Patent ID: 7390369

Claim:
A method of making a rare-earth alloy powder for use to produce a rare-earth sintered magnet, of which a main phase has a composition represented by R 2 T 14 A (where R is one of the rare-earth elements including Y; T is either Fe alone or a mixture of Fe and a transition metal element other than Fe; and A is either boron alone or a mixture of boron and carbon), the method comprising the steps of: preparing a first R—Fe—B based rare-earth rapidly solidified alloy, which has a columnar texture with an average dendritic width falling within a first range, by subjecting a melt of a first R—Fe—B based rare-earth alloy with a first composition to a rapid cooling process; preparing a second R—Fe—B based rare-earth rapidly solidified alloy, which has a columnar texture with an average dendritic width that is smaller than that of the first R—Fe—B based rare-earth rapidly solidified alloy and that falls within a second range, by subjecting a melt of a second R—Fe—B based rare-earth alloy with a second composition to the rapid cooling process; making a first R—Fe—B based rare-earth alloy powder by pulverizing the first R—Fe—B based rare-earth rapidly solidified alloy; making a second R—Fe—B based rare-earth alloy powder by pulverizing the second R—Fe—B based rare-earth rapidly solidified alloy; and making a powder blend including the first and second R—Fe—B based rare-earth alloy powders.