High Thermal Conductivity and Mechanical Strength Phase Change Composite with Double Supporting Skeletons for Industrial Waste Heat Recovery

Confined Crystallization Polyether-Based Flexible Phase Change Film for Thermal Management

Phase change materials (PCMs) possess the potential to regulate temperature by utilizing their thermal properties to absorb and release heat. Nevertheless, the application of PCMs in thermal management is constrained by issues such as liquid leakage and limited flexibility. In this study, we propose a novel approach to address these challenges by incorporating a pore structure within nanofibers to confine the crystallization of phase change molecules, thereby enhancing the flexibility of the composite material. Additionally, inspired by the adaptive mechanisms observed in plants, we have developed a form stable PCM based on polyether, which effectively mitigates the issue of liquid leakage at higher temperatures. Despite being a solid-liquid PCM at its core, this material exhibits molecular-scale flow and macroscopic shape stability as a result of intermolecular forces. The composite film material possesses remarkable flexibility, efficient thermal management capabilities, adjustable phase transition temperature, and the ability to undergo repeated processing and utilization. Consequently, it holds promising potential for applications in personal thermal energy management.

Upgrading Electricity Generation and Electromagnetic Interference Shielding Efficiency via Phase-Change Feedback and Simple Origami Strategy

Developing ultimate electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding materials that can simultaneously upgrade the quality of generated electricity and the light-thermal-electric conversion efficiency based on traditional thermoelectric devices is crucially desired. Herein, a series of flexible multilayered phase change films (PCFs) is developed by a simple and novel origami strategy. The PCFs are first reported to improve the light-thermal-electric conversion efficiency by as high as 11.3%. Simultaneously, the PCFs could significantly upgrade the generated electricity on average voltage (27.3%), average current (23.8%), and lasting power outputs by 2010 times from microwatts to milliwatts. Besides, the EMI shielding efficiency of PCFs could be tuned from 39.2 to 71.9 dB by the origami process, the wide-range EMI shielding performance could be suitable for varying occasions. Overall, this work provides a promising solution for both the preparation of multifunctional materials, high-efficiency solar energy harvesting and upgrading electricity generation, which shows broad application prospects in EMI shielding, energy storage, and conversion.

A Comprehensive Compilation of Graphene/Fullerene Polymer Nanocomposites for Electrochemical Energy Storage

Electricity consumption is an integral part of life on earth. Energy generation has become a critical topic, addressing the need to fuel the energy demands of consumers. Energy storage is an offshoot of the mainstream process, which is now becoming a prime topic of research and development. Electrochemical energy storage is an attractive option, serving its purpose through fuel cells, batteries and supercapacitors manipulating the properties of various materials, nanomaterials and polymer substrates. The following review presents a comprehensive report on the use of carbon-based polymer nanocomposites, specifically graphene and fullerene-based polymer nanocomposites, towards electrochemical energy storage. The achievements in these areas, and the types of polymer nanocomposites used are listed. The areas that lack of clarity and have a dearth of information are highlighted. Directions for future research are presented and recommendations for fully utilizing the benefits of the graphene/fullerene polymer nanocomposite system are proposed.

Flexible, Highly Thermally Conductive and Electrically Insulating Phase Change Materials for Advanced Thermal Management of 5G Base Stations and Thermoelectric Generators

Thermal management has become a crucial problem for high-power-density equipment and devices. Phase change materials (PCMs) have great prospects in thermal management applications because of their large capacity of heat storage and isothermal behavior during phase transition. However, low intrinsic thermal conductivity, ease of leakage, and lack of flexibility severely limit their applications. Solving one of these problems often comes at the expense of other performance of the PCMs. In this work, we report core-sheath structured phase change nanocomposites (PCNs) with an aligned and interconnected boron nitride nanosheet network by combining coaxial electrospinning, electrostatic spraying, and hot-pressing. The advanced PCN films exhibit an ultrahigh thermal conductivity of 28.3 W m-1 K-1 at a low BNNS loading (i.e., 32 wt%), which thereby endows the PCNs with high enthalpy (> 101 J g-1), outstanding ductility (> 40%) and improved fire retardancy. Therefore, our core-sheath strategies successfully balance the trade-off between thermal conductivity, flexibility, and phase change enthalpy of PCMs. Further, the PCNs provide powerful cooling solutions on 5G base station chips and thermoelectric generators, displaying promising thermal management applications on high-power-density equipment and thermoelectric conversion devices.

A Through-Thickness Arrayed Carbon Fibers Elastomer with Horizontal Segregated Magnetic Network for Highly Efficient Thermal Management and Electromagnetic Wave Absorption

Multifunctional thermal management materials with highly efficient electromagnetic wave (EMW) absorption performance are urgently required to tackle the heat dissipation and electromagnetic interference issues of high integrated electronics. However, the high thermal conductivity (λ) and outstanding EMW absorption performance are often incompatible with each other in a single material. Herein, a through-thickness arrayed NiCo₂ O₄ /graphene oxide/carbon fibers (NiCO@CFs) elastomer with integrated functionalities of high thermal conductivity, highly efficient EMW absorption, and excellent compressibility is reported. The NiCO@CFs elastomer realizes a high out-of-plane thermal conductivity of 15.55 W m^-1  K^-1 , due to the through-thickness vertically aligned CFs framework. Moreover, the unique horizontal segregated magnetic network effectively reduces the electrical contact between the CFs, which significantly enhances impedance matching of NiCO@CFs elastomer. As a result, the vertically arrayed NiCO@CFs elastomer synchronously exhibits ultrabroad effective absorption bandwidth of 8.25 GHz (9.75-18 GHz) at a thickness of 2.4 mm, good impedance matching, and a minimum reflection loss (RL_min ) of -55.15 dB. Given these outstanding findings, the multifunctional arrayed NiCO@CFs elastomer opens an avenue for applications in EMW absorption and thermal management. This strategy of constructing thermal/electrical/mechanical pathways provides a promising way for the high-performance multifunctional materials in electronic devices.

