| Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6466406 | Chemical Engineering Journal | 2017 | 10 Pages |
â¢Very low content of GNP is introduced into PEG/BN composite PCMs.â¢Thermal conductivity and photoabsorption ability of composite PCMs are enhanced.â¢GNP contributes to the perfect conductive network and sunlight harvesting ability.â¢Solar-to-thermal & solar-to-electric energy conversion and storage are realized.
Phase change materials (PCMs) with high thermal conductivity and efficient solar energy conversion have recently attracted much attention. However, a facile strategy to enhance thermal conductivity and realize energy conversion and storage is still eagerly desired. In this work, a very low content of graphene nanoplatelets (GNP) is introduced into poly (ethylene glycol) (PEG)/boron nitride (BN) composite PCMs, resulting in great improvement in thermal conductivity and photoabsorption ability via a facile solution blending process. The presence of GNP contributes to enhancing thermal conductivity and realizing efficient solar energy conversion (including solar-to-thermal and solar-to-electric energy conversion) for the PEG/BN/GNP composite PCMs owing to the formation of improved BN/GNP thermally conductive network and the improvement of sunlight harvesting ability, respectively. Thermophysical properties demonstrate that compared with PEG/BN composite PCMs at the same BN content, PEG/BN/GNP composite PCMs containing a low GNP content maintain comparable energy storage density. The study sheds light on the realization of solar energy utilization and storage of the organic PCMs requiring high thermal conductivity.
Graphical abstractA kind of multifunctional composite PCMs with synergistic enhancement of thermal conductivity by introducing BN and very low content of GNP for light-thermal-electric energy conversion and utilization have been developed.Download high-res image (130KB)Download full-size image
