A comprehensive study of properties of paraffin phase change materials for solar thermal energy storage and thermal management applications

Samer Kahwaji, Michel B. Johnson, Ali C. Kheirabadi, Dominic Groulx and Mary Anne White

Energy, 2018, vol. 162, issue C, 1169-1182

Abstract: Paraffins are useful as phase change materials (PCMs) for thermal energy storage (TES) via their melting transition, Tmpt. Paraffins with Tmpt between 30 and 60 °C have particular utility in improving the efficiency of solar energy capture systems and for thermal buffering of electronics and batteries. However, there remain critical knowledge gaps concerning the properties of paraffin PCMs, including their long-term reliability and chemical compatibility. Therefore, we have undertaken a thorough, comprehensive study of the thermophysical properties, long-term stability and chemical compatibility of six widely useful paraffin PCMs. The PCMs investigated include three pure alkanes, nonadecane, eicosane, docosane, and three commercial blends of paraffin waxes. For each PCM, we accurately determined Tmpt, the latent heat of fusion, the density of the solid phase and the temperature dependences of the heat capacity and thermal conductivity. For the first time, we show the thermal stability of the PCMs after 3000 melt-freeze cycles, and their chemical compatibilities with 17 different metallic and plastic materials used for encapsulation and in composites and fillers. These results provide necessary information to improve energy modeling and analysis for existing and emerging TES applications, and guide the selection of reliable paraffin PCMs and encapsulation materials for such applications.

Keywords: Phase change material; PCM; Paraffin; Thermal properties; Thermal energy storage (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (8)

Downloads: (external link)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0360544218316001
Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:energy:v:162:y:2018:i:c:p:1169-1182

DOI: 10.1016/j.energy.2018.08.068

Access Statistics for this article

Energy is currently edited by Henrik Lund and Mark J. Kaiser

More articles in Energy from Elsevier
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Catherine Liu ().