BIO-PHASE CHANGE

MATERIAL
A SEMINAR ON BIO-PHASE CHANGE MATERIAL

PRESENTED BY-
HEMANT KUMAR
OVERVIEW

 INTRODUCTION
 PRINCIPLE & WORKING
 TYPES OF PCM
 MERITS & DEMERITS
 SELECTION CRITERIA
 PCM INCORPORATION
 APPLICATIONS OF PCM
INTRODUCTION

• The demand for comfort cooling is expanding much

• Thermal energy storage is renewable source of energy to develop cooling system

• Minimize ozone depletion and global warming

• Requires less amount of energy for production

• It can charge and discharge energy in the form of latent heat

WHAT IS A PCM?

A phase change material (PCM) is a substance presenting a high heat of fusion, and
capable of storing and releasing large amounts of energy. Heat energy is absorbed or
released when the material changes from solid to liquid phase and vice versa, thus, being
classified as latent heat storage (LHS) units.
PRINCIPLE AND WORKING

• When heat is applied to any substance, it is transferred in two ways

 Sensible heat
 Latent heat
• PCMs works on the principle of latent heat
PRINCIPLE AND WORKING (Contd…)

FIG: WORKING OF
PCM
TYPES OF PCM

PCMs can be categorized as

on the basis of latent heat of
fusion and melting
temperature
TYPES OF PCM (Contd…)

ORGANIC PCMs
It melts and freeze frequently without phase separation that help to retain their latent heat of
fusion
PARAFFIN COMPOUNDS
Mostly chain n-alkanes and with the increase in chain length of paraffin wax, melting point and
latent heat of fusion increase
• Paraffin’s and fatty acids do not expand as they melt, and freeze without much super cooling
• They are chemically stable
TYPES OF PCM (Contd…)

• Paraffin’s are hydrophobic, which means they are water-repellant

NON-PARAFFIN COMPOUND
Non-paraffin have the advantage of higher heat of fusion but comes at the expense of higher
cost
TYPES OF PCM (Contd…)

INORGANIC SALT HYDRATES

• Salt hydrates are a low-cost, readily available PCM

• They have a high latent heat storage capacity and high thermal conductivity

• They are also non-flammable

TYPES OF PCM (Contd…)

EUTECTICS
• These are combination of two or more components and shows minimum melting
temperature. Eutectic almost melts and freezes without phase separation
• Eutectics tend to be solutions of salts and water that have a phase change temperature
below 0°C (32°F)
SELECTION CRITERIA

• A melting temperature in the desired operating temperature range

• High latent heat of fusion per unit volume
• Minimal changes in volume
• Congruent melting
• High specific heat, high density and high thermal conductivity
SELECTION CRITERIA (Contd…)

• A completely reversible freezing/melting cycle

• Durability over a large number of cycles

• Non-corrosiveness

• Non-flammability
MERITS AND DEMERITS

 MERITS

 Freeze without much supercooling

 Ability to melt congruently
 Self nucleating properties
 Compatibility with conventional material of construction
 No segregation
 Recyclable
Contd…

 DEMERITS

 Low thermal conductivity in solid state

 Flammable
 Corrosive
 Volumetric latent heat storage capacity is low
 Phase segregation
PCM INCORPORATION

• Impregnated into building materials in 2 ways :

 Either directly or as pellets

 Microencapsulation

• Microencapsulation most preferred always.

PCM INCORPORATION (Contd…)

FIG : DIRECT USAGE

MICRO-ENCAPSULATION

•Individual particles of solid/ liquid material are coated with a continuous film of
polymeric material

• Produce capsules called microcapsules

• Microcapsules – small sphere with uniform wall round it
• Micrometer to millimeter range
• Polymer sphere shaped
STRUCTURE OF MICROCAPSULE

• Material inside is called core

• Wall is called shell or coating
APPLICATIONS OF PCM

PCM AS CEILING MATERIAL

• PCM incorporated into ceiling tiles-effective in controlling temperature, reducing

reliance on air conditioning

FIG: PCM CEILING

 APPLICATIONS OF PCM (Contd…)

PCMs IN TEXTILES
• Thermal comfort contributes to human performance
• Heat generated by body is released into environment which further maintain the
temperature of the body simultaneously
APPLICATIONS OF PCM (Contd…)

BIO PCM

• A rolled mat that contains PCM

• Integrated into new construction or retrofitted into existing

• Mat is installed between insulation and drywall layers and located in walls and ceiling
APPLICATIONS OF PCM (Contd…)

PCM AS PLASTERBOARD
• Phase change drywall incorporates PCM within its structure

• Effective, less costly, and less bulky replacement of the standard thermal mass (masonry
or water) used to store solar heat
APPLICATIONS OF PCM (Contd…)

PCM IN AUTOMOBILES
• Temperature inside the automobile cabin
should be maintain in order to maintain
thermal comfort
• By encapsulating PCM in automobile cabins
we can control the temperature
CONCLUSION

• From the above presentation we can conclude that a suitable phase change temperature
and a large latent heat of fusion is the most important requirement for any kind of PCM
• Bio-PCM has tremendous potential to be used in different areas such as buildings, car,
solar etc.
• PCMs are used on daily basis through various applications in order to provide thermal
comfort in every aspect.
THANK YOU