Magnetic Cooling Becoming a Hot Topic: How Novel Magnetocaloric Materials Pave the Way for First Applications of Energy-Efficient Cooling

摘要

For more than 100 years the vacuum compressor has been the benchmark in refrigeration technology. Meanwhile, the discovery of new materials with a giant magnetocaloric effect allows the construction of a novel heat pump with a much higher efficiency. Current prototypes that have been realized recently allow testing novel materials in heat exchangers with tailor-made geometry such that the energy efficiency can be optimized on the device level. Absolutely essential is the development of a computer-based model that predicts the performance of the complete heat pump based on the physical properties of the active magnetocaloric materials.