Phase Change Materials and Thermally Conductive Composites for Energy Storage and Thermal Management
This community develops materials that store heat as latent energy and conduct it efficiently, primarily for renewable energy systems, electronic cooling, and building insulation.
The research focuses on engineering phase change materials (PCMs) and thermally conductive composites to manage heat flow and storage. Recurring materials include boron nitride nanosheets, carbon nanotubes, graphene oxide, and expanded graphite, often integrated into polymer matrices like epoxy, polyurethane, and polyethylene glycol. Applications span solar thermal energy harvesting, latent heat storage for concentrated solar power, and thermal interface materials for electronics. Recent work also explores microencapsulated PCMs for building applications and flexible composites for wearable thermal management. The work emphasizes enhancing thermal conductivity, preventing leakage, and improving mechanical stability in these hybrid structures.
The community is most prominent in boron research, accounting for 5.0% of all boron-related papers, and nitrogen research, where it represents 1.3% of the total. Boron also contributes the highest raw paper count to this group, with 7,604 papers, reflecting the central role of boron nitride in the material designs.
The group comprises 23,338 papers, with the highest publication volumes in the Journal of Energy Storage, Applied Thermal Engineering, and Solar Energy Materials and Solar Cells.
Recent papers continue to focus on advanced composite structures, such as TiN-supported skeletons for solar-thermal conversion and flexible polymer PCMs for battery thermal management. Newer work also addresses thermal management in 3D integrated microelectronics and the use of biomass-derived materials for sustainable thermal conductivity.