Senior researcher, Advanced Materials Department, Institute for Scientific and Technological Research of San Luis Potosi, IPICyT, Mexico

Speech Title: Melt spinning technique for preparation of magnetocaloric alloys
Abstract: Magnetic refrigeration is a solid-state cooling technology under development worldwide based on the magnetocaloric effect. This new refrigeration technology is called to replace the currently used technology based on the compression/expansion of gases because it is eco-friendly and of higher energy efficiency (up to 30 %). The massive commercialization of magnetic refrigerators demands the availability of cheap and high-cooling efficiency magnetic refrigerants able to work over different temperature ranges (i.e., from the low to the room temperature range) [1]. In this talk the magnetocaloric properties of different polycrystalline ferromagnetic alloys produced by rapid solidification using the melt spinning technique will be described. The advantages of this technique will be exemplified through the characterization of the magnetocaloric response of the following alloy systems: RNi2 Laves (R = rare earth) [2-4], Heusler-type NiMnX alloys (X = Sn, In) [5], R2Fe17 (R = Pr, Nd) [6], MnCoGeBx, and FeZrB metallic glasses [7,8]. It will be shown that in some cases for the reference applied magnetic field change of 2 T the MC properties exceed those reported for the parent bulk materials obtained by conventional alloying techniques. The ability of this technique to synthesize single- or dual-phase materials, create crystal and/or chemical disorder or the generation of a columnnar-like highly-oriented microstructure will be discussed; the effect of these intrinsic or extrinsic factors on the magnetocaloric properties of the systems listed above will be briefly discussed.
Keywords: Magnetocaloric effect; Melt spun ribbons; magnetic entropy change