Les recherches dans le domaine des matériaux innovants possédant une meilleure efficacité énergétique présentent un enjeu environnemental majeur. L'un des moyens d'économiser l'énergie est le stockage. L'utilisation des matériaux à changement de phase est une solution permettant d'absorber, de stocker et de restituer de grandes quantités d'énergie. Ce travail porte sur l'étude expérimentale des propriétés thermophysiques et des changements de phase de matériaux composites à matrice polymère contenant un matériau à changement de phase microencapsulé et sur l'optimisation de ces propriétés. Des composites contenants différentes fractions massiques de microcapsules de paraffine ont d'abord été caractérisés. Afin d'améliorer le transfert thermique des microcapsules de paraffine métallisées avec de l'argent ont ensuite été utilisées. Une nouvelle série d'échantillons a été réalisée. Dans les composites la matrice polymère choisie est le polycaprolactone (PCL), ce polymère a une température de fusion particulièrement faible (53°C), qui permet de le mélanger aux microcapsules sans les détériorer. Les mélanges polymère/microcapsules ont été réalisés à l'aide d'un mélangeur interne, ils ont ensuite été pressés pour obtenir des plaques de composites. L'homogénéité des échantillons a été vérifiée en faisant des observations au microscope électronique à balayage et des mesures de densité. Le matériau à changement de phase utilisé est un mélange de paraffines qui a une température de changement de phase de 26°C, microencapsulé dans du PMMA hautement réticulé, et commercialisé par la société BASF® sous la dénomination commerciale de Micronal® DS 5001 X. Le PCL a une température de fusion inférieure à la température de ramollissement du PMMA. Un des objectifs de cette étude était d'obtenir un matériau qui reste solide même quand la paraffine fond. La microencapsulation a permis cela en évitant que la paraffine ne diffuse hors de l'échantillon lors de cycles successifs, elle permet également d'éviter les phénomènes de convection quand la paraffine est liquide. D'autre part, un autre objectif était de voir si la métallisation des particules permettait d'améliorer les propriétés thermiques en augmentant significativement la conductivité et la diffusivité thermique. La DSC a été utilisée pour connaître les températures et les enthalpies de changements de phase ainsi que les Cp des matériaux entre -20 et 40 °C. Une technique expérimentale développée au laboratoire (DICO) permet de mesurer simultanément la conductivité thermique (λ) et la diffusivité thermique (a) à température ambiante. Une évolution récente de ce dispositif permet maintenant de faire des mesures en rampe en température entre -15°C et 180°C. Les mesures de l'évolution de la conductivité et de la diffusivité thermique en fonction de la température ont donc été réalisées en chauffe et en refroidissement. Les changements de phase observés en DSC se retrouvent sur l'évolution de la conductivité et de la diffusivité thermiques tracées en fonction de la température. On voit également l'impact de l'état solide ou liquide de la paraffine contenue dans les microcapsules sur ces propriétés. Enfin l'évolution de la capacité calorifique volumique a pu être calculée à partir des résultats obtenus avec la DICO (Cp=λ/a) et comparée à l'évolution de la capacité calorifique massique mesurée en DSC. Globalement le transfert thermique a été amélioré pour les composites contenant des Micronal® argentés mais leur capacité de stockage est inférieure aux composites ne contenant que des Micronal® / Research in the field of innovative materials with improved energy efficiency have a major environmental issue. One way to save energy is storage. The use of phase change materials (PCM) is a solution for absorbing, storing and releasing large amounts of energy. This study focuses on the experimental study of the thermophysical properties and phase changes of polymer matrix composite materials containing microencapsulated PCM and the optimization of their thermophysical properties. Composite containing different mass fractions of paraffin microcapsules were first characterized. To improve heat transfer, paraffin microcapsules metallized with silver were then used. A new set of samples was elaborated. In the composite the selected polymer matrix is polycaprolactone (PCL), this polymer has a particularly low melting point (53°C), which allows to mix the microcapsules without damaging them. The polymer/microcapsules mixtures were prepared using a blender, they were then pressed to obtain plates of composites. The homogeneity of the samples was verified by scanning electron microscopy observations and density measurements. The phase change material used is a mixture of paraffins having a phase change temperature of 26°C, in microencapsulated highly crosslinked PMMA, and marketed by BASF under the trade name of Micronal®DS 5001 X. PCL has a melting temperature lower than the softening temperature of PMMA. One objective of this study was to obtain a material that remains solid even when the paraffin melts. Microencapsulation has avoided that the paraffin in the sample diffuses out during successive cycles, it also avoids convection when paraffin is liquid. On the other hand, another goal was to see if metallization of the particles allowed to improve the thermal properties by significantly increasing the thermal conductivity and diffusivity. DSC was used to determine the temperatures and enthalpies of the phase changes and the materials Cp between -20 and 40 ° C. An experimental technique, developed in the laboratory (DICO), can simultaneously measure the thermal conductivity (λ) and thermal diffusivity (a) at room temperature. A recent development of this system now allows to make measurements in ramp between -15°C and 180°C. The measures of the change in thermal conductivity and diffusivity as a function of temperature have been carried out by heating and cooling. Phase changes observed in DSC are found on the evolution of thermal conductivity and thermal diffusivity plotted as a function temperature. It also shows the impact on these properties of solid or liquid state of the paraffin contained in the microcapsules. Finally the evolution of the volumetric heat capacity was calculated from the results obtained with DICO (Cp=λ/a) and compared with the evolution of the specific heat capacity measured by DSC. Globally, heat transfer was improved for composites containing silver but their storage capacity is lower than for the composites containing only Micronal®

