1st International Conference on Solar Heating and Cooling for Buildings and Industry (SHC), San-Francisco, Costa Rica, 9 - 11 July 2012, vol.30, pp.350-352
Compact thermal energy storage for solar applications requires new phase change materials with higher thermal energy storage capacities. In this study, nano magnetite (Fe2O3) particles were prepared with the sol-gel method to be used for enhancing thermal properties of paraffin. 10% nano particle was added to paraffin (melting range: 56-58 degrees C and latent heat: 119 J/kg) to prepare a nano composite. SEM analysis shows that nano magnetites are homogeneously distributed in paraffin structure with particle size in the range of 15-25 mu m. Latent heat of the paraffin nano composite measured by DSC was 144 J/g. This result indicated that thermal storage capacity of paraffin can be increased by about 20% by addition of 10% nano magnetite. Further analysis on determining thermal conductivity and thermal stability is ongoing. (C) 2012 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.