Additive Manufacturing for Phase Change Thermal Energy Storage and Management

<p>Phase change materials can enhance the performance of energy systems by time shifting or reducing peak thermal loads. Certain electronic devices such as batteries, laser systems, or electric vehicle power electronics are highly transient and require pulse heat dissipation. Heat sinks, or thermal management devices made of a phase change material can absorb large heat spikes while maintaining a constant temperature. Additive manufacturing techniques hold tremendous potential to enable co-optimization of material properties and device geometry, while potentially reducing material waste and manufacturing time. Recently, a few efforts have emerged that employ additive manufacturing techniques to integrate a phase change material thermal energy storage into geometrically complex designs for advanced thermal management. This work contributes to the emerging field of research by reporting on the production of composite thermoplastic/phase change material filaments for fused filament fabrication 3D-printing, and their subsequent use to 3D-print advanced heat exchange topologies with intricate geometric features.</p>

Name thesis:degree_name

Doctor of Philosophy in Mechanical Engineering

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation - Open Access

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Mechanical Engineering

Year

2023

Author dc:creator

• Freeman, Thomas B.

• Phase Change Material
• Thermal Energy Storage
• Heat Exchanger
• Fused Filament Fabrication
• Energy Systems
• Heat Transfer, Combustion
• Polymer and Organic Materials

Repository record dc:identifier

https://commons.erau.edu/edt/733

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:commons.erau.edu:edt-1755