Medium-temperature phase-change materials thermal characterization by the T-History method and differential scanning calorimetry

ABSTRACT

This paper presents a thermal characterization of salt mixtures applying the T-History method (THM) and the differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) techniques. By using water as a standard substance, the original THM was developed to analyze materials with melting points under 100°C. This is the first research that proposes to replace water by glycerin to characterize medium-melting-temperature phase-change materials (PCMs) (140–220°C). Moreover, the DSC technique was used to validate and compare the results obtained with the THM for each mixture. For instance, the system compound of 40% KNO₃–60% NaNO₃ was studied, and the enthalpy of fusion determined by THM and DSC differs by 2.1% between each method. The results given by the two methods for all mixtures showed that both techniques are complementary and present satisfactory agreement with the specialized literature.

KEYWORDS:

• phase-change material
• energy storage
• thermal characterization
• T-History method
• differential scanning calorimetry

Funding

The authors would like to acknowledge the National Institute of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energies (INER) for supporting this research and providing the DSC equipment to carry out the experimental thermal analysis.

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Additional information

Funding

The authors would like to acknowledge the National Institute of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energies (INER) for supporting this research and providing the DSC equipment to carry out the experimental thermal analysis.