatures but are low in supply and expensive, and cause environmental pollution in the mining process. In particular, it has been necessary to find an alternative component as South Korea imports most of HRE metals from China.

The new product also boasts top-level performance. The magnetic strength of the eco-friendly magnet is 14.8 kilogauss, exceeding the maximum performance of the commercialized products in the market (14.2-14.3kG). It is also close to 15kG, the level of technical performance seen as a limit by the industry.

LG Innotek applies the eco-friendly magnet to its products, including steering motors for vehicle and smartphone actuators. It also plans to aggressively promote the magnet to global carmakers, car component manufactures, and smartphone manufacturers.


will@donga.com