Fabrication and Photothermal Phase Change Properties of Polyethylene Glycol/Melamine Sponge/Polyurethane/Zirconium Carbide Composites

ABSTRACT

Solar energy is a green, sustainable, and abundant renewable resource. Adding photothermal conversion materials to phase change materials can increase the photothermal conversion efficiency and heat storage capacity of phase change materials. In this work, polyethylene glycol (PEG) was used as phase change material, zirconium carbide was used as photothermal conversion material, melamine sponge was used as the carrier, and polyurethane was used as coating to prepare phase change photothermal composites. The effects of PEG concentration and zirconium carbide concentration on the thermal properties of composite phase change materials were discussed. The results showed that when the PEG concentration was 80% and the zirconium carbide concentration was 5%, the composites showed better comprehensive properties with less leakage and high enthalpy (186.5J/g). Surface temperature of the composites could rise to 54°C in 300 s under infrared light, and the enthalpy value of phase change and the photothermal conversion capacity could maintain 97% after 50 cycles of testing. The composites could be used in various fields such as car seats, cushions, and mattresses.

Graphical abstract

KEYWORDS:

• Composite phase change materials
• melamine sponge
• photothermal conversion
• polyethylene glycol
• zirconium carbide

Acknowledgments

This work was financially supported by the Opening Foundation of Shuyang Industrial Technology Research Institute of Wuhan Textile University and Wuhan Application Fundamental Frontier Research Project (2022023988065199).

Disclosure statement

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Guizhen Ke

Guizhen Ke, PhD, mainly focuses on functionTextile processing technologyl textiles.

Chunmei Chen

Chun Mei Chen is undergraduate student majoring in textile materials.

Li Wang

Li Wang is undergraduate student majoring in textile materials.

Shuhui Chen

Shuhui Chen is undergraduate student majoring in textile materials.

Keshuai Liu

Keshuai Liu, PhD, mainly focuses on textile processing technology.