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Magnetic Fridge
Ian Finlay writes: "Scientists at the Ames Laboratory say they have created the world's first magnetic refrigerator, which someday may save consumers money on energy bills and be better for the environment. The AP story is on Yahoo at the usual place."
No, it's experimental, protype-only and very expensive. Read the article :)
A virtually silent air conditioner would be nice too. I dodn't really care for a silent fridge that much, since I don't tend to work or sleep in my kitchen very often..
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Does the energy that does the work to remove the heat from the refridgerated side of the setup come from the work being done to insert the Gadolinium alloy into the magnetic field(and to remove it) or is the energy input done simply by the circulation of coolant fluid through the heated/cooled alloy.
If the alloy changes temperature based on its magnetic field environment, then the work that goes into the heating and cooling is from the force needed to move the alloy through the magnetic field in the rig they're using.
A virtually silent air conditioner would be nice too.
That would be GREAT, except that there's also the noise generated by the fan which circulates the cooled air into the room. Granted, it would be much quieter, but I doubt it would be silent. :(
I don't really care for a silent fridge that much, since I don't tend to work or sleep in my kitchen very often..
Yes, BUT I'd have really appreciated a nearly silent fridge in my college dorm room! Or, even today, to have a small fridge in a cubicle at work would be a real plus!
Quiet PC? I'm drooling to think about someday using one of these to cool my PC! Silence IS golden.