Influence of Cu on the Magnetic Properties of La_0.7Ce_0.3Fe_11.54-xCu_xMn_0.16Si_1.3 Alloy and Its Hydride

La(Fe, Si)(13) alloys possessed first order magnetic transition show large magnetocaloric effect, and is considered as a promising magnetocaloric effect material. La(0.7)Ce(0.3)Fe(11.54-x)CuxMn(0.16)Si(1.3)(x=0, 0.05, 0.1, 0.15) alloys with different contents of Cu were prepared by high frequence induction melting furnace. With the aid of powder XRD and scanning electron microscope (SEM), the phase composition and microstructure were investigated. The magnetic properties were measured by using the magnetometer VersaLab. The results show that Curie temperature increases after partial Cu substitution for Fe, Curie temperatures of the doped alloys after hydrogenation are around room temperature, however shows the decrease when the Cu content increases. Although the magnetocaloric effects decrease with the increase in Cu content, the max magnetic entropy change of La0.7Ce0.3Fe11.44Cu0.1Mn0.16Si1.3H1.68 alloy is still as high as 8.5 J/(kg.K) (0-2 T), the relative cooling property (RCP) improves (118 J/kg, x=0.1) and the hysteresis decreases evidently.