A large fraction of global energy use is for refrigeration and air-conditioning, which could be decarbonised if efficient renewable energy technologies could be found. Vapour-compression technology remains the most widely used system to move heat up the temperature scale after more than 100 years; however, caloric-based technologies (those using the magnetocaloric, electrocaloric, barocaloric or elastocaloric effect) have recently shown a significant potential as alternatives to replace this technology due to high efficiency and the use of green solid-state refrigerants. Here, we report a regenerative elastocaloric heat pump that exhibits a temperature span of 15.3 K on the water side with a corresponding specific heating power up to 800 W kg -1 and maximum COP (coefficient-of-performance) values of up to 7. The efficiency and specific heating power of this device exceeds those of other devices based on caloric effects. These results open up the possibility of using the elastocaloric effect in various cooling and heatpumping applications.
We report on the elastocaloric effect of a superelastic Ni-Ti wire to be used in a cooling device. Initially, each evaluated wire was subjected to 400 loading/unloading training cycles in order to stabilize its superelastic behavior. The wires were trained at different temperatures, which lead to different stabilized superelastic behaviors. The stabilized (trained) wires were further tested isothermally (at low strain-rate) and adiabatically (at high strain-rate) at different temperatures (from 312 K to 342 K). We studied the impact of the training temperature and resulting superelastic behavior on the adiabatic temperature changes. The largest measured adiabatic temperature change during loading was 25 K with a corresponding 21 K change during unloading (at 322 K). A special focus was put on the irreversibilities in the adiabatic temperature changes between loading and unloading. It was shown that there are two sources of the temperature irreversibilities: the hysteresis (and related entropy generation) and the temporary residual strain immediately after unloading, respectively. The latter results in the temporary bending of the wire and reduced negative adiabatic temperature change. The paper also shows the impact of the applied strain on the adiabatic temperature changes as well as the distribution of the elastocaloric effect over the wire during loading in the case of two wires trained at different temperatures and the virgin wire, respectively. In the end, we propose guidelines about the required material properties for an efficient elastocaloric cooling device. V
up to 20-times larger cooling powers per mass compared to gadolinium (Gd), a benchmark magnetocaloric material, with comparable coeffi cient-of-performance (COP) values (≈5).These results can open up a new way of making cooling devices with much more compact systems and with the possibility of avoiding expensive rare-earth materials.The martensitic transformation is a fi rst-order solid-tosolid diffusionless structural transformation responsible for the shape memory effect and superelasticity. [ 23 ] When a shape memory alloy in the austenitic (cubic) phase is axially stressed, an exothermic austenitic-martensitic transformation occurs, which under adiabatic conditions causes the material to heat up. This heated material then rejects heat to the surroundings and cools down to the ambient temperature. When the stress is removed, the crystal structure transforms back to the austenitic phase, the material cools down and is now able to absorb heat from the surroundings. This process (as a cooling cycle) is schematically shown in Figure 1 a. In general, the main groups of superelastic alloys are Ni-Ti-based (doped with Cu, Co, Pd, etc.); Cu-based (doped with Al, Ni, Zn, Mn, etc.), and Fe-based (doped with Pd, Rh, Mn, Si, Ni, etc.) alloys. [ 23 ] All of those alloys can also be considered as potential elastocaloric materials when they undergo stress-induced transformation and its transfor-
The active magnetic regenerator (AMR) is an alternative refrigeration cycle with a potential gain of energy efficiency compared to conventional refrigeration techniques. The AMR poses a complex problem of heat transfer, fluid dynamics and magnetic fields, which requires detailed and robust modeling. This paper reviews the existing numerical modeling of room temperature AMR to date. The governing equations, implementation of the magnetocaloric effect (MCE), fluid flow and magnetic field profiles, thermal conduction etc. are discussed in detail as is their impact on the AMR cycle. Flow channeling effects, hysteresis, thermal losses and demagnetizing fields are discussed and it is concluded that more detailed modeling of these phenomena is required to obtain a better understanding of the AMR cycle.Response to Reviewers: Dear Dr. Ziegler, We have increased the font size in Fig. 5 of the manuscript according to your requirements. We gratefully thank you for accepting the manuscript and wish you a merry Christmas.On behalf of the authors, Kaspar K. Nielsen, PhD . 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 Review on numerical modeling of active magnetic regenerators for room temperature applications 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 fields are discussed and it is concluded that more detailed modeling of these phenomena is required to obtain a better understanding of the AMR cycle.
Active magnetic regenerator refrigeration (AMRR) systems are an environmentally attractive space cooling and refrigeration alternative that do not use a fluorocarbon working fluid. Two recent developments have made AMRRs appear possible to implement in the near-term. A rotary regenerator bed utilizing practical and affordable permanent magnets has been demonstrated to achieve acceptable COP. Concurrently, families of magnetocaloric material alloys with adjustable Curie temperatures have been developed. Using these materials it is possible to construct a layered regenerator bed that can achieve a high magnetocaloric effect across its entire operating range, resulting in an improved COP.There is currently no tool capable of predicting the performance of a layered AMRR. This project provides a numerical model that predicts the practical limits of these systems for use in space conditioning and refrigeration applications. The model treats the regenerator bed as a one dimensional matrix of magnetic material with a spatial variation in Curie temperature and therefore magnetic properties. The matrix is subjected to a spatially and temporally varying magnetic field and fluid mass flow. The variation of these forcing functions is based on the implementation of a rotating, multiple bed configuration. The numerical model is solved using a fully implicit (in time and space) discretization of the governing energy equations. The nonlinear aspects of the governing equations (e.g., fluid and magnetic property variations) are handled using a relaxation technique.The model is used to optimize AMRR applications by varying model inputs such as matrix material, fluid mass flow rate, working fluid, reservoir temperatures, and the variation of the Curie temperature across the bed. The preliminary model has been verified qualitatively using simple cycle parameters and constant property materials and quantitatively by comparing the results with prior solutions to the regenerator governing equations in the limits of constant properties and no magnetocaloric effect. A second goal of this project is to create a cost estimate for a future project that will design, build, and test a prototype AMRR to be used to verify the numerical model.
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