Preparation and Characterization of a Composite Phase-Change Material with Silicone Rubber Foam as Carrier

A kind of composite phase-change foam material (PW/SRF/EG) was prepared by a melt-blending method with silicone rubber foam (SRF) as the carrier, expanded graphite (EG) as a heat-conducting agent, and binary eutectic paraffin wax (PW) as the phase-change material (PCM), and the contrast foams SRF and PW/SRF were prepared at the same time. The structures and the thermal properties were characterized by Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA), and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The results indicated that the PW/SRF/EG was a physical mixture that has a melting temperature of 50.34 degrees C and a latent heat of 88.76 J/g. The transient plane source method (TPS) and 100 thermal cycle tests were employed to test the thermal conductivity performance and stability of PW/SRF/EG, which indicated a thermal conductivity improvement from 0.14 to 0.39 W/(m.K) with adding 3% EG into PW/SRF. Besides, analysis also suggested that EG was very effective in enhancing the thermal stability performance of the foam. And the composite has potential for application in power battery systems of new energy vehicles.

Automated summary

A composite phase-change foam material was prepared using silicone rubber foam as the carrier, expanded graphite as the heat-conducting agent, and binary eutectic paraffin wax as the phase-change material. The material showed improved thermal conductivity and stability, making it a promising candidate for application in power battery systems of new energy vehicles.