Heat X, a patent holder of magnetocaloric and magnetic induction heating technologies based in Auburn Hills, announced that it has successfully completed Underwriters Laboratories field evaluations on its 1.5 kW Magnetocaloric/Magnetic Induction Tank Water Heater Assembly.
“Successfully completing UL Field Evaluation of our tank water heater assembly, showing again both the safety and manufacturability of our innovative designs, is another great milestone for our company,” says Sean Zecman, a founding investor at Heat X.
“With our water heater assembly design, we wanted to demonstrate our highly efficient, 100 percent clean and carbonless technology as well how we can overlay our technology with other current available resistive and induction heating technologies.”
Although magnetocaloric technology is not new, Heat X says there has been an increasing amount of focus on utilizing it as a clean solution to reduce electricity and fossil fuel consumption. It does not use any refrigerant gas or CO2 and has a coefficient of performance proportional to the magnitude of the caloric effects and inversely proportional to the strength of the driving field.
The coefficient of performance, in this case of a water heater, is a ratio of useful heating or cooling work provided to overall energy required. Meaning the greater the magnitude of the caloric effects — or heating and cooling caused by the changing of a magnetic field — the greater coefficient of performance. And vice versa for the strength of the driving field — or the changing field that generates an electric field.
Heat X’s magnetocaloric/magnetic induction patented designs use a refined combination of cost competitive and abundant materials. The systems then deliver more efficient, emission-free heating technologies using less components and lower material costs compared to existing fuel-based technologies. The company is planning full scale commercialization in 2021.
“Our team has developed an impressive line of air-to-air, surface and fluid magnetocaloric/magnetic induction appliances, and we’re pleased to be able to offer these technologies to commercialization partners around the world, who will be able to very quickly integrate our technologies into their future clean product portfolios,” says Zecman.
The field evaluation process conducted by Underwriter Laboratories, one of the world’s most respected certification companies, included the construction inspection for use of its components, assemblies and limited nondestructive testing to complete the assessment.