L'intégration d'un accumulateur de chaleur dans les systèmes de refroidissement d'un véhicule permet d'optimiser la gestion thermique du groupe motopropulseur et ainsi de réduire la consommation et les émissions polluantes du véhicule. L'intérêt d'un tel accumulateur réside dans sa capacité à stocker / déstocker de l'énergie dans des matériaux à changement de phase (PCM) avec des puissances échangées en adéquation avec les besoins de l'automobile. La problématique scientifique concerne l'intensification, dans un volume restreint, des transferts thermiques dans le matériau de stockage. Le recours à des échangeurs compacts et l'optimisation de la géométrie des ailettes du côté du PCM permettent d'une part de maximiser la puissance échangée grâce à l'augmentation de la surface d'échange avec le PCM et d'autre part d'optimiser la capacité énergétique en améliorant le taux de remplissage en PCM. Le problème est abordé ici de deux façons : théorique, par le développement d'un modèle numérique d'optimisation, puis expérimentale, par la mise au point d'un banc d'essai et de prototypes. Le modèle numérique, validé à partir d'essais, a servi à optimiser la conception de l'accumulateur de chaleur. Enfin, l'intégration de ce composant dans un module de refroidissement pour améliorer la montée en température du groupe motopropulseur a montré des gains significatifs sur le temps de fonctionnement à froid du moteur, réduisant ainsi les émissions polluantes. / Integration of heat accumulator within engine cooling systems allows to optimize powertrain thermal management and to reduce vehicles consumption and pollutant emissions. Interest of such accumulators lies in their capacity to store and release energy within phase change materials (PCM) with powers in accordance with the automotive needs. Scientific problem concerns heat transfer enhancement, for a limited volume, in a phase change material. The use of compact heat exchangers filled with PCM and the optimization of fin design allow to maximize heat transfer thanks to extended heat transfer area with PCM. On the other hand, energy storage capacity is optimized by increasing PCM volume ratio. The problem is approached by two ways: theoretically, by the development of a numerical model of optimization, and experimentally, by the development of a test bench and several prototypes. The numerical model of heat accumulator, validated with test results, was used to run a parametric study to optimize the conception of the heat accumulator, in particular the fin design. Finally, integration of this new component within the cooling system in order to improve the warm-up of the powertrain has shown significant gains on the functioning time of engine during cold start, leading to reduced pollutant emissions.

abstract: Thermal Energy Storage (TES) is of great significance for many engineering applications as it allows surplus thermal energy to be stored and reused later, bridging the gap between requirement and energy use. Phase change materials (PCMs) are latent heat-based TES which have the ability to store and release heat through phase transition processes over a relatively narrow temperature range. PCMs have a wide range of operating temperatures and therefore can be used in various applications such as stand-alone heat storage in a renewable energy system, thermal storage in buildings, water heating systems, etc. In this dissertation, various PCMs are incorporated and investigated numerically and experimentally with different applications namely a thermochemical metal hydride (MH) storage system and thermal storage in buildings. In the second chapter, a new design consisting of an MH reactor encircled by a cylindrical sandwich bed packed with PCM is proposed. The role of the PCM is to store the heat released by the MH reactor during the hydrogenation process and reuse it later in the subsequent dehydrogenation process. In such a system, the exothermic and endothermic processes of the MH reactor can be utilized effectively by enhancing the thermal exchange between the MH reactor and the PCM bed. Similarly, in the third chapter, a novel design that integrates the MH reactor with cascaded PCM beds is proposed. In this design, two different types of PCMs with different melting temperatures and enthalpies are arranged in series to improve the heat transfer rate and consequently shorten the time duration of the hydrogenation and dehydrogenation processes. The performance of the new designs (in chapters 2 and 3) is investigated numerically and compared with the conventional designs in the literature. The results indicate that the new designs can significantly enhance the time duration of MH reaction (up to 87%). In the fourth chapter, organic coconut oil PCM (co-oil PCM) is explored experimentally and numerically for the first time as a thermal management tool in building applications. The results show that co-oil PCM can be a promising solution to improve the indoor thermal environment in semi-arid regions. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Mechanical Engineering 2020

