Parametric analysis of fatigue-resistant elastocaloric regeneratorsAhčin, Žiga (Avtor) Tušek, Jaka (Avtor) elastocaloric effectcaloric coolingNi-Tiregeneratorsparametric analysisElastocaloric cooling has recently shown high potential as an environmentally friendly alternative to vapor-compression technology. Here, we have studied and analyzed the geometric characteristics of two active elastocaloric regenerators (AeCRs) that were proved to have high application potential, i.e., a shell-and-tube AeCR loaded in compression and a parallel-plate AeCR loaded in tension, with the goal of maximizing their cooling performance. For this purpose, a previously developed and experimentally verified 1D numerical model was used. We focused only on the geometries and operating conditions that allow for durable, i.e., buckling-free operation in compression and fatigue-resistant operation in tension. The results show that although the applied strain of the parallel-plate AeCR loaded in tension needs to be limited (below 2%) to ensure fatigue-resistant operation, it outperforms (in terms of cooling power and COP at 15 K of temperature span) the shell-and-tube AeCR, which due to buckling issues suffers from a poorer heat-transfer geometry, but can withstand higher strains due to compressive loading. At the maximum strain of 2%, the optimum parallel-plate AeCR can generate a maximum cooling power of 1825 W (corresponding to 7075 W kg$^{−1}$ of elastocaloric material) and a COP of 9.15 at a zero-temperature span. On the other hand, due to a higher applied strain (3%) the optimum shell-and-tube AeCR can generate a higher maximum temperature span at zero cooling power (up to 50 K) but has limited cooling performance at lower temperature spans. In addition, the layering of the shell-and-tube AeCR was investigated for the first time to improve its performance. This study shows the crucial impact of the heat-transfer geometry (heat-transfer area and hydraulic diameter), which needs to be further improved in compression-loaded AeCRs to improve their efficiencies (without compromising the buckling stability). The study also shows the importance of the applied strain, which needs to be at least 2% or more to achieve a high cooling performance of the AeCR. The obtained results should serve as guidelines for designing powerful and efficient AeCRs in the future.20232023-07-04 11:29:07Članek v reviji147390sl