Thermal Performance of the Microencapsulated PCM

Microencapsulated pcm (MPCM) particles are mixed with distilled water and utilized to evaluate its characteristics and performance as a thermal storage medium transporting heat. For the present study, tetradecane ($C_14$$H_30$, $T_m$=5.5$^{\circ}C$) is capsulated in the core, coated with the melamine for their surface. The size of particles is well-controlled under 10$\mu$m in the process of in-situ polymerization with melamine-formaldehyde resin. For the experiment, the concentractions of slurries are prepared for 20 wt%, 30 wt%, and 40 wt%. The results are compared with those of water and 100% tetradecane oil. The pure water and tetradecane start solidifying within 20 minutes after introducing cooling water into the thermal storage tank whose flow rates are varied by 125 cc/min, 250 cc/min, and 500 cc/min. However, MPCM slurries are required relatively longer period of time for their phase change than pure phase change materials. That is, the entrained MPCM particles restrict their heat transfer in terms of natural convection and conduction to them.