ABSTRACT
Magnetic heat pumping is an adiabatic heating method that applies the magnetocaloric effect (MCE). From the point of view of basic physics, it shows an analogy to the conventional gas compression-expansion method. It has been applied for many years in cryogenics to reach very low temperatures. After the discovery of the ‘giant’ magnetocaloric effect (GMCE) in Gd5(Si2Ge2) in 1997, which increases the MCE, many scientists and industrial representatives of the refrigeration community conceded that this new technology (applying permanent magnets and the GMCE) has good future potential for a remarkable penetration into the refrigeration/heat-pumping market.
