A Numerical Method for Analysing Heat Conduction in Composites Containing Encapsulated Phase Change Materials

In this study, a three-dimensional transient heat transfer model in a three-phase composite system is established to investigate effects of temperature reduction in a composite system due to the use of encapsulated phase change material (PCM). The entire composite system is composed of cement matrix material, PCM, and hollow metal microspheres (HMSs) which are introduced to accelerate the phase change efficiency of the PCM and to simultaneously hold the liquid phase of the PCM. The present transient heat transfer model is numerically solved via finite element technique for investigating the transient thermal performance of the three-phase composite system. The temperature distribution on the specific area is compared to that in the pure cement material and the two-phase composite system without metal shell for demonstrating the ability of temperature adjustment of the PCM. Finally, effects of the spatial distribution of HMS on the temperature variation in the three-phase composite system is further investigated to provide comprehensive understanding on energy adjustment of this composite system.