23 Awesome Uses For Magnets

Metal stool that I accidentally got stuck to a massive 6 Tesla magnet ( inside the blue cylinder)

Right now year 12 students in Australia are preparing for their final examinations. Students readily give examples of electric fields, but baring the bar-magnet, examples of magnetic fields stop there.

This post is a list of the awesome uses of magnets. It is for those that are unaware of the use of magnetic fields in society, or for those who are simply curious.

1. Magnetic stopper for sliding door – Bar magnet, which is a magnetic material with a uniform permanent magnetic field. A magnet is created by alligning the material’s magnetic subsections with a second bar magnet. Magnetic subsections are called magnetic domains
2. Magnetic charging port on laptops, magnetic pen, and laptop lid clasp – Bar magnet
3. Fridge magnets – Bar magnet 
4. Speaker – Interaction of an electromagnet and a bar magnet, which move a speaker cone backwards and forwards creating sound waves
5. Compass – Earth’s magnetic fieldThis Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA
6. Etch-a-sketch – Screen filled with iron filings, magnetic pen and a magnet to slide across the screen to erase the image
7. Hard drive – Subsections in a magnetic disk being controlled by a magnetized needle“Hard Drive” by walknboston is licensed under CC BY 2.0
8. Maglev train (SCMaglev Yamanashi Japan) – Maglev effect, or magnetic levitation is acheived by placing a magnet ontop of  a superconductor. A superconductor is a specific state certain materials can be in, which allows them to have no resistance and repell magnetic fields. This results in the magnetic that is placed ontop of a superconductor to float in the air. “MLX01 Maglev car” by Joel Abroad is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0 
9. High speed electric trains (‘bullet train’ Shinkansen between 1997 and 2006) – Eletromagnetic braking: A metal moving through a magnetic field experiences a force that is opposite to its direction of motion creating a braking effect (also known as eddy current braking)Take-y at the Japanese language Wikipedia, is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0
10. Adventure activities: magnetic braking for bungee jumping, rock climbing and zip lining – Eletromagnetic braking
11. Gym equipment – Eletromagnetic braking
12. Power tools – Eletromagnetic braking and universal motor (electromagnetic stator, which is the stationary part of motor)
13. Rollercoaster – Permanent magnets for braking and electro magnets for acceleration “Wildwood Rollercoaster” by HorsePunchKid is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
14. Electric cars (Tesla Model S and X) – Induction motor, where the alternating current applied through the wires of the stator, creates a rotating magnetic field that drives a central coil.“Tesla Sedan” by dog97209 is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
15. Modern cars – Induction motor
16. Vacuum cleaner – Universal motor (eletromagnetic stator)This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA
17. Electric lawn mower – Universal motor (eletromagnetic stator)
18. Washing machine – Universal motor (eletromagnetic stator)
19. Electric fan – Universal motor (eletromagnetic stator)
20. Generator – Electromagnetic induction, where mechanical force applied to a coil of wire in a magnetic field creates eletricity
21. Hydroelectric power plant – Water rotates magnets near a circuit which generates electricity
22. Transformers – Electromagnetic induction, where two different sized coils of wire around a specific type of bar magnet can be used to change (transfer) the voltage of an AC circuit up or down
23. Medical Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) machine – Uses a strong (between 0.5 Tesla and 3 Tesla) magnetic field and a radio frequency electromagnetic wave to manipulate protons inside the human body, unveiling information about soft tissue such as organs and muscles This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND