Mechanical properties and melting heat transfer characteristics of shape-stabilized paraffin slurry
Propriétés mécaniques et caractéristiques du changement de phase d'un coulis de paraffine stabilisé
Résumé
This article is presented in the framework of the increasing interest for the use of latent heat transfer slurries for cooling processes. Paraffin serves as a latent heat storage material, and a polymer network acts as the supporting material. The phase change material melts around 7°C with a latent heat of fusion of 115 kJ/kg. Differential scanning calorimetry and indentation analysis were employed to investigate the thermal properties and mechanical stability of the material under freezing–thawing cycles. Results indicated that the form-stable phase change material with the advantages of no liquid leakage constitutes a potential material in the field of low-temperature thermal energy storage. Experimental investigation is made to study the melting process of a single slurry in an agitated bath. Analysis of data permits the development of a phenomenological correlation adapted to the millimetric dimension of the particle, leading to an estimation of the melting phase change time duration as a function of the main parameters of the problem.