How magnets could change our fridges and ACs forever

For centuries, refrigeration tech has stayed the same — energy-hungry and reliant on harmful gases. Enter magnetocaloric cooling: a new solution claiming to be 30% more energy-efficient than current cooling systems. And it's scalable. From fridges to cooling buildings and server farms. Follow Planet A on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@dw_planeta?la... Find out more about effects of ACs cooling at dw.com: https://p.dw.com/p/4bJcm #planeta #sustainablecooling #magneticrefrigeration We're destroying our environment at an alarming rate. But it doesn't need to be this way. Planet A explores the shift towards an eco-friendly world — and challenges our ideas about what dealing with climate change means. We look at the big and the small: What we can do and how the system needs to change. We'll take a truly global look at how to get us out of this mess. Credits: Reporter: Kai Steinecke Camera: Henning Goll Video Editor: David Jacobi Supervising Editors: Michael Trobridge, Malte Rohwer Kahlmann Thumbnail: Em Chabridon Fact Check: Alexander Paquet Read more: Efficiency Assessment of different cooling systems: https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10... Scalability magnetocaloric heat pump technology: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science... Review vapor compression fridges: https://www.mdpi.com/2571-8797/5/2/30 Introduction magnetocaloric materials: https://www.tudelft.nl/tnw/over-facul... Special thanks to Julie Slaughter (Ames Laboratory, US Department of Energy) and Kilian Bartholomé (Fraunhofer IPM) who provided valuable insights in background interviews. Chapters: 00:00 Intro 00:45 Magnetocaloric Effect 02:56 Magnetic Fridge 04:31 Design Challenges 07:20 Efficiency Ratings 09:35 Scalability & costs 11:41 Conclusion