| abstract |
A composite material for storing thermal energy at various temperatures (30° C. to 450° C.) formed by an elastomer matrix into which a phase change material such as an inorganic salt is encapsulated. The material is characterized by a high volumetric thermal conductivity, a low density, a highly interconnected porosity and a relatively high modulus of elasticity. The significant properties of the matrices are: a large amount of energy involved in full melting/crystallization, a fairly low relative volume expansion upon melting and fairly low sub-cooling. The main advantages of the resulting composites are a very high energy density, a relatively low volume expansion, highly enhanced heat transfer, thermo adaptability, stability and insignificant hysteresis. |