Double-skeleton based shape-stabilized phase change materials with excellent solar-thermal energy conversion and shape memory performance

Polyethylene glycol (PEG) is widely used for thermal energy storage, but its practical application is limited by its strong rigidity, poor shape stability. In this work, a kind of melamine foam/graphene aerogel (MF/GA) double-skeleton was prepared, then PEG was stably encapsulated into MF/GA by vacuum melt impregnation method to obtain MF/[email protected] shape-stabilized phase change materials (SSPCMs). Structural characterization and performance tests were performed on MF/[email protected] SSPCMs, including morphological observation, latent heat, thermal conductivity, shape stability, and photothermal conversion capability. The experimental results show that the MF/[email protected] SSPCMs show high energy storage density (168.3 J/g), good shape stability, shape memory performance and excellent solar-thermal energy conversion capability with a high efficiency of 84.8%, the thermal conductivity of MF/[email protected] SSPCMs is 161% higher than that of pure PEG. The MF/[email protected] SSPCMs with comprehensive properties have promising application in solar-thermal energy storage and thermal management in microelectronic devices.