Performance of energy storage system containing cement mortar and PCM/epoxy/SiC composite fine aggregate

Abstract

An enormous amount of energy is required to maintain a comfortable indoor temperature. This increases carbon dioxide emission, which is problematic. Phase-change materials have been widely used to resolve this problem and improve the energy efficiency of buildings. However, phase change materials have a fundamental drawback—leakage and low thermal conductivity. A novel thermal energy storage aggregate (TESA) was developed to solve the drawbacks of zeolites impregnated with paraffin wax and coated with epoxy resins, silicon carbide, and silica fume. A mortar which 100% replacement of TESA presented compressive strength that achieved the requirement for building material. To investigate the thermal properties, thermogravimetric analysis (thermally stable below 142 °C), differential scanning calorimetry (melting point: 36.46 °C, freezing point 46.39 °C, latent heat storage capacity: 19.76 J/g), thermal conductivity and thermal behavior of mortar measurements were conducted. Thermal shock cycling was tested to evaluate the reliability of the TESA. Finally, the thermal energy storage performance was evaluated by laboratory-sized cell tests. A laboratory-sized cell test was conducted using a self-designed room model that resemble the actual construction. The indoor temperature of the cell specimen via 100% integration of TESA, reduced the maximum temperature during the heating period by approximately 22% compared with the control cell specimen. The experimental results indicate that TESA can be applied to wall-plastering cement mortar, reducing energy consumption by decreasing the indoor temperature and reducing the temperature fluctuation.