scholarly journals Analysis of Bio-Based Fatty Esters PCM’s Thermal Properties and Investigation of Trends in Relation to Chemical Structures

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 225 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebecca Ravotti ◽  
Oliver Fellmann ◽  
Nicolas Lardon ◽  
Ludger Fischer ◽  
Anastasia Stamatiou ◽  
...  

As global energy demand increases while primary sources and fossil fuels’ availability decrease, research has shifted its focus to thermal energy storage systems as alternative technologies able to cover for the mismatch between demand and supply. Among the different phase change materials available, esters possess particularly favorable properties with reported high enthalpies of fusion, low corrosivity, low toxicity, low supercooling, thermal and chemical stability as well as biodegradability and being derived from renewable feedstock. Despite such advantages, little to no data on the thermal behavior of esters is available due to low commercial availability. This study constitutes a continuation of previous works from the authors on the investigation of fatty esters as novel phase change materials. Here, methyl, pentyl and decyl esters of arachidic acid, and pentyl esters of myristic, palmitic, stearic and behenic acid are synthesized through Fischer esterification with high purities and their properties are studied. The chemical structures and purities are confirmed through Attenuated Total Reflectance Infrared Spectroscopy, Gas Chromatography coupled with Mass Spectroscopy and Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy, while the determination of the thermal properties is performed through Differential Scanning Calorimetry and Thermogravimetric Analysis. In conclusion, some correlations between the melting temperatures and the chemical structures are discovered, and the fatty esters are assessed based on their suitability as phase change materials for latent heat storage applications.

Molecules ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 24 (7) ◽  
pp. 1300 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebecca Ravotti ◽  
Oliver Fellmann ◽  
Nicolas Lardon ◽  
Ludger Fischer ◽  
Anastasia Stamatiou ◽  
...  

In the presented work, five bio-based and bio-degradable cyclic esters, i.e. lactones, have been investigated as possible phase change materials for applications in latent heat storage systems. Commercial natural lactones such as ε-caprolactone and γ-valerolactone were easily purchased through chemical suppliers, while 1,2-campholide, oxa-adamantanone and dibenzochromen-6-one were synthesized through Baeyer-Villiger oxidation. The compounds were characterized with respect to attenuated total reflectance spectroscopy and gas chromatography coupled with mass spectroscopy, in order to confirm their chemical structures and identity. Subsequently, thermogravimetric analysis and differential scanning calorimetry were used to measure the phase change temperatures, enthalpies of fusion, degradation temperatures, as well to estimate the degree of supercooling. The lactones showed a wide range of phase change temperatures from −40 °C to 290 °C, making them a high interest for both low and high temperature latent heat storage applications, given the lack of organic phase change materials covering phase change temperature ranges below 0 °C and above 80 °C. However, low enthalpies of fusion, high degrees of supercooling and thermal degradations at low temperatures were registered for all samples, rendering them unsuitable as phase change materials.


Molecules ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (23) ◽  
pp. 5572
Author(s):  
Rebecca Ravotti ◽  
Jörg Worlitschek ◽  
Colin R. Pulham ◽  
Anastasia Stamatiou

Latent Heat Storage (LHS) with Phase-Change Materials (PCMs) represents a high energy density storage technology which could be applied in a variety of applications such as waste heat recovery and integration of renewable energy technologies in energy systems. To increase the sustainability of these storage solutions, PCMs have to be developed with particular regard to bio-origin and biodegradability. Triglycerides represent an interesting class of esters as the main constituents of animal and vegetable fats, with attractive thermal properties. In order to be used as PCMs, the thermal behaviour of triglycerides has to be fully understood, as in some cases they have been reported to show polymorphism and supercooling. This study assesses the suitability of triglycerides as PCMs by reviewing the literature published so far on their behaviour and properties. In particular, melting points, enthalpies of fusion, polymorphism, thermal conductivities, heat capacities and thermal cycling stabilities are considered, with a focus on LHS and thermal energy storage applications. In addition, the efforts conducted regarding modelling and the prediction of melting points and enthalpies based on chemical structures are summarized and assessed.


2018 ◽  
Vol 89 (8) ◽  
pp. 1512-1521
Author(s):  
Na Han ◽  
Wenxin Zhang ◽  
Xiufang Wang ◽  
Xingxiang Zhang ◽  
Wei Li ◽  
...  

