HVAC systems have become very popular, but require a lot of thermal storage. One way to provide this storage is through phase change materials (PCM). This report investigates using expanded graphite to improve the thermal conductivity of a capric, lauric and oleic acid mixture PCM. It was found that with the increase in mass fraction of expanded graphite the thermal conductivity of the PCM also increases....
Phase change materials (PCMs) are becoming increasingly important in the field of thermal energy storage. In this study, conductive fillers were added to wax- and polyethylene-based PCMs to improve their thermal conductivity. A Thermal Constants Analyser measured the thermal conductivity of the PCMs using the transient plane source (TPS) method. Results indicated that both nanoparticles improved thermal conductivity, but a lower concentration of expanded graphite improved conductivity more than normal ...