Thermal performance of shape-stabilized phase-change materials

Abstract

Shapestabilized phasechange materials have important applications in thermal storage and the heating of buildings. High density polyethylene (HDPE) and low density polyethylene (LDPE) were used to make shapestabilized phasechange materials as construction support materials. A mixture of shapestabilized phasechange material and concrete was prepared. This paper analyzes the material uniformity and stability as well as the critical mass fraction of paraffin required in the materials. The thermal performance of the shapestabilized phasechange materials and the mixture of shapestabilized phasechange material and concrete were investigated using a differential scanning calorimeter (DSC). The physical structures of the materials were studied using a scanning electron microscope. The experimental results show that the shapestabilized phasechange material has good thermal performance and stability with HDPE as the supporting and encapsulating material. The apparent specific heats of the shapestabilized phasechange material and the mixture with concrete can be much higher than of the concrete alone. 