A method is provided of making a magnetocaloric alloy composition comprising Ni, Co, Mn, and Ti, which preferably includes certain beneficial substitutional elements, by melting the composition and rapidly solidifying the melted composition at a cooling rate of at least 100 K/second (Kelvin/second) to improve a magnetocaloric property of the composition. The rapidly solidified composition can be heat treated to homogenize the composition and annealed to tune the magneto-structural transition for use in a regenerator.

Provided is a group of rare-earth regenerator material particles having an average particle size of 0.01 to 3 mm, wherein the proportion of particles having a ratio of a long diameter to a short diameter of 2 or less is 90% or more by number, and the proportion of particles having a depressed portion having a length of 1/10 to of a circumferential length on a particle surface is 30% or more by number. By forming the depressed portion on the surface of the regenerator material particles, it is possible to increase permeability of an operating medium gas and a contact surface area with the operating medium gas.

A preparation method for a metal soft magnetic composite material inductor includes: smelting Fe, Si and Cr and then employing a water atomization or gas atomization means to fabricate an alloy powder; after sifting by particle size, mixing powders of different particle size levels and performing coating insulation, and performing post-granulation to obtain a metal soft composite material granulation powder; adopting the granulation powder to press a material cake, and transferring and molding same; adopting a hollow coil in a liquid-phase coating mold cavity, curing and demolding to obtain a semi-finished product, then continuously heating and curing the semi-finished product, and preparing an end electrode to obtain a finished inductor.

A method of manufacturing a magnetic material, includes a surface oxides decreasing step of decreasing surface oxides of an iron powder; a powder-molded body forming step of mixing the iron powder whose surface oxides are already decreased obtained by the surface oxides decreasing step, and a compound powder A constituted by a La element and a Si element, and compressing and molding the obtained mixture powder; and a sintered body forming step of preparing a sintered body from the powder-molded body obtained by the powder-molded body forming step, by a solid phase reaction under vacuum atmosphere.

A method of manufacturing a magnetic material, includes a surface oxides decreasing step of decreasing surface oxides of an iron powder; a powder-molded body forming step of mixing the iron powder whose surface oxides are already decreased obtained by the surface oxides decreasing step, and a compound powder A constituted by a La element and a Si element, and compressing and molding the obtained mixture powder; and a sintered body forming step of preparing a sintered body from the powder-molded body obtained by the powder-molded body forming step, by a solid phase reaction under vacuum atmosphere.

A magneto-caloric thermal diode assembly includes a magneto-caloric cylinder. A plurality of thermal stages is stacked along an axial direction between a cold side and a hot side. Each of the plurality of thermal stages includes a plurality of magnets and a non-magnetic ring. The plurality of magnets is distributed along a circumferential direction within the non-magnetic ring in each of the plurality of thermal stages. The plurality of magnets and the non-magnetic ring of each of the plurality of thermal stages collectively define a cylindrical slot. The magneto-caloric cylinder is positioned within the cylindrical slot. In each of the plurality of magnets in one of the plurality of thermal stages, a first, second, third and fourth magnet segments are positioned and oriented such that the first, second, third and fourth magnet segments collectively form a closed loop high-field zone across the cylindrical slot.

A porous carbon material composite formed of a porous carbon material and a functional material and equipped with high functionality. The porous carbon material composite is formed of (A) a porous carbon material obtainable from a plant-derived material having a silicon (Si) content of 5 wt % or higher as a raw material; and (B) a functional material adhered on the porous carbon material, and has a specific surface area of 10 m.sup.2/g or greater as determined by the nitrogen BET method and a pore volume of 0.1 cm.sup.3/g or greater as determined by the BJH method and MP method.

A porous carbon material composite formed of a porous carbon material and a functional material and equipped with high functionality. The porous carbon material composite is formed of (A) a porous carbon material obtainable from a plant-derived material having a silicon (Si) content of 5 wt % or higher as a raw material; and (B) a functional material adhered on the porous carbon material, and has a specific surface area of 10 m.sup.2/g or greater as determined by the nitrogen BET method and a pore volume of 0.1 cm.sup.3/g or greater as determined by the BJH method and MP method.

The present invention is directed to a method for providing a surface, in particular a floor surface, with a layer of a magnetic and/or magnetizable cover composition, the surface having at least one layer of cementitious material, wherein the method comprises the step of spreading the layer of the cover composition onto the surface, the cover composition comprising a polymeric binder and magnetic and/or magnetizable particles, characterized in that the layer of the cover composition has a water vapor transmission rate of at least 0.25 g h.sup.1 m.sup.2 according to ASTM D1653,and the surface and/ or the layer of cementitious material has a relative humidity of more than 75% according to ASTM F 2170-11.

The present invention is directed to a method for providing a surface, in particular a floor surface, with a layer of a magnetic and/or magnetizable cover composition, the surface having at least one layer of cementitious material, wherein the method comprises the step of spreading the layer of the cover composition onto the surface, the cover composition comprising a polymeric binder and magnetic and/or magnetizable particles, characterized in that the layer of the cover composition has a water vapor transmission rate of at least 0.25 g h.sup.1 m.sup.2 according to ASTM D1653,and the surface and/ or the layer of cementitious material has a relative humidity of more than 75% according to ASTM F 2170-11.