Phase change materials (PCMs) serve as an advantage in thermal energy storage systems utilizing the available sensible and latent heat. The PCMs absorb the thermal energy during the charging process and release it into the environment during the discharging process. Steatite is low cost and eco-friendly, with a thermal stability up to 1000 °C, and it is abundantly available in nature. This study investigates the steatite-paraffin wax-based PCM and the effect on the cyclic loads using a horizontal triplex-tube latent heat energy storage system. The thermal conductivity value of the milled steatite-based PCM composite was 7.7% higher than pure PCM. The PCM with the ball-milled steatite-fabricated composite exhibited better discharging characteristics, increasing the discharge time by 50% more than that of the pure paraffin wax. Moreover, the milled steatite-based PCM outperformed that incorporated with non-milled steatite with paraffin.
Keywords: energy material; energy storage; phase change material (PCMs); solar energy; steatite powder; thermal storage system.