Preparation and thermal energy storage properties of paraffin/expanded graphite composite phase change material

Zhengguo Zhang, Ni Zhang, Jing Peng, Xiaoming Fang, Xuenong Gao and Yutang Fang

Applied Energy, 2012, vol. 91, issue 1, 426-431

Abstract: The paraffin/expanded graphite (EG) composite phase change material (PCM) was prepared by absorbing liquid paraffin into EG, in which paraffin was chosen as the PCM. EG was produced by microwave irradiation performed at room temperature. It was found that the EG prepared at 800W irradiation power for 10s exhibited the maximum sorption capacity of 92wt% for paraffin. Scanning electron microscopy images showed that paraffin was uniformly dispersed in the pores of EG. Differential scanning calorimeter analysis indicated that the melting temperature of the composite PCM was close to that of paraffin, and its latent heat was equivalent to the calculated value based on the mass fraction of paraffin in the composite. X-ray diffraction analysis showed that the composite PCM was just a combination of paraffin with EG, and no new substance was produced. Thermal energy storage performance of the composite PCM was tested in a latent thermal energy storage (LTES) system. Transients of axial and radial temperature profiles were obtained in the LTES for the composite PCM and paraffin. The thermal energy storage charging duration for the composite PCM was reduced obviously compared to paraffin.

Keywords: Paraffin; Expanded graphite; Microwave irradiation; Thermal energy storage (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2012
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (78)

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DOI: 10.1016/j.apenergy.2011.10.014

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