Thermal phase change energy storage and electrical conductivity

Are phase change materials suitable for thermal energy storage?

Phase change materials (PCMs) having a large latent heat during solid-liquid phase transition are promising for thermal energy storage applications. However, the relatively low thermal conductivity of the majority of promising PCMs (<10 W/ (m ⋅ K)) limits the power density and overall storage efficiency.

What is a phase change material (PCM) for thermal energy storage?

Phase change materials (PCMs) for thermal energy storage Thermal energy can be stored as latent energy by heating and cooling the material without much visible temperature change. The stored energy can be retrieved when the process is reversed.

How to enhance thermal conductivity of phase change materials?

Comparison of different ways to enhance thermal conductivity of phase change materials Overall the methods to enhance thermal conductivity of PCM can be divided into two categories: fixed and stationary high conductivity inserts/additives, and extrinsic enhancement methods like fins and PCM encapsulation, etc.

What are phase-change energy storage materials?

Among phase-change energy storage materials, organic phase-change energy storage materials mainly include aliphatic hydrocarbons, alcohols, fatty acids, etc., which is attributed to their high latent heat of melting, good stability, non-corrosive properties, etc. [5, 6, 7].

What is a phase change material (PCM)?

Utilization of heat energy using phase change materials (PCMs) is an economical and environment friendly approach 1. Among the different PCMs, there is a long list of organic compounds which have been studied for latent heat thermal energy storage (LHTES) 2, 3.

How to improve thermal conductivity and heat transfer properties?

Several researchers have investigated these FAs and tried to improve their thermal properties, mainly by adding different high conducting fillers, such as graphite, metal foams, CNTs, graphene etc. In most cases, these fillers improved the thermal conductivity and heat transfer property but reduce the heat storage capacity considerably.