Formulation and phase change mechanism of Capric acid/Octadecanol binary composite phase change materials

Fatty acids and fatty alcohols have the advantages of high latent heat of phase change, good thermal stability, no corrosion, no supercooling and phase separation. They can be used as phase change energy storage materials for passive temperature control. However, their popularization and application are limited because of their high phase transition temperature and narrow phase transition range. This study develops a novel binary composite phase change materials (PCMs) of Capric acid (CA) and Octadecanol (OD) by a melt blending method. The theoretical calculation and hot melt-step cooling were carried out to generate an optimal molar ratio, followed by DSC thermal characterization. ATR-FTIR and XRD were performed to determine the phase transformation and chemical and structure changes. The results showed the binary CA-OD binary composite PCMs has a high latent heat of fusion, a melting temperature Tm = 26.48 °C and △H = 181.06 J/g at optimal mass ratio of 85.15:14.86 (CA:OD), which is higher than the theoretically predicted latent heat of phase transition, indicating a good synergistic effect beneficial to energy storage. Solid CA exists in the form of dimer and –OH in solid OD exists in form of association, and intermolecular hydrogen bonds weakens in liquid. There are hydrogen bonds in the CA-OD binary composite PCMs, and the molecular structure changes before and after the phase transformation were similar to that of a single component CA or OD. The crystal structures of the two compounds also change and the latent heat of phase transformation is improved. Finally, through TG and high and low temperature cycle test, CA-OD binary PCMs demonstrates good thermal stability and practicability in the field of building energy conservation.