Supply and Installation of a Large Scale Powder Processing Unit for the Processing of Hydrognated NdFeB Powder

Tender description

This project is funded by the UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund; Driving the Electric Revolution under grant agreement 1524086. The University of Birmingham invites tenders for supply of a powder processing unit for the processing of hydrogenated NdFeB powder. This proposed unit will be the largest of its kind in the UK and will consist of a physical separation unit to remove impurities from the hydrogenated powder, a jet mill to reduce the particle size, powder blending, storage and automatic powder transfer between the units. The hydrogenated NdFeB powder that needs to be processed by this unit will be supplied by hydrogen decrepitation of different forms of scrap. The production of the hydrogenated powder, which will be processed using the equipment described in this tender, is based on a patented technology developed at the University of Birmingham, in which hydrogen is used to extract Nd-Fe-B magnet powder from end of life permanent magnet containing products. This process will produce a powder no greater than 4mm in size which will be processed on the equipment described in this tender. The powder from the HPMS process should be purified mechanically (e.g. sieving) in a nitrogen atmosphere to remove coatings, screws, plastic etc. The processing unit should then have the ability to transfer powder through other processing stages including jet milling and blending. The Jet Mill stage should have the ability to achieve a particle size distribution of 3 to 5 microns and should be able to remove particles below 1 micron. Note, due to the space requirements of the system, the proposed jet mill will be installed at Tyseley Energy Park in Birmingham. This project may be funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) or; - European Structural and Investment Fund (ESIF) or; - Research Councils UK (RCUK), the strategic partnership of the UK's seven Research Councils.