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Paraffin-filled boron carbide/polyvinyl alcohol scaffolds with enhanced thermal energy storage and form stability

  • Energy materials
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Abstract

As a kind of inorganic filler, boron carbide powder-toughened polymer matrix has been widely studied. However, the layered boron carbide scaffold composites with large area orientation are rarely reported. A series of hierarchically aligned scaffolds of boron carbide and polyvinyl alcohol (B4C/PVA) with different B4C mass fractions are prepared by a bidirectional freeze-casting method. These ordered, lamellar B4C/PVA scaffolds allow paraffin wax to penetrate rapidly to form composite phase change materials (CPCMs). The molten paraffin trapped in this structure remains stable and has a little amount of leakage because of capillary effect. And the leakage rate is 1.1 wt% and 1.6 wt% after 25 cycles at the temperature interval of 25–80 °C and 25–90 °C, respectively. The highest retention of latent heat is up to 90% for specimen of 1%-a. And the thermal conductivity of CPCMs is 0.33 W m−1 K−1 for 8%-e.

Graphical abstract

Hierarchically aligned B4C/PVA scaffolds fabricated by bidirectional freeze casting can improve structure stability of PCMs and hamper the leakage of paraffin.

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank Analytical and Testing Centre of Southwest University of Science and Technology.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Chemical Materials, China Academy of Engineering Physics, Mianyang, 621900, China

    Chunyan Ma, Chun Wei, Junwei Bai & Jianguo Deng

  2. Si Chuan Research Center of New Materials, Mianyang, 621000, People’s Republic of China

    Chunyan Ma

  3. Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610065, People’s Republic of China

    Junwei Bai

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  1. Chunyan Ma
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Correspondence to Jianguo Deng.

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Ma, C., Wei, C., Bai, J. et al. Paraffin-filled boron carbide/polyvinyl alcohol scaffolds with enhanced thermal energy storage and form stability. J Mater Sci 56, 13259–13270 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-021-06153-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-021-06153-0

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