Customised PCM & TCM Solutions
Thermo Chemical Material - TCM
Thermochemical energy storage may yield a reasonable heat storage capacity without producing any thermal losses during the storage period. The working pairs of various salt options incorporated in high porous structured carrier materials whereby utilising a reversible chemical reaction and takes the advantages of strong chemical bonds to store energy as chemical potential. Compared to sensible heat storage and latent heat storage, this theoretically offers higher energy density with minimum energy loss during long-term storage due to the temperature-independent means of storage.
Following extensive development programme over the last 10 years it is established that the most critical aspect of the Thermo Chemical Material (TCM) based Thermal Energy Storage (TES) is the regeneration temperature of the TCM. Hence, the following range of TCM materials are designated based on the regeneration point.
Phase Change Material - PCM
The simplest modification we can provide is merely altering the colour of the PCM for easy identification.After this comes thickening of the PCM. Some of the salt hydrate based PCMs require thickening to a paste to ensure long term stability, so this is compulsory with these PCMs. However, sometimes the customer requires the product to be thickened, for example to prevent the PCM liquid spilling or leaking from punctured or cracked containers and thereby contaminating their product. This service is available for the sub-zero eutectic solutions, the positive temperature salt based solutions, and the organic solutions. Some of the sub-zero eutectics can be thickened further to a firm gel so that they maintain their 3D shape even in liquid form. However, they must still be e
ncapsulated before use in order to prevent water loss by evaporation, as explained in the Encapsulation PCMs section.
The organic PCMs can be further modified in a number of different ways. They can be adsorbed onto several different carrier matrices to provide a dry free flowing powder format, even when the PCM is in its liquid state. The adsorbents have exceptionally high loading capacity, meaning that the powders still have excellent heat storage capabilities. Because they are free flowing, each particle freezes individually, without sticking to surrounding particles. This means that a pouch filled with the powder is still soft and flexible even when completely frozen. The PCM powder formats are available in a number of different particle sizes, from several microns to a few millimetres.
If required, the organic PCMs can be incorporated into a thermoplastic rubber to produce a material that can be processed by blowmoulding, extrusion, or other plastic processing methods. This means that we can produce rigid plastic sheets exhibiting good energy storage capacities. These materials can also be processed into any 3D shape, for example to produce a transport container with PCM built into the walls of the container.
GROUND SOURCE HEAT PUMP IMPROVEMENT BY ADDING PCM
A ground source heat pump uses a ground heat exchange loop extracting heat in order to heat buildings and provide hot water. The technology extracts heat from the ground and transfers it into the heating circuit using heat pump transferring the heat it into a building. Conventional ground loops are based on pipes buried underground in a horizontal trench or a vertical borehole. A new type vertical plate bore holes are developed like the examples below but whatever the time of loop applied the finishing of the loop will be applying grout material to prop up the pipes / plates plus exchange the heat transfer.
- PlusICE Variations Catalogue (1Mb)
- PlusICE Special Applications Catalogue (1Mb)
- PlusICE Custom-Made Solutions Catalogue (1Mb)
We are constantly increasing our range of PCMs and formats. Please contact us if you have a specific requirement or usage for energy storage.
