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Thermal charging rate of composite wax-expanded graphite phase change materials.

Number: 3344

Author(s) : HIRSCHEY J., KUMAR N., LACLAIR T. J., GLUESENKAMP K. R., GRAHAM S.

Summary

Phase change materials (PCMs) are valuable for their ability to store heat nearly isothermally around their phase transition temperature. PCMs are at the core of latent heat thermal energy storage (LHTES) systems, which provide the ability to buffer high thermal loads or decouple the time when heating or cooling is needed from when it is produced. Thermal charging and discharging of LHTES systems often employ a constant temperature source, and the rate at which heat can be exchanged is dependent on the thermophysical properties of the PCM. For graphite composite PCMs, the high thermal conductivity of the graphite enables an increased heat transfer rate through the material, but its presence displaces PCM which reduces the effective volumetric latent heat of the composite relative to the pure PCM. This results in a tradeoff between thermal power and volumetric energy storage capacity. The thermal charging rate is the average thermal energy stored in the material for some elapsed time. In this study, composite PCMs of compressed expanded natural graphite (CENG) and n-Octadecane are studied. Samples with varying CENG mass fractions were synthesized and the thermal charging rate was measured under a constant temperature boundary condition. For evaluation of the expanded graphite-PCM composite, one boundary of the material was exposed to a 50°C constant temperature plate, above the 27.5°C melting temperature of the PCM. The melting front progression [mm-s-1] and the thermal charging rate [W-cm-2] of the PCM were determined, and the results were compared with analytical predictions for the 1-D semi-infinite phase change. For CENG addition up to 5.75% mass fraction, a 450% thermal conductivity increase was observed with a only 5% decrease in volumetric energy density as compared to pure octadecane. The average thermal charging rate was increased by over 430% for the melt to penetrate a depth of 22 mm. The experimental results matched analytical predictions, indicating that higher CENG fractions can be evaluated using analytical approaches.

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Pages: 10

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Details

  • Original title: Thermal charging rate of composite wax-expanded graphite phase change materials.
  • Record ID : 30028641
  • Languages: English
  • Source: 2021 Purdue Conferences. 6th International High Performance Buildings Conference at Purdue.
  • Publication date: 2021/05/24
  • Document available for consultation in the library of the IIR headquarters only.

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