It is a worldwide challenge to efficiently use renewable resources to solve the current energy shortage. The existing cellulose-based material is incapable of proper power storage. In this study, a series of cellulose benzoate-g-polyoxyethylene (2) hexadecyl ether (CB-g-E2C16) solid–solid phase change materials were synthesized with cellulose as the skeleton and polyoxyethylene (2) hexadecyl ether (E2C16) as a functional side chain. The skeleton cellulose and benzoyl chloride restrict the free movement of the molecular chains of E2C16 above the phase transition temperature, leading to a solid–solid phase change. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy were performed to investigate the chemical structures. The thermal energy-storage properties, thermal reliability and thermal stability of the CB-g-E2C16 were investigated by differential scanning calorimetry and thermogravimetry (TG) methods. The analysis results indicated that the E2C16 chains were successfully grafted onto the cellulose benzoate (CB) backbone and the copolymers exhibited typical solid–solid phase transition behavior. The enthalpy and degree of substitution of graft copolymers CB-g-E2C16 could be adjusted by changing the feeding ratio of the raw materials, reaction temperature and post-processing methods of CB. TG analysis results showed that the CB-g-E2C16 copolymers possessed good thermostability and they keep their stability up to 278℃. Compared with pure cellulose, CB-g-E2C16 copolymers could be dissolved in dimethyl sulfoxide and most of them could be dissolved in N, N-dimethylformamide.


2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yi Liu ◽  
Yan Chen ◽  
Junwei Zhang ◽  
Junkai Gao ◽  
Zhi Han

Abstract Copper microsphere hybrid mesoporous carbon (MPC-Cu) was synthesized by the pyrolysis of polydopamine microspheres doped with copper ions that were prepared using a novel, facile and simple one-step method of dopamine biomimetic polymerization and copper ion adsorption. The resulting MPC-Cu was then used as a supporter for polyethylene glycol (PEG) to synthesize shape-stabilized phase change materials (PEG/MPC-Cu) with enhanced thermal properties. PEG/MPC-Cu was studied by scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, differential scanning calorimetry and thermal constant analysis. The results demonstrated that the thermal conductivity of PEG/MPC-Cu was 0.502 W/(m K), which increased by 100% compared to pure PEG [0.251 W/(m K)]. The melting enthalpy of PEG/MPC-Cu was 95.98 J/g, indicating that PEG/MPC-Cu is a promising candidate for future thermal energy storage applications. In addition, the characterization results suggested that PEG-MPC-Cu possessed high thermal stability. Therefore, the method developed in this paper for preparing shape-stabilized phase change materials with improved thermal properties has substantial engineering application prospects.


Energies ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (18) ◽  
pp. 4687
Author(s):  
Arnold Martínez ◽  
Mauricio Carmona ◽  
Cristóbal Cortés ◽  
Inmaculada Arauzo

The growing interest in developing applications for the storage of thermal energy (TES) is highly linked to the knowledge of the properties of the materials that will be used for that purpose. Likewise, the validity of representing processes through numerical simulations will depend on the accuracy of the thermal properties of the materials. The most relevant properties in the characterization of phase change materials (PCM) are the phase change enthalpy, thermal conductivity, heat capacity and density. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) is the most widely used technique for determining thermophysical properties. However, several unconventional methods have been proposed in the literature, mainly due to overcome the limitations of DSC, namely, the small sample required which is unsuitable for studying inhomogeneous materials. This paper presents the characterization of two commercial paraffins commonly used in TES applications, using methods such as T-history and T-melting, which were selected due to their simplicity, high reproducibility, and low cost of implementation. In order to evaluate the reliability of the methods, values calculated with the proposed alternative methods are compared with the results obtained by DSC measurements and with the manufacturer’s technical datasheet. Results obtained show that these non-conventional techniques can be used for the accurate estimation of selected thermal properties. A detailed discussion of the advantage and disadvantage of each method is given.


2012 ◽  
Vol 204-208 ◽  
pp. 3998-4001
Author(s):  
Qi Song Shi

The ultrafine fibers based on the composites of polyethylene glycol(PEG) and polyvinylpyrrolidone(PVP) were prepared successfully via electrospinning as phase change materials. The thermal properties and morphology of the composite fibers were studied by differential scanning calorimetry(DSC) and scanning electron microscopy(SEM), respectively.


