When I turned on the smart door lock after work, the air conditioner had already started in advance. The refrigerator quietly keeps fruits and vegetables fresh. The sweeping robot shuttles through the living room. The car starts with a single button and the wipers move with the rain - behind these seemingly ordinary moments, there is an unremarkable small gray-black magnet: a permanent ferrite magnet. With its hard-core features of "affordable price, stable performance, high-temperature resistance and corrosion resistance", it has quietly integrated into every "functional chain" of modern life.
I. Home Appliance Scenario: Making Comfort "Silent"
Inverter air conditioning compressor
The wet-pressed ferrite magnetic tiles form the motor rotor, and in combination with the frequency conversion algorithm, enable the air conditioner to operate smoothly at a low frequency of 1 Hz, saving 15% to 20% of electricity throughout the year.
Refrigerator, washing machine, dishwasher
The ferrite magnetic rings in the drainage pump, fan motor and detergent dispenser make it possible for the refrigerator to achieve low-noise cooling at 38 dB(A) and for the dishwasher to precisely dispensed detergent.
Sweeping robot
The virtual wall magnetic strips and wheel speed Hall magnetic rings achieve path planning and restricted area isolation, ensuring that the "lazy person's magic tool" does not cause any trouble.
Ii. Automotive Scenario: The "Magnet Army" of a Single Vehicle
Economy cars are equipped with over 20 small motors, while luxury cars have nearly 70.
Start motor, electric seat, ABS, wiper, electric rearview mirror... Almost every motor has a ferrite tile.
The global demand for ferrite permanent magnets for automobiles is expected to reach 450,000 tons in 2023, with a compound annual growth rate of 5% over five years.
Against the backdrop of high oil prices and rare earth prices, ferrite continues to replace some rare earth permanent magnets with its "cost performance + temperature resistance".
Iii. Consumer Electronics and Office
Hard disk head positioning, notebook computer fans, laser printer paper feeding mechanisms, and electric toothbrush micro-motors - ferrite magnets provide "centimeter-level" precise movements with "millimeter-level" dimensions, ensuring the thinness and long battery life of the devices.
Iv. Industry and Energy
High-performance ferrite tiles are extensively used in photovoltaic inverters, energy storage converters, charging pile fans, and factory manipulator shaft drive motors to achieve the dual goals of "high energy efficiency and low cost".
V. Future Outlook
Process upgrade: Microwave sintering and nano-doping are increasing the magnetic energy product of ferrite by another 10%, further expanding its share in high-end motors.
Green cycle: The ferrite raw materials are Fe₂O₃ and SrCO₃, which are abundant in source and do not require rare earths, in line with the sustainable route under the "dual carbon" background.
From the grinding motor of the coffee machine in the early morning to the silent motor of the bedside fan at night, permanent ferrite magnets exist like air but are rarely seen. It is precisely this "unsung hero" who has made every "start", "speed regulation" and "silence" of modern life possible, and will continue to support the wave of electrification and intelligence of all things with lower costs and higher efficiency in the future.
