Abstract—Thermal energy storage plays a key role in the application of renewable energy sources and it thus contributes to the reduction of global CO2 emissions. Thermal energy storage is commonly based on the sensible- or latent-heat-storage techniques. Latent-heat thermal storage is based on the absorption or release of heat when a storage material is changing phase. The thermalstorage materials suitable for latent-heat storage are called Phase-Change Materials (PCMs). PCMs have considerably higher thermal-energy-storage densities than the sensible-heat-storage materials and they are able to absorb large quantities of energy in a small range of temperatures during the phase change. The project aimed to enhance the thermal conductivity of phase change materials (PCM) consists of paraffin wax containing 5% and 10% normal Aluminum powder and Nano Aluminum Powder. The compound specimens are prepared by an experimental set up. The effects of Al2O3 on PCMs for different mass fraction were plotted on graph. The results shows that nanomaterials has significant effect on PCMs and which enhances the thermal conductivity of PCMs more than that of PCM alone.

Index Terms—Index Terms — PCMs, normal Al2O3, nano Al2O3, Encapsulated PCM Products

Cite: Giriswamy B G, Eswarmoorthy M, Yellappa M, and Satyamurthy N, " Experimental Study and Thermal Characterization of Nano Composite Phase Change Material," International Journal of Mechanical Engineering and Robotics Research, Vol. 3, No. 1, pp. 360-376, January 2014.