Magnetic Refrigeration: A Benign Environmental Technology

拟议研究的目的是开发一种可以在环境大气温度范围内运行的磁制冷系统，并确定磁制冷在实际消费者制冷系统中的适用性。这种系统的潜在优势是防止现有系统中有害工作流体造成的环境破坏，并通过利用磁热效应显著提高能源效率，从而降低能源消耗。磁制冷提供了一种与现有压缩制冷系统明显不同的热力学方法，因为它不依赖于可冷凝的工作流体。成功应用于汽车空调将减少发动机负荷，节省燃料，同时不使用对环境有害的工作流体，从而具有环境效益。该项目的目的是研究在0至40摄氏度温度范围内工作的磁性冰箱的系统要求，并为磁性冰箱制作一个仪器化的实验室研究测试平台。磁场将由一个可调节磁场的“魔环”组件产生，该组件由商用高能产品永久磁铁制成。制冷剂将是一种“超铁磁性”纳米复合材料，它有可能被设计成与所采用的热力学循环相匹配，并且没有滞后损失。传热介质将是一种环境安全的流体，如惰性气体。波纹管期望提供热传递流体在嵌入在多孔材料中的纳米复合材料上的适当运动。在这个项目的过程中，材料的选择，换热安排和流体将探索磁制冷的各种应用。

The purpose of the proposed research is to develop a magnetic refrigeration system that can operate in the range of ambient atmospheric temperatures and to determine the applicability of magnetic refrigeration to practical consumer refrigeration systems. The potential advantages of such a system are the prevention of environmental damage caused by harmful working fluids involved in existing systems and the reduction of energy consumption resulting from the significantly improved energy efficiency inherent in the utilization of the magneto-caloric effect. Magnetic refrigeration offers a significantly different thermodynamic approach than existing compression refrigeration systems since it does not depend upon a condensable working fluid. Successful application to automotive air conditioning would have an environmental benefit by reducing engine load and saving fuel while employing no environmentally damaging working fluids. The objective of this project is to investigate the system requirements for a magnetic refrigerator operating in the temperature range 0 to 40 degrees C and to produce an instrumented laboratory research test platform for a magnetic refrigerator. The magnetic field will be produced by an adjustable-field "magic ring" assembly made from commercial high-energy-product permanent magnets. The refrigerant will be a "superferromagnetic" nanocomposite, which has the potential of being designed to match the thermodynamic cycle being employed and which has no hysteretic losses. The heat transfer agent will be an environmentally safe fluid, such as an inert gas. A bellows is expected to provide the appropriate movement of the heat transfer fluid over the nanocomposite embedded in a porous material. In the course of this project, the choices of materials, heat exchange arrangements and fluids will be explored for the various applications of magnetic refrigeration.