Magnetic Refrigeration

Apr 12, 2000

Magnetic refrigeration (MR) offers the promise of improved energy efficiencies to be competitive with and eventually replace conventional gas-compression refrigeration technologies for large scale cooling technologies, such as industrial gas liquefaction, frozen food processing and storage, and large building air-conditioning. In the past three years we have made two significant advances. (1) We have shown that MR is a viable technology and no longer a gleam in our eyes-we have achieved a cooling power of 20 to 100 times larger than had been attained heretofore. (2) We have discovered the giant magnetocaloric effect in Gd5(S[xGel -x)4 alloys which we believe makes MR a competitive technology for home applications (refrigerators and air conditioning) and climate control in automobiles.

Greenstreets Restaurant

5826 University Ave, Cedar Falls.

The restaurant is inside the Holiday Inn.

Dr. Karl A. Gschneider, Distinguished Professor, Iowa State University

Dr. Karl A. Gschneidner is presently a Professor in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at Iowa State University. He received his BS in Chemistry from University of Detroit in 1952 and his PhD in Physical Chemistry from Iowa State University in 1957. His past assignments are: Senior Metallurgist, Director of the Rare-earth Information Center; Staff Member (Section Leader) at the Los Alamos National Laboratory; visiting Professor at the University of California (San Diego) and at the Department of Physics, University of Illinois, Urbana. (http://www.external.ameslab.gov/mat_ref/people/gschneid.html)

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