Design of permanent magnet flux source for a rotary magnetic refrigerating system

Summary form only given. A magnetic refrigerator (MR) operating at room temperature is being developed as a technology which can replace the conventional liquid/vapor refrigeration systems. The essential parts of an MR system are the magnetic field source, which uses permanent magnets, and the magnetic refrigerant materials, which must have a large magnetocaloric effect (MCE). For efficient operation of the MR, a magnetic field well above the remanence of NdBFe is required. The hollow cylindrical permanent magnet array (HCPMA) design, and modifications based on this design, have been shown to produce the required strength of magnetic field. The cross section of the HCPMA and the directions of the magnetization vectors in the various segments are shown. The magnetic flux lines of a modified HCPMA designed to allow access of the rotating magnetic refrigerant materials are shown. The height of the slot, located in the array is 12.7 mm.