Neopentyl Glycol as Active Supporting Media in Shape-Stabilized PCMs

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Chemical Engineering
• Energy Storage

Background:

• Shape-stabilized phase change materials (SSPCMs) prevent leakage and improve handling of solid-liquid PCMs.
• Conventional SSPCMs suffer reduced heat storage capacity due to non-active supporting materials.
• Combining solid-solid and solid-liquid PCMs offers a route to high energy density materials.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore polyalcohols as active matrices for n-alkanes in SSPCMs.
• To develop a high energy density SSPCM by combining solid-solid (polyalcohol) and solid-liquid (alkane) phase transitions within the same temperature range.
• To investigate the performance of Neopentyl Glycol (NPG) and Docosane as a novel energetic SSPCM.

Main Methods:

• Investigated the feasibility of using Neopentyl Glycol (NPG) as a solid-solid phase change material matrix for Docosane (n-alkane).
• Utilized expanded graphite (EG) to enhance capillary forces, improve NPG wettability, and increase Docosane content.
• Analyzed the chemical compatibility and wettability between NPG and Docosane.

Main Results:

• Achieved excellent chemical compatibility and wettability between NPG and Docosane, enabling high n-alkane loading (up to 60 wt%).
• Incorporation of expanded graphite improved shape stability and heat transfer properties.
• The NPG-Docosane SSPCM demonstrated combined latent heats, reaching a maximum of 210.74 J/g.

Conclusions:

• Neopentyl Glycol (NPG) and Docosane form a promising energetic SSPCM with high latent heat storage capacity.
• The developed SSPCM significantly outperforms existing materials in the same working temperature range.
• This approach offers a viable strategy for creating high-performance energy storage solutions.