A versatile magnetic refrigeration test device

A magnetic refrigeration test device has been built and tested. The device allows variation and control of many important experimental parameters, such as the type of heat transfer fluid, the movement of the heat transfer fluid, the timing of the refrigeration cycle, and the magnitude of the applied magnetic field. An advanced two-dimensional numerical model has previously been implemented in order to help in the optimization of the design of a refrigeration test device. Qualitative agreement between the results from model and the experimental results is demonstrated for each of the four different parameter variations mentioned above. (C) 2008 American Institute of Physics. [DOI: 10.1063/1.2981692]