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Journal of Polymer & Composites Original Research

Comparative Analysis of 3D-Printed and Molded Shape-Stabilized Phase Change Composites

  1. Deepak Kumar Yadav Department of Mechanical Engineering, Amity University, Noida
  2. Pushpendra Kumar Singh Rathore Department of Mechanical Engineering, Amity University, Noida
  3. Rajeev Kumar Singh Department of Mechanical Engineering, Amity University, Noida
  4. Arvind Kumar Gupta Department of Mechanical Engineering, J.C. Bose University of Science and Technology, YMCA, Faridabad
  5. Basant Singh Sikarwar Department of Mechanical Engineering, Amity University, Noida

Abstract

Thermal energy storage (TES) has become essential for efficiently storing and utilizing thermal energy across applications like industrial heating, power plants, batteries, medical devices, food preservation, and aerospace technology. Because of their high energy density, affordability, and environmental friendliness, phase change materials, or PCMs, are employed extensively. However, challenges like poor thermal conductivity and leakage limit their performance. To address these issues, 3D printing has emerged as a powerful tool for developing PCM-based composites with improved thermal properties and structural stability. By enabling precise control over material composition, 3D printing enhances thermal conductivity and minimizes leakage, making TES systems more efficient and reliable. Latent heat storage (LHS) systems, in particular, benefit from 3D-printed PCM materials, offering a promising solution for energy efficiency and sustainability. In this work, the fused filament fabrication (FFF) technique was employed to create shape-stabilized composite phase change materials (SSPCMs). Initially, filaments were produced using a filament extruder with a composition of high-density polyethylene (HDPE), soy wax, paraffin wax, and nano-additives. These filaments were then used in a fused deposition modeling (FDM) 3D printer to fabricate SSPCM samples with 3% percentage of nano-additives, specifically Carbon-based nanomaterials, including multi-walled nanotubes (MWCNT) and graphene nanoplatelets. The thermal conductivity of these 3D-printed samples was compared with that of traditionally prepared SSPCM samples to evaluate the improvement achieved through additive manufacturing.

Keywords

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