Materials ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 810
Author(s):  
Rebecca Ravotti ◽  
Oliver Fellmann ◽  
Ludger J. Fischer ◽  
Jörg Worlitschek ◽  
Anastasia Stamatiou

Esters present several advantages when compared to traditional materials used for thermal energy storage, amongst which are better sustainability and greater chemical stability. However, at present, their thermal properties remain mostly unknown or not well documented. In this study, 12 diesters from four dicarboxylic acids (oxalic, succinic, suberic, sebacic) and three alcohols (methanol, 1-pentanol, 1-decanol) have been assessed as bio-based phase change materials for thermal energy storage. All diesters have been synthesized via Fischer esterification to high purities, and their chemical structures, as well as thermal properties, have been fully characterized. The diesters investigated show phase change transitions in a low–mid temperature range between −32 and 46 °C with maximum enthalpies of 172 J/g and show higher degrees of supercooling compared to fatty monoesters. Similarly to other esters classes, some trends correlating the chemical structures to the thermal properties were identified, which would allow for the development of property prediction tools.


Crystals ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 919
Author(s):  
Rebecca Ravotti ◽  
Oliver Fellmann ◽  
Ludger J. Fischer ◽  
Jörg Worlitschek ◽  
Anastasia Stamatiou

In the quest for a decarbonized energy system, the development of highly efficient technologies that allow the integration of renewables is of the utmost importance. Latent Heat Storage systems with Phase Change Materials (PCM) can contribute to solving the issue of the mismatch between demand and supply brought forward by renewable energies. Despite possessing promising thermal properties, organic PCMs and esters in particular have rarely been investigated. In the present study, eight commercial aromatic esters are assessed as possible PCM candidates. To do so, their thermal properties, such as phase change temperature, enthalpy of fusion, density, and thermal conductivity, alongside sustainability and toxicity issues, are considered. The aromatic esters are found to possess phase change temperatures between −16 ∘C and 190 ∘C and maximum enthalpies of fusion of 160 J/g. This, alongside densities above 1 g/mL, makes them interesting candidates for high-temperature applications, where, typically, salts and ceramics or metals dominate as PCMs.


Author(s):  
Jamie Trahan ◽  
Sarada Kuravi ◽  
D. Yogi Goswami ◽  
Muhammad Rahman ◽  
Elias Stefanakos

As the importance of latent heat thermal energy storage increases for utility scale concentrating solar power (CSP) plants, there lies a need to characterize the thermal properties and melting behavior of phase change materials (PCMs) that are low in cost and high in energy density. In this paper, the results of an investigation of the melting temperature and latent heat of two binary high temperature salt eutectics are presented. Melting point and latent heat are analyzed for a chloride eutectic and carbonate eutectic using simultaneous Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) and Thermogravimetric Analsysis (TGA). High purity materials were used and the handling procedure was carefully controlled to accommodate the hygroscopic nature of the chloride eutectic. The DSC analysis gives the values of thermal properties of the eutectics, which are compared with the calculated (expected/published) values. The thermal stability of the eutectics is also examined by repeated thermal cycling in a DSC and is reported in the paper along with a cost analysis of the salt materials.


Materials ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (6) ◽  
pp. 1420
Author(s):  
José Luis Reyez-Araiza ◽  
Jorge Pineda-Piñón ◽  
José M. López-Romero ◽  
José Ramón Gasca-Tirado ◽  
Moises Arroyo Contreras ◽  
...  

The energy sector is one of the fields of interest for different nations around the world. Due to the current fossil fuel crisis, the scientific community develops new energy-saving experiences to address this concern. Buildings are one of the elements of higher energy consumption, so the generation of knowledge and technological development may offer solutions to this energy demand, which are more than welcome. Phase change materials (PCMs) included in building elements such as wall panels, blocks, panels or coatings, for heating and cooling applications have been shown, when heating, to increase the heat storage capacity by absorbing heat as latent heat. Therefore, the use of latent heat storage systems using phase change materials (PCMs) has been investigated within the last two decades. In the present review, the macro and micro encapsulation methods for construction materials are reviewed, the former being the most viable method of inclusion of PCMs in construction elements. In addition, based on the analysis of the existing papers on the encapsulation process of PCMs, the importance to pay more attention to the bio-based PCMs is shown, since more research is needed to process such PCMs. To determine its thermophysical and mechanical behavior at the micro and macro levels, in order to see the feasibility of substituting petroleum-based PCMs with a more environmentally friendly bio-based one, a section devoted to the excellent PCM with lightweight aggregate (PCM-LWA concrete) is presented due to the lack of description given in other reviews.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document