The inward melting and solidification of phase-change materials (PCM) within millimeter-scale cylindrical enclosures have been experimentally characterized in this work. The effects of cylinder size, thermal loading, and concentration of high-conductivity additives were investigated under constant temperature boundary conditions. Using a custom-built apparatus with fast response, freezing and melting have been measured for time periods as short as 15 s and 33 s, respectively. The enhancement of PCM thermal conductivity using exfoliated graphene nanoplatelets (xGnPs) has also been measured, showing a greater than 3× increase for a concentration of 6 wt.%. Reductions in the total melting and freezing times of up to 66% and 55%, respectively, have been achieved using xGnP concentrations of only 4.5 wt.%. It is shown that the phase-change dynamics of pure and enhanced PCM are well predicted using a simple conduction-only model, demonstrating the validity of approximating enhanced PCM with low additive loadings as homogenous materials with isotropic properties. While general consistency between the measurements and model is seen, the effect of additives on heat transfer rate during the initial stages of freezing and melting is lower than expected, particularly for the smaller cylinder sizes of 6 mm. These results suggest that the thermal resistance of the PCM is not the limiting factor dictating the speed of the solid–liquid interface during these initial stages.
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Experimental Characterization of Inward Freezing and Melting of Additive-Enhanced Phase-Change Materials Within Millimeter-Scale Cylindrical Enclosures
Md Mahamudur Rahman,
Md Mahamudur Rahman
Mem. ASME
Department of Mechanical Engineering and
Mechanics,
Drexel University,
3141 Chestnut Street,
Philadelphia, PA 19104
e-mail: mr698@drexel.edu
Department of Mechanical Engineering and
Mechanics,
Drexel University,
3141 Chestnut Street,
Philadelphia, PA 19104
e-mail: mr698@drexel.edu
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Han Hu,
Han Hu
Mem. ASME
Department of Mechanical Engineering and
Mechanics,
Drexel University,
3141 Chestnut Street,
Philadelphia, PA 19104
e-mail: hh398@drexel.edu
Department of Mechanical Engineering and
Mechanics,
Drexel University,
3141 Chestnut Street,
Philadelphia, PA 19104
e-mail: hh398@drexel.edu
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Hamidreza Shabgard,
Hamidreza Shabgard
Mem. ASME
Department of Mechanical Engineering and
Mechanics,
Drexel University,
3141 Chestnut Street,
Philadelphia, PA 19104
e-mail: h.shabgard@drexel.edu
Department of Mechanical Engineering and
Mechanics,
Drexel University,
3141 Chestnut Street,
Philadelphia, PA 19104
e-mail: h.shabgard@drexel.edu
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Philipp Boettcher,
Philipp Boettcher
Department of Mechanical Engineering and
Mechanics,
Drexel University,
3141 Chestnut Street,
Philadelphia, PA 19104
e-mail: pab78@drexel.edu
Mechanics,
Drexel University,
3141 Chestnut Street,
Philadelphia, PA 19104
e-mail: pab78@drexel.edu
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Ying Sun,
Ying Sun
Mem. ASME
Department of Mechanical Engineering and
Mechanics,
Drexel University,
3141 Chestnut Street,
Philadelphia, PA 19104
e-mail: ysun@coe.drexel.edu
Department of Mechanical Engineering and
Mechanics,
Drexel University,
3141 Chestnut Street,
Philadelphia, PA 19104
e-mail: ysun@coe.drexel.edu
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Matthew McCarthy
Matthew McCarthy
Mem. ASME
Department of Mechanical Engineering and
Mechanics,
Drexel University,
3141 Chestnut Street,
Philadelphia, PA 19104
e-mail: mccarthy@coe.drexel.edu
Department of Mechanical Engineering and
Mechanics,
Drexel University,
3141 Chestnut Street,
Philadelphia, PA 19104
e-mail: mccarthy@coe.drexel.edu
Search for other works by this author on:
Md Mahamudur Rahman
Mem. ASME
Department of Mechanical Engineering and
Mechanics,
Drexel University,
3141 Chestnut Street,
Philadelphia, PA 19104
e-mail: mr698@drexel.edu
Department of Mechanical Engineering and
Mechanics,
Drexel University,
3141 Chestnut Street,
Philadelphia, PA 19104
e-mail: mr698@drexel.edu
Han Hu
Mem. ASME
Department of Mechanical Engineering and
Mechanics,
Drexel University,
3141 Chestnut Street,
Philadelphia, PA 19104
e-mail: hh398@drexel.edu
Department of Mechanical Engineering and
Mechanics,
Drexel University,
3141 Chestnut Street,
Philadelphia, PA 19104
e-mail: hh398@drexel.edu
Hamidreza Shabgard
Mem. ASME
Department of Mechanical Engineering and
Mechanics,
Drexel University,
3141 Chestnut Street,
Philadelphia, PA 19104
e-mail: h.shabgard@drexel.edu
Department of Mechanical Engineering and
Mechanics,
Drexel University,
3141 Chestnut Street,
Philadelphia, PA 19104
e-mail: h.shabgard@drexel.edu
Philipp Boettcher
Department of Mechanical Engineering and
Mechanics,
Drexel University,
3141 Chestnut Street,
Philadelphia, PA 19104
e-mail: pab78@drexel.edu
Mechanics,
Drexel University,
3141 Chestnut Street,
Philadelphia, PA 19104
e-mail: pab78@drexel.edu
Ying Sun
Mem. ASME
Department of Mechanical Engineering and
Mechanics,
Drexel University,
3141 Chestnut Street,
Philadelphia, PA 19104
e-mail: ysun@coe.drexel.edu
Department of Mechanical Engineering and
Mechanics,
Drexel University,
3141 Chestnut Street,
Philadelphia, PA 19104
e-mail: ysun@coe.drexel.edu
Matthew McCarthy
Mem. ASME
Department of Mechanical Engineering and
Mechanics,
Drexel University,
3141 Chestnut Street,
Philadelphia, PA 19104
e-mail: mccarthy@coe.drexel.edu
Department of Mechanical Engineering and
Mechanics,
Drexel University,
3141 Chestnut Street,
Philadelphia, PA 19104
e-mail: mccarthy@coe.drexel.edu
1Corresponding author.
Contributed by the Heat Transfer Division of ASME for publication in the JOURNAL OF HEAT TRANSFER. Manuscript received August 3, 2015; final manuscript received March 9, 2016; published online April 19, 2016. Assoc. Editor: Gennady Ziskind.
J. Heat Transfer. Jul 2016, 138(7): 072301 (13 pages)
Published Online: April 19, 2016
Article history
Received:
August 3, 2015
Revised:
March 9, 2016
Citation
Mahamudur Rahman, M., Hu, H., Shabgard, H., Boettcher, P., Sun, Y., and McCarthy, M. (April 19, 2016). "Experimental Characterization of Inward Freezing and Melting of Additive-Enhanced Phase-Change Materials Within Millimeter-Scale Cylindrical Enclosures." ASME. J. Heat Transfer. July 2016; 138(7): 072301. https://doi.org/10.1115/1.4033007
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