Technology Licensing View

Researchers at the University of South Florida have discovered a method to encapsulate phase change materials for thermal ener-gy storage.

Thermal energy storage (TES) is an often unrecognized but important com-ponent of the developing market for energy storage systems. TES systems are seen as an effective means of shifting electricity use from daytime peak periods into less expensive periods of the day or at night, saving money and increasing overall system efficiency. Newer forms of TES, in-cluding molten salt storage, may be used with concentrated solar power generation facilities to store energy collected in daylight hours for later use.

Encapsulated phase change materials (PCMs) allow storage of large amounts of heat in small volumes which reduces the cost of storage tanks and the associated equipment. The capsules must be able to withstand large number of heating and cooling cycles without degradation. TES al-lows solar energy to be collected and stored at solar times and used at non solar times. However, research on the method is about making it more cost effective.

The invention disclosed here describes the materials and methods devel-oped to manufacture encapsulated PCMs which have a rigid outer shell surrounding the PCM. These have a variety of applications in solar and other power plants as well as for other industrial applications. This inven-tion is about an innovative way of encapsulating the low cost PCMs which provides a long life to the capsules. The method, is low cost as well as scal-able for mass manufacturing. The encapsulated TES will also be useful for nuclear power and many industrial applications.