Polymeric phase change composites for thermal energy storage

This article describes a group of thermal energy storage (TES) composites that combine TES and structural functionality. The composites are encapsulations of low melt temperature phase change materials (PCM) such as paraffin waxes in polymer matrices. Room temperature cured bisphenol-A epoxy and styrene-ethylene-butylene-styrene (SEBS) polymers are chosen as matrix materials because of their excellent chemical and mechanical properties. The polymeric network structure in the composite encapsulates the PCMs, which transform from the solid to the liquid phase. The PCMs provide the energy storage function via the solid-liquid latent heat effect. The resulting composite exhibits dry-phase transition in the sense that fluid motion of the PCM, when in the liquid phase, is inhibited by the structure of the polymer matrix. The polymer matrix is formulated to provide structural functionality. The latent heat, thermal conductivity and contact conductance, and structural moduli of composites having various PCM-to-matrix volume fractions are measured. (C) 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.