Experimental Study on Phase Change Materials for Cold Energy Storage System

Abstract

Cold Thermal Energy Storage (CTES) is a technology with a high potential for different cooling applications. Many previous works have investigated energy efficiency of different cold units by applying CTES systems using phase change materials (PCMs). Phase change materials (PCMs) are generally regarded as a promising material for storing thermal energy. This work presents an experimental study on phase change materials for cold storage application. The experimental process of phase-change materials is based on the following chemicals: water, propylene glycol (C 3 H 8 O 2), glycerin (C 3 H 8 O 3), parrafin oil (white oil LP-70), and sodium polyacrylate (C 3 H 3 NaO 2) n. The temperature changes over time as ice charging and discharging the phase-change materials are investigated. At the same time, the work try to analyze the physical and chemical properties of the aforementioned phase-change materials. The results indicate that the discharging process of paraffin and glycol is rapid. As for water and sodium polyacrylate, the discharging time is slower than that of paraffin and glycol. And finally, for glycerin, the loading time is slowest compared to other chemicals, the discharging time is also slowest compared to the other four chemicals. This indicates that the latent heat of glycerin has high value, long melting time and deep ice storage temperature. This is a suitable material for use in cold storage systems as a phase change material.