Enhanced mechanical properties and large magnetocaloric effects in bonded La(Fe, Si)13-based magnetic refrigeration materials

Bonded La(Fe, Si)13 magnetic refrigeration materials have been prepared, and the microstructure, mechanical properties, and magnetocaloric effect (MCE) of bonded LaFe11.7Si1.3C0.2Hx have been investigated systematically. Bonded materials show porous architecture, and the mechanical properties increase with the increase of epoxy resin content, which could fill more pores and boundaries and thus enhance the binding force between different particles. Bonded LaFe11.7Si1.3C0.2H1.8 with 3 wt. % epoxy resin exhibits a compressive strength of 162 MPa, 35% higher than that of bulk compound. The mass magnetic entropy change (ΔSM) remains nearly unchanged while the volumetric ΔSM reduces due to the decrease of density in bonded materials. For a low magnetic field change of 2 T, the maximum ΔSM value of bonded LaFe11.7Si1.3C0.2H1.8 is ∼10.2 J/kg K and ∼54.7 mJ/cm3 K, which is larger than those of some magnetocaloric materials in the same temperature range. Enhanced mechanical properties and great MCE suggest that bonded La(Fe, Si)13-based materials could be promising candidates of magnetocaloric materials for practical applications of magnetic refrigeration.