Building Energy Storage Panel Based on Paraffin/Expanded Perlite: Preparation and Thermal Performance Study

This study is focused on the preparation and performance of a building energy storage panel (BESP). The BESP was fabricated through a mold pressing method based on phase change material particle (PCMP), which was prepared in two steps: vacuum absorption and surface film coating. Firstly, phase change material (PCM) was incorporated into expanded perlite (EP) through a vacuum absorption method to obtain composite PCM; secondly, the composite PCM was immersed into the mixture of colloidal silica and organic acrylate, and then it was taken out and dried naturally. A series of experiments, including differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), scanning electron microscope (SEM), best matching test, and durability test, have been conducted to characterize and analyze the thermophysical property and reliability of PCMP. Additionally, the thermal performance of BESP was studied through a dynamic thermal property test. The results have showed that: (1) the surface film coating procedure can effectively solve the leakage problem of composite phase change material prepared by vacuum impregnation; (2) the optimum adsorption ratio for paraffin and EP was 52.5:47.5 in mass fraction, and the PCMP has good thermal properties, stability, and durability; and (3) in the process of dynamic thermal performance test, BESP have low temperature variation, significant temperature lagging, and large heat storage ability, which indicated the potential of BESP in the application of building energy efficiency.