Paraffin/Palygorskite composite phase change materials for thermal energy storage

In this study, paraffin was selected as the phase change materials (PCMs) and rude-Palygorskite (Pal), rinsed-Pal, H+-Pal and organic-Pal were selected as porous materials. A series of paraffin/Pals composite PCMs were prepared by direct impregnation method without vacuuming. In the composite PCMs, up to 150wt% of paraffin could be loaded in H+-Pal. The Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) tests revealed that paraffin/ H+-Pal composite PCM had a melting temperature of 54–56°C and latent heat of 132.18Jg−1. In addition, the composite PCMs were characterized by Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), Brunauer, Emmett, and Teller (BET) and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR). Good thermal stability was observed for composite PCMs by cycling test; we found that paraffin/H+-Pal composite PCM maintained ~95% of the initial latent heat after the cycling test. In conclusion, the impregnation of Pals with paraffin was a promising method for preparation of excellent PCM composites. •Four kinds of Palygorskite were used for absorbing the paraffin through direct impregnation method.•Up to 150wt% of paraffin can be loaded in H+- Palygorskite (H+-Pal).•The paraffin/H+-Pal composite PCM owned the highest latent heat of 132.18Jg−1.•The paraffin/H+-Pal composite PCM maintained ~95% of the initial latent heat after the cyclic test.