No description available.

This thesis deals with the synthesis and characterization of Ge-Te-Sb (GST) thin films. The films were deposited using a Pulsed Laser Deposition (PLD) method and mainly characterized with XRD, SEM, AFM and TEM. For amorphous and polycrystalline films, un-etched Si(100) was used. The amorphous films showed a similar crystallization behavior as films deposited with sputtering and evaporation techniques. When depositing GST on un-etched Si(100) substrates at elevated substrate temperatures (130-240°C), polycrystalline but highly textured films were obtained. The preferred growth orientation was either GST(111) or GST(0001) depending on if the films were cubic or hexagonal. Epitaxial films were prepared on crystalline substrates. On KCl(100), a mixed growth of hexagonal GST(0001) and cubic GST(100) was observed. The hexagonal phase dominates at low temperatures whereas the cubic phase dominates at high temperatures. The cubic phase is accompanied with a presumed GST(221) orientation when the film thickness exceeds ~70 nm. Epitaxial films were obtained with deposition rates as high as 250 nm/min. On BaF2(111), only (0001) oriented epitaxial hexagonal GST films are found, independent of substrate temperature, frequency or deposition background pressure. At high substrate temperatures there is a loss of Ge and Te which shifts the crystalline phase from Ge2Sb2Te5 towards GeSb2Te4. GST films deposited at room temperature on BaF2(111) were in an amorphous state, but after exposure to an annealing treatment they crystallize in an epitaxial cubic structure. Film deposition on pre-cleaned and buffered ammonium fluoride etched Si(111) show growth of epitaxial hexagonal GST, similar to that of the deposition on BaF2(111). When the Si-substrates were heated directly to the deposition temperature films of high crystal-line quality were obtained. An additional heat treatment of the Si-substrates prior to deposition deteriorated the crystal quality severely. The gained results show that PLD can be used as a method in order to obtain high quality epitaxial Ge-Sb-Te films from a compound target and using high deposition rates.

This study has been focusing on a school located in the municipality of Laholm, South of Sweden. Employing an energy balance of the last five (5) years, a proposal for measures is made in terms of performance for comparison with the baseline of the current consumption trend. This comparison allowed us to narrow down the alternatives for the renovation with the potential to have a great impact on the school's energy use and indoor environment, but also on the preserved characteristics without any violation of the laws and regulations. A complementary analysis was used to analyze important variables for decision-making and implementation of improvements. This analysis consists of an exergy analysis which was utilized as a pre-design tool for an optimized building renovation proposal. Exergy losses were calculated to assess the performance of the systems. The study revealed that in relation to the use of new technologies and materials, aerogel and vacuum insulation panels bring relevant savings as their insulation mechanisms are the most efficient for such a building in a climate like Laholm. As for the heating system, it was evident that the use of a geothermal heat pump associated to PV panels brings considerable energy benefits when compared to the current oil boiler system and given that the village does not yet have a local district heating system. When the proposed measures are applied during 2022- 2023, the results will show that also older buildings can be energy efficient which is demanded of the buildings stock throughout the European Union.

No description available.

In the present study, a finite volume method is employed to modelthe advection-diffusion phenomenon during a pure substance meltingprocess. The exercise is limited to a benchmark problem consisting ofthe 2D melting from a vertical wall of a PCM driven by natural convectionin the melt. Numerical results, mainly the temporal evolutionof average Nusselt number at the hot wall and the average liquid fraction,are validated by available literature data and the effect of thermalinertia in the heat transfer is considered as well. Finally, motivatedby recent publications and the model presented here, possible new researchtopics are proposed.

