General Chat / Discussion, page-14056

No worries, they have a long long way to go as it is unproven at this stage.

1. Which Is More Advanced?

✅ MAIL (Ionic Technologies) is more advanced at this stage:

Factor MAIL (Ionic Tech) Flash Joule Heating (FJH)Commercial Readiness ✔️ Pilot and scaling in UK & Brazil Mostly academic labs (e.g. Rice Univ)Patent Protection ✔️ Multiple patents + exclusive know-how Open research stage, early IP onlyProcess Control ✔️ Industrial-grade precision separation ❌ High-temp flash: less selectiveOutput Purity ✔️ 99.5–99.99% REO ❌ Mixed oxides/metals—needs extra stepsSupply Chain Integration ✔️ Tailored to REE oxide recovery for magnet reuse Not yet integrated into magnet production pipelines

Conclusion: MAIL is a matured, field-tested separation technology, whereas FJH is still in the early commercial prototyping stage.

️ 2. Which Is Preferred for Magnet-Making and Defense?

✅ MAIL is clearly preferred for neodymium-iron-boron (NdFeB) magnets and defense applications:

Why?

Criteria Defense/Magnet Requirements MAIL Advantage

Purity REOs must exceed 99.5% for magnet-grade use ✔️ MAIL achieves this directlyREE Pair Separation Critical to separate Nd, Pr, Dy, Tb for tailored magnet blends ✔️ MAIL achieves 100:1+ selectivityLow Hazard Defense contractors demand clean, safe supply chains ✔️ MAIL is non-toxic and scalableSupply Chain Control Must be traceable, ethical, and consistent ✔️ MAIL suits onshore/ally production setupsScalability Must support kilo-tonne level output ✔️ Already in pilot scaling stages with IXR

Meanwhile, FJH is good for bulk pre-treatment of mixed or contaminated waste, but:

Lacks purity for magnet re-entry

Cannot perform Dy/Nd separation on its ownIsn’t proven in scaled military or aerospace supply chains

Final Verdict

Use Case Preferred Tech

Magnet recycling & re-manufacture ✅ MAIL (Ionic Technologies)

Defense-grade REO supply ✅ MAILWaste activation (fly ash, red mud)

FJHNext-gen hybrid models Potential: FJH pre-treatment + MAIL refinement