Preparation and thermal performance of methyl palmitate and lauric acid eutectic mixture as phase change material (PCM)

•A binary system of methyl palmitate and lauric acid with ratio of 60/40 was found to be an optimum PCM eutectic mixture.•The eutectic PCM has a suitable phase transition temperature (Tm = 25.6 °C, Tf = 20.2 °C) within the comfort temperature range and high latent heat capacity (ΔHm = 205.4 J/g, ΔHf = 205.8 J/g).•Minimal volume change of less than 5.3% during phase transition; suitable for encapsulation in panels or capsules for any application.•Negligible change in thermal performance after 350 thermal cycles.

A series of binary mixtures of Methyl Palmitate (MP) and Lauric Acid (LA) were prepared and investigated, aiming for potential phase change material (PCM) for thermal energy storage systems. The thermal analysis of the PCM binary mixtures was investigated by means of Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC). A theoretical and experimental determination of the eutectic mixture was established. The results indicated that the eutectic binary mixture of 60%MP and 40%LA has desirable properties of phase transition temperatures within the comfort temperature range (Tm = 25.6 °C, Tf = 20.2 °C) and high latent heat capacity (ΔHm = 205.4 J/g, ΔHf = 205.8 J/g). The paper experimentally studied the other important thermo-physical properties required for modelling and stimulating the PCM in any storage systems such as thermal conductivity, enthalpy curve, phase diagram, specific heat, thermal diffusivity, and density. The thermal stability test indicated that the eutectic mixture had reliable thermal performance upon thermal cycling. Based on all these results, the MP-LA eutectic mixture is a promising material for thermal energy storage.