Materials Informatics-Driven Assessment of Magnetocaloric Materials for Thermal Management in All-Electric Aircraft

The transition to All-Electric Aircraft (AEA) offers significant benefits, including reduced carbon emissions and lower maintenance requirements. However, an ongoing challenge in AEAs is efficient thermal management, particularly for batteries, which require strict temperature control to maintain performance and longevity. Sustainable solutions for thermal management are crucial to advancing AEA technology. Magnetic Cooling (MC) has emerged as a highly efficient alternative, demonstrating superior performance and energy conversion efficiency compared to conventional cooling methods. MC relies on magnetocaloric materials (MCMs), which undergo cyclic heating and cooling when exposed to and removed from a magnetic field, effectively functioning as a heat pump. MCMs encompass a broad range of material classes, including transition metal-based amorphous materials, rare-earth-based amorphous materials, rare-earth-containing crystalline structures (e.g., Laves phases), and rare-earth-free crystalline materials (e.g., Heusler alloys). The identification and optimization of MCMs for AEA applications require advanced materials discovery methodologies. Materials Informatics, or Materials 4.0, leverages extensive datasets on synthesis, processing, modeling, characterization, and properties to accelerate the discovery of novel MCMs. This study integrates multiple-attribute decision-making (MADM) methods, principal component analysis (PCA), and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) to evaluate and rank candidate MCMs systematically. Property weights were determined using objective and subjective approaches (Shannon’s entropy method). Rankings derived from several MADM techniques, including Technique of Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS), Grey Relational Analysis (GRA), and Operational Competitive Ratio (OCRA), showed strong consistency. PCA and HCA further consolidated these rankings, grouping materials with similar performance attributes. The findings identify promising MCMs for AEA thermal management, highlight potential substitutes for existing materials, and provide insights for developing high-efficiency, sustainable cooling technologies. This research aligns with the symposium’s focus on materials for clean energy and lightweight transportation systems.