An iron powder and method of making an iron powder. The method includes a step of neutralizing an acidic aqueous solution containing a trivalent iron ion and a phosphorus-containing ion, with an alkali aqueous solution, so as to provide a slurry of a precipitate of a hydrated oxide, or a step of adding a phosphorus-containing ion to a slurry containing a precipitate of a hydrated oxide obtained by neutralizing an acidic aqueous solution containing a trivalent iron ion with an alkali aqueous solution. A silane compound is added to the slurry so as to coat a hydrolysate of the silane compound on the precipitate of the hydrated oxide. The precipitate of the hydrated oxide after coating is recovered through solid-liquid separation, the recovered precipitate is heated to provide iron particles coated with a silicon oxide, and a part or the whole of the silicon oxide coating is dissolved and removed.

A negative electrode active material is provided that is utilized in a nonaqueous electrolyte secondary battery, and that can improve the capacity per volume and charge-discharge cycle characteristics. The negative electrode active material according to the present embodiment contains an alloy having a chemical composition consisting of, in at %, Sn: 13.0 to 24.5% and Si: 3.0 to 15.0%, with the balance being Cu and impurities. The alloy particles contain a phase with a peak of the most intense diffraction line appearing in a range of 42.0 to 44.0 degrees of a diffraction angle 2, the most intense diffraction line being a diffraction line having the largest integrated diffraction intensity in an X-ray diffraction profile. A half-width of the most intense diffraction line of the alloy particles is in a range of 0.15 to 2.5 degrees.

A negative electrode active material is provided that is utilized in a nonaqueous electrolyte secondary battery, and that can improve the capacity per volume and charge-discharge cycle characteristics. The negative electrode active material according to the present embodiment contains an alloy having a chemical composition consisting of, in at %, Sn: 13.0 to 24.5% and Si: 3.0 to 15.0%, with the balance being Cu and impurities. The alloy particles contain a phase with a peak of the most intense diffraction line appearing in a range of 42.0 to 44.0 degrees of a diffraction angle 2, the most intense diffraction line being a diffraction line having the largest integrated diffraction intensity in an X-ray diffraction profile. A half-width of the most intense diffraction line of the alloy particles is in a range of 0.15 to 2.5 degrees.

A thin metal strip is produced by a single roll strip casting process, using a cooling roll, a tundish, and a molten metal remover. The cooling roll has an outer peripheral surface, on which it cools and solidifies molten metal while rotating. The tundish can accommodate the molten metal and supplies it onto the outer peripheral surface of the cooling roll. The molten metal remover is disposed downstream of the tundish in the rotating direction of the cooling roll with a gap A between the molten metal remover and an outer peripheral surface of the cooling roll, and removes a surface portion of the molten metal on the outer peripheral surface of the cooling roll to cut down the thickness of the molten metal to the width of the gap A.

A thin metal strip is produced by a single roll strip casting process, using a cooling roll, a tundish, and a molten metal remover. The cooling roll has an outer peripheral surface, on which it cools and solidifies molten metal while rotating. The tundish can accommodate the molten metal and supplies it onto the outer peripheral surface of the cooling roll. The molten metal remover is disposed downstream of the tundish in the rotating direction of the cooling roll with a gap A between the molten metal remover and an outer peripheral surface of the cooling roll, and removes a surface portion of the molten metal on the outer peripheral surface of the cooling roll to cut down the thickness of the molten metal to the width of the gap A.

The present disclosure is directed to methods of preparing permanent magnets having improved coercivity and remanence, the method comprising: (a) homogenizing a first population of particles of a first GBM alloy with a second population of particles of a second alloy to form a composite alloy preform, the first GBM alloy being represented by the formula: AC.sub.bR.sub.xCo.sub.yCu.sub.dM.sub.z, the second alloy being represented by the formula G.sub.2Fe.sub.14B, where AC, R, M, G, b, x, y, and z are defined; (b) heating the composite alloy preform particles to form mixed alloy particles; (c) compressing the mixed alloy particles, under a magnetic field of a suitable strength to align the magnetic particles with a common direction of magnetization and inert atmosphere, to form a green body; (d) sintering the green body; and (e) annealing the sintered body. Embodiments include magnets comprising neodymium-iron-boron core alloys, including Nd.sub.2Fe.sub.14B.

The present disclosure is directed to methods of preparing permanent magnets having improved coercivity and remanence, the method comprising: (a) homogenizing a first population of particles of a first GBM alloy with a second population of particles of a second alloy to form a composite alloy preform, the first GBM alloy being represented by the formula: AC.sub.bR.sub.xCo.sub.yCu.sub.dM.sub.z, the second alloy being represented by the formula G.sub.2Fe.sub.14B, where AC, R, M, G, b, x, y, and z are defined; (b) heating the composite alloy preform particles to form mixed alloy particles; (c) compressing the mixed alloy particles, under a magnetic field of a suitable strength to align the magnetic particles with a common direction of magnetization and inert atmosphere, to form a green body; (d) sintering the green body; and (e) annealing the sintered body. Embodiments include magnets comprising neodymium-iron-boron core alloys, including Nd.sub.2Fe.sub.14B.

The invention relates to a metallic magnetic material with biocompatible elements (Ti, Ta or Mn), with glassy quasi-amorphous structure and controlled Curie temperature, and the processes for preparing the same. The hereby material has its composition expressed in atomic percent: Fe=59 . . . 67%, Nb=0.1 . . . 1%, B=20%, biocompatible material (Ti, Ta or Mn)=12 . . . 20%), Curie temperature within the interval 0 . . . 70 C., saturation magnetic induction of 0.05 . . . 1.1 T and strong magnetic response when introduced in a high frequency magnetic field. The processes used to obtain this material directly under the form of ribbons, glass-coated micro/nanowires or nano/micropowders consist in rapid quenching of the mixtures with previously mentioned compositions under extremely rigorous controlled conditions, in high vacuum of minimum 10.sup.4 mbars or in controlled helium or argon atmosphere in order to avoid oxidation.

The invention relates to a metallic magnetic material with biocompatible elements (Ti, Ta or Mn), with glassy quasi-amorphous structure and controlled Curie temperature, and the processes for preparing the same. The hereby material has its composition expressed in atomic percent: Fe=59 . . . 67%, Nb=0.1 . . . 1%, B=20%, biocompatible material (Ti, Ta or Mn)=12 . . . 20%), Curie temperature within the interval 0 . . . 70 C., saturation magnetic induction of 0.05 . . . 1.1 T and strong magnetic response when introduced in a high frequency magnetic field. The processes used to obtain this material directly under the form of ribbons, glass-coated micro/nanowires or nano/micropowders consist in rapid quenching of the mixtures with previously mentioned compositions under extremely rigorous controlled conditions, in high vacuum of minimum 10.sup.4 mbars or in controlled helium or argon atmosphere in order to avoid oxidation.

Provided is a negative electrode active material that can improve the discharge capacity per volume and charge-discharge cycle characteristics. The negative electrode active material according to the present embodiment contains an alloy phase. The alloy phase undergoes thermoelastic diffusionless transformation when releasing metal ions or occluding metal ions. The oxygen content of the negative electrode active material is not more than 5000 ppm in mass.