Heat transfer and thermal storage behaviour of gypsum boards incorporating micro-encapsulated PCM

In the application of energy storage and thermal environmental control, PCM (Phase Change Material) is a very promising material choice. This study incorporated mPCM (micro-encapsulated PCM) into gypsum to make mPCM gypsum board and then investigated the physical properties, heat transfer and thermal storage behaviour. The major control parameters are wall temperatures and the weight percentages of mPCM added to the gypsum boards. A melting fraction correlation, reduced from our test data and based on Stefan number (Ste), subcooling (Sb) and Fourier number, is proposed. It shows that case with a higher Ste or Sb can have a higher heat transfer through the hot wall. Thermal storage behaviour of mPCM gypsum boards is then analyzed. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.