Acetamide for latent heat storage: Thermal stability and metal corrosivity with varying thermal cycles

Thermal stability and corrosion behavior of acetamide are studied using standard protocol in order to understand its feasibility as phase change material (PCM) for latent heat storage system. Maximum thermal stable temperature (110 degrees C) of acetamide as estimated by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) indicates its prospect for several thermal storage applications including solar drying system. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) is used to evaluate the onset melting temperatures (107.62 degrees C), peak melting temperature (112.84 degrees C) and latent heat of fusion (210.21 J/g) of fresh acetamide as well as samples undergoing repeated heating and cooling (thermal cycles). Samples are collected and analysed at 100th thermal cycle interval up to 1000 thermal cycles to estimate relative percentage difference (RPD) of onset, peak melting temperatures and latent heat of fusion to understand the thermal stability of the selected PCM. Overall, RPD values are found within acceptable limit. Compatibility of acetamide with four metal surfaces (stainless steel, mild steel, aluminum and copper) are tested as a prospective container material through a series of standard corrosion resistance tests. The corrosion results suggest stainless steel and aluminum to be compatible with acetamide. Results indicated acetamide as a potential PCM candidate for mid-range (80-120 degrees C) temperature thermal energy storage application. (c) 2019 Published by Elsevier Ltd.