Another green thread topic of sorts that would benefit a separate thread.
Anybody know of phase change products/materials (PCMs) that are commercially available?
I've read of embedding paraffin spheres into gypboard to absorb heat, or there are the molten salt systems that seem to have failed the transition from prototype into mass production...
the only sort of heat sink material/system I know of is off-peak cooling with ice tanks.
So is this just an exotic laboratory technology that isn't ready for home depot/developers or is this a mature material that we all should be specifying?
also there is a house, I think it is Switzerland, where they used paraffin filled blocks for the exterior walls...wish I could remember the name-have it written down somewhere-just not with me.
The RISD entry to the 2005 Solar Decathlon relied heavily upon phase change materials. You can read about it here (scroll down to the "building systems: heating and cooling section").
some Conditioning coolants change phases in systems, compressed and liquid, then absorb heat and expand to a gas or vapor before being compressed again
"the only sort of heat sink material/system I know of is off-peak cooling with ice tanks."
not sure if this is similar to what you are talking about, but in extreme desert climates I have seen architects use large concrete walls or rammed earth to absorb heat during the day when it is hot, and give off heat at night when its cool outside. These massive walls act as some what of a heat sink.
Paraffin is a good example of a phase changing material, only it works in the opposite way that would be beneficial in green building. Hypothetically speaking if paraffin melted when cooled and hardened when hot, we could fill double pained windows with it. When hard (hot) it would block the sun, but still be translucent. When it gets cold and the wax melts, it would become clear, letting in sunlight and warming up a room. Obviously this is hypothetical because we have yet to find a material that defies this heating and cooling logic of the physical world.
Jul 2, 08 7:54 pm ·
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phase changing materials - fact or science fiction?
Another green thread topic of sorts that would benefit a separate thread.
Anybody know of phase change products/materials (PCMs) that are commercially available?
I've read of embedding paraffin spheres into gypboard to absorb heat, or there are the molten salt systems that seem to have failed the transition from prototype into mass production...
the only sort of heat sink material/system I know of is off-peak cooling with ice tanks.
So is this just an exotic laboratory technology that isn't ready for home depot/developers or is this a mature material that we all should be specifying?
NREL pdf about concrete PCM
wikipedia
i heard of this stuff called water that will change its phase depending on the temperature
it's called h2o..... tuff stuff...... i once pour some out and was attacked by a hippie telling me "dont waste it"
check out Rubitherm
also there is a house, I think it is Switzerland, where they used paraffin filled blocks for the exterior walls...wish I could remember the name-have it written down somewhere-just not with me.
The RISD entry to the 2005 Solar Decathlon relied heavily upon phase change materials. You can read about it here (scroll down to the "building systems: heating and cooling section").
some Conditioning coolants change phases in systems, compressed and liquid, then absorb heat and expand to a gas or vapor before being compressed again
Evil I believe those coolants are more specifically called refrigerants.
"the only sort of heat sink material/system I know of is off-peak cooling with ice tanks."
not sure if this is similar to what you are talking about, but in extreme desert climates I have seen architects use large concrete walls or rammed earth to absorb heat during the day when it is hot, and give off heat at night when its cool outside. These massive walls act as some what of a heat sink.
Paraffin is a good example of a phase changing material, only it works in the opposite way that would be beneficial in green building. Hypothetically speaking if paraffin melted when cooled and hardened when hot, we could fill double pained windows with it. When hard (hot) it would block the sun, but still be translucent. When it gets cold and the wax melts, it would become clear, letting in sunlight and warming up a room. Obviously this is hypothetical because we have yet to find a material that defies this heating and cooling logic of the physical world.
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