Phase Change Materials From Molecular To Applications

Developing energy storage devices are as important as developing devices for generating energy. As more research is going into developing newer sources of energy, more need to be done for storage. Solar energy plays an important role in overcoming the growing demand for energy while shifting away from fossil fuels. However, it is s intermittent and not available at night, hence, the need to investigate other methods to store solar thermal energy for usage when needed. One of the most efficient way to store heat is by latent heat storage using Phase Change Materials or PCMs. PCMs are substances with a high latent heat capacity, which can store and release large amounts of energy while solidifying or melting. Latent heat storage has a very high energy density, hence requiring low volumes to store considerable amount of energy. PCMs come with various melting temperatures, and various latent heat capacity, hence they can be used in a wide variety of applications. One of the main problem associated with PCMs is their price which make them unaffordable for large scale and general applications. Therefore, the main aim of this project is to study the chemical composition of available PCMs and to create the right PCM for the right application with the lowest price possible. The final goal will be to design a table with different chemical substances at the best price possible for specific applications to be used by engineers.