Ultraflexible, cost-effective and scalable polymer-based phase change composites via chemical cross-linking for wearable thermal management

Yaoge Jing; Zhengchuang Zhao; Xiaoling Cao; Qinrong Sun; Yanping Yuan; Tingxian Li

doi:10.1038/s41467-023-43772-4

Ultraflexible, cost-effective and scalable polymer-based phase change composites via chemical cross-linking for wearable thermal management

Nat Commun. 2023 Dec 5;14(1):8060. doi: 10.1038/s41467-023-43772-4.

Authors

Yaoge Jing^#¹, Zhengchuang Zhao^#², Xiaoling Cao¹, Qinrong Sun³, Yanping Yuan⁴, Tingxian Li⁵

Affiliations

¹ School of Mechanical Engineering, Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu, 610031, China.
² Research Center of Solar Power & Refrigeration, School of Mechanical Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China.
³ School of Civil Engineering and Architecture, ChongQing University of Science and Technology, Chongqing, 401331, China.
⁴ School of Mechanical Engineering, Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu, 610031, China. ypyuan@home.swjtu.edu.cn.
⁵ Research Center of Solar Power & Refrigeration, School of Mechanical Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China. Litx@sjtu.edu.cn.

^# Contributed equally.

Abstract

Phase change materials (PCMs) offer great potential for realizing zero-energy thermal management due to superior thermal storage and stable phase-change temperatures. However, liquid leakage and solid rigidity of PCMs are long-standing challenges for PCM-based wearable thermal regulation. Here, we report a facile and cost-effective chemical cross-linking strategy to develop ultraflexible polymer-based phase change composites with a dual 3D crosslinked network of olefin block copolymers (OBC) and styrene-ethylene-butylene-styrene (SEBS) in paraffin wax (PW). The C-C bond-enhanced OBC-SEBS networks synergistically improve the mechanical, thermal, and leakage-proof properties of PW@OBC-SEBS. Notably, the proposed peroxide-initiated chemical cross-linking method overcomes the limitations of conventional physical blending methods and thus can be applicable across diverse polymer matrices. We further demonstrate a portable and flexible PW@OBC-SEBS module that maintains a comfortable temperature range of 39-42 °C for personal thermotherapy. Our work provides a promising route to fabricate scalable polymer-based phase change composite for wearable thermal management.