Continuous Dual-Scale Interpenetrating Network Carbon Foam-Stearic Acid Composite as a Shape-Stabilized Phase Change Material with a Desirable Synergistic Effect

For enhancing the heat storage and encapsulation performances of organic phase change materials (PCMs), a carbon foam (CF) with a continuous dual-scale pore structure (DCF) was developed. Employing the as-prepared DCF as a stearic acid (SA) support, a novel shape-stabilized SA-CF composite PCM with a continuous dual-scale interpenetrating network structure was achieved through the impregnation of SA into the DCF. DCF-900, prepared at an activation temperature of 900 °C, possesses a high loading capacity of 89.54 wt % for melted SA without leakage. The resulting SA/DCF-900 composite with a continuous dual-scale interpenetrating network structure exhibits excellent comprehensive performances with a good synergistic effect. The composite presents a thermal conductivity of 1.298 W/m·K and an encouraging compressive strength of 9.03 MPa, which increase by 2.25-fold and 3.56-fold compared with those of DCF-900, respectively. Furthermore, its melting and freezing enthalpies reach 192.8 and 192.7 J/g with a storage efficiency of about 100%, respectively; meanwhile, it displays excellent thermal cycle stability and reversibility after 600 thermal cycles with a high melting/freezing enthalpy retention rate of up to 96%. More importantly, its light-to-thermal conversion efficiency reaches 91.8% under a light intensity of 100 mW/cm². Consequently, the SA/DCF-900 composite is a promising candidate for high-performance PCMs.

Multifunctional Phase Change Composites Based on Elastic MXene/Silver Nanowire Sponges for Excellent Thermal/Solar/Electric Energy Storage, Shape Memory, and Adjustable Electromagnetic Interference Shielding Functions

Multifunctional phase change materials (PCMs) are highly desirable for the thermal management of miniaturized and integrated electronic devices. However, the development of flexible PCMs possessing heat energy storage, shape memory, and adjustable electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding properties under complex conditions remains a challenge. Herein, the multifunctional PCM composites were prepared by encapsulating poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) into porous MXene/silver nanowire (AgNW) hybrid sponges by vacuum impregnation. Melamine foams (MFs) were chosen as a template to coat with MXene/AgNW (MA) to construct a continuous electrical/thermal conductive network. The MF@MA/PEG composites showed a high latent heat (141.3 J/g), high dimension retention ratio (96.8%), good electrical conductivity (75.3 S/m), and largely enhanced thermal conductivity (2.6 times of MF/PEG). Moreover, by triggering the phase change of the PEG, the sponges displayed a significant photoinduced shape memory function with a high shape fixation ratio (∼100%) and recovery ratio (∼100%). Interestingly, the EMI shielding effectiveness (SE) can be adjusted from 12.4 to 30.5 dB by a facile compression-recovery process based on shape memory properties. Furthermore, a finite element simulation was conducted to emphasize the advantage of the MF@MA/PEG composites in the thermal management of chips. Such flexible PCM composites with high latent heat storage, light-actuated shape memory, and adjustable EMI shielding functions exhibit great potential as smart thermal management materials in military and aerospace applications.

Morphology, thermal and mechanical properties of electrospun polyvinylidene/polyethylene glycol composite nanofibers as form-stabilized phase change materials

Polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF)/polyethylene glycol (PEG) form-stabilized composite phase change nanofibers with various mass percentage of PEG1000 (with average molecular weight of 1000) loadings were fabricated by electrospinning technique, in which PEG was served as phase change material (PCM) and PVDF as the supporting matrix to afford a mechanically strong structure. Effect of PEG1000 content on nanofiber morphology, phase transition properties, thermal stability, thermal energy storage and release performance, and mechanical properties were studied experimentally. The results showed that the incorporation of PEG1000 improved the spinning solution viscosity and high mass fraction of PEG1000 in the nanofibers led to decreased fiber diameter and melting temperature, and higher latent heat of fusion. In addition, mechanical test revealed that the fracture elongation of the electrospun PVDF/PEG composite nanofibrous membranes were initially increased with unobvious tensile strength changes, while the value of the elongation would decrease, and the tensile strength increase as the mass ratio of PVDF/PEG lower to 1:1. Furthermore, the melting temperature and maximum latent heat for PVDF/PEG were determined from DSC measurement as 51.8 °C, and 73.3 J/g, when the mass radio of PVDF/PEG was 1:1 (w/w), which was suitable utilized for thermo-regulating textiles or in heat storage devices.