Designing moving magnet pumps for high-temperature, liquid-metal systems

Moving magnet pumps (MMP's) operate on the same principles as other induction-style electromagnetic pumps. However, MMP's generate a travelling magnetic field with a spinning array of permanent magnets instead of polyphase field coils. This difference allows MMP's to be made much more quickly, reliably, and inexpensively than other types of electromagnetic pumps. For these reasons, MMP's are a promising technology that can be used to enhance liquid-metal systems in the nuclear, concentrated solar power, and energy storage industries. This paper will provide a background on MMP design and present an updated theory that can accurately predict MMP performance - even if the magnetic field produced by the MMP is non-sinusoidal. The new theory will be tested for a range of operating conditions (magnet configurations, magnet spacing, magnet type, etc.) and compared to experimental results.