Wollastonite hybridizing stearic acid as thermal energy storage material

This paper reported on the preparation of a novel stearic acid (SA)/wollastonite (W) composite as a form-stable phase change material (PCM) for thermal energy-storage (TES) by vacuum impregnation, and especially investigated the effect of the size grade of W on the thermal properties of the SA/W composite. Samples were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), laser particle-size analysis, and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Natural W (Wr) was classified into four size grades by wet screening. The results indicate that no chemical reaction took place between SA and W, and the SA load in the SA/W composite increased with an increase in the length/diameter (L/D) ratio of the W. The SA/W composite with a W L/D ratio of 22.5 exhibited latent heats of melting and freezing of 58.64 J/g and 56.95 J/g, respectively, which was higher than those of the composite incorporating natural W. We believe that the as-prepared form-stable PCM composite could provide a potential means of TES for the concentrated solar power.