A novel biomass solid waste-based form-stable phase change materials for thermal energy storage

To improve the energy storage capacity of phase change materials, the influence of plant ash, a typical biomass solid waste, with different particle sizes on the encapsulation of palmitic acid has been investigated to find better supporting materials for preparing form-stable phase change material (FSPCM). During the experiment, palmitic acid/Plant ash composites with different mass fractions of palmitic acid were fabricated by the direct impregnation method. And the packaging capability, particle size distribution, surface area, microstructure, chemical compatibility, and thermal properties were investigated systematically. The particle size distribution test shows that the mean-volume diameter of plant ash sieved by 30–60 mesh (PLA-1) and PLA sieved by −60 mesh (PLA-2) is 60.21 and 41.21 μm, respectively. The DSC results show that the enthalpy of PA/PLA-2 FSPCM is 99.7 J/g, which is almost twice that of PA/PLA-1 FSPCM. In short, as-prepared PA/PLA FSPCM exerts a bigger energy storage capacity, which makes it a great candidate for thermal energy storage.