A prospect in utilizing thermal energy in development of energy systems is by the useof phase change materials (PCMs). PCMs are materials that can store and releaseenergy during phase changes, e.g. from solid to liquid. By-products from the woodand pulping industry could be of interest in this area, in part to add value to theby-products, enhance the yield of the raw product of wood and become less dependenton fossil based fuels. Capsules of lignin and tall oil pitch/tall oil fatty acids weresuccessfully produced with a straightforward coprecipitation method. The solventused was acetone and the antisolvent was distilled water. Dynamic light scatteringanalysis showed average particle diameters of 300 to 500 nm and fairly lowpolydispersity, between 0.2 to 0.3, indicating spherical particles. Scanning electronmicroscopy confirmed particle size and the formation of capsules with shell thicknessless than 100 nm. The particle dispersions showed sufficiently high zeta potential tomaintain a stable colloidal system. Thermal analysis confirmed stability in atemperature range of at least -40 °C to +50 °C, and resistance to decomposition at leastup to around 200 °C. There were also indications of enhanced thermal stability of talloil pitch due to encapsulation. A desired feature for a phase change material is theability to keep a constant temperature during phase change. Regarding using thesynthesized material as phase change material, the results show that the temperaturerange in which phase change, such as melting, occurs is too broad. Latent heat of fusionof 4.7 J/g for the material is also very low compared with commercial phase changematerials. Further studies in modifying the system to impact melting point andenhancement of latent heat is needed if the material should be applicable as an efficientand competitive phase change material.

Future defense, aerospace and automotive technologies involve electronic systems that release high pulsed waste heat like during high power microwave and laser diode applications in tactical and combat aircraft, and electrical and electronic systems in hybrid electric vehicles, which will require the development of an efficient thermal management system. A key design issue is the need for fast charging so as not to overheat the key components. The goal of this work is to study the fabrication and technology implementation feasibility of a novel high energy storage, high heat flux passive heat sink. Key focus is to verify by theory and experiments, the practicability of using phase change materials as a temporary storage of waste heat for heat sink applications. The reason for storing the high heat fluxes temporarily is to be able to reject the heat at the average level when the heat source is off. Accordingly, a concept of a dual latent heat sink intended for moderate to low thermal duty cycle electronic heat sink applications is presented. This heat sink design combines the features of a vapor chamber with rapid thermal energy storage employing graphite foam inside the heat storage facility along with phase change materials and is attractive owing to its passive operation unlike some of the current thermal management techniques for cooling of electronics employing forced air circulation or external heat exchangers. In addition to the concept, end-application dependent criteria to select an optimized design for this dual latent heat sink are presented. A thermal resistance concept based design tool/model has been developed to analyze and optimize the design for experiments. The model showed that it is possible to have a dual latent heat sink design capable of handling 7 MJ of thermal load at a heat flux of 500 W/cm2 (over an area of 100 cm2) with a volume of 0.072 m3 and weighing about 57.5 kg. It was also found that with such high heat flux absorption capability, the proposed conceptual design could have a vapor-to-condenser temperature difference of less than 10 0C with a volume storage density of 97 MJ/m3 and a mass storage density of 0.122 MJ/kg. The effectiveness of this heat sink depends on the rapidness of the heat storage facility in the design during the pulse heat generation period of the duty cycle. Heat storage in this heat sink involves transient simultaneous laminar film condensation of vapor and melting of an encapsulated phase change material in graphite foam. Therefore, this conjugate heat transfer problem including the wall inertia effect is numerically analyzed and the effectiveness of the heat storage mechanism of the heat sink is verified. An effective heat capacity formulation is employed for modeling the phase change problem and is solved using finite element method. The results of the developed model showed that the concept is effective in preventing undue temperature rise of the heat source. Experiments are performed to investigate the fabrication and implementation feasibility and heat transfer performance for validating the objectives of the design i.e., to show that the VCTES heat sink is practicable and using PCM helps in arresting the vapor temperature rise in the heat sink. For this purpose, a prototype version of the VCTES heat sink is fabricated and tested for thermal performance. The volume foot-print of the vapor chamber is about 6"X5"X2.5". A custom fabricated thermal energy storage setup is incorporated inside this vapor chamber. A heat flux of 40 W/cm2 is applied at the source as a pulse and convection cooling is used on the condenser surface. Experiments are done with and without using PCM in the thermal energy storage setup. It is found that using PCM as a second latent system in the setup helps in lowering the undue temperature rise of the heat sink system. It is also found that the thermal resistance between the vapor chamber and the thermal energy storage setup, the pool boiling resistance at the heat source in the vapor chamber, the condenser resistance during heat discharging were key parameters that affect the thermal performance. Some suggestions for future improvements in the design to ease its implementation and enhance the heat transfer of this novel heat sink are also presented.