Ferrofluidic thermal switch in a magnetocaloric device

Klinar, Katja (author), Vozel, Katja (author), Swoboda, Timm (author), Sojer, Tom (author), Muñoz Rojo, Miguel (author), Kitanovski, Andrej (author)

Thermal switches are advanced heat-management devices that represent a new opportunity to improve the energy efficiency and power density of caloric devices. In this study we have developed a numerical model to analyze the operation and the performance of static thermal switches in caloric refrigeration. The investigation comprises a parametric analysis of a realistic ferrofluidic thermal switch in terms of the maximum temperature span, cooling power, and coefficient of performance. The highest achieved temperature span between the heat source and the heat sink was 1.12 K for a single embodiment, which could be further developed into a regenerative system to increase the temperature span. A sensitivity analysis is conducted to correlate the relationship between the input parameters and the results. We show that thermal switches can be used in caloric devices even when switching ratios are small, which greatly extends the possibilities to implement different types of thermal switches.

• Language: English
• Keywords: thermal switches, ferrofluids, magnetic cooling, heat transfer, thermal management, sensitivity analysis
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: FS - Faculty of Mechanical Engineering
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Year: 2022
• Number of pages: 15 str.
• Numbering: Vol. 25, iss. 2, art. 103779
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-134893
• UDC: 536:620.1/.2
• ISSN on article: 2589-0042
• DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2022.103779
• COBISS.SI-ID: 96902659
• Publication date in RUL: 10.02.2022

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: iScience
• Publisher: Cell Press, Elsevier
• ISSN: 2589-0042
• COBISS.SI-ID: 24098568

Licences

• License: CC BY-NC-ND 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
• Description: The most restrictive Creative Commons license. This only allows people to download and share the work for no commercial gain and for no other purposes.

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Keywords: toplotna stikala, ferofluidi, magnetno hlajenje, prenos toplote, upravljanje s toploto, občutljivostna analiza