Numerical Characterization of Anisotropic Heat Sink Composites

摘要

This work addresses the numerical analysis of anisotropic composite structures for thermal energy storage and temperature stabilization. The basic idea of heat sink composites is the combination of metallic matrices for fast energy transfer with phase change materials for thermal energy storage. Anisotropic matrices, such as lotus-type structures, allow for increased control of the thermal energy flow, without the necessity of additional thermal insulation. As an example, thermal energy can be directed towards a surface cooled by convection and excess energy is stored in the phase-change material. Computed tomography data of copper lotus-type material is used for the generation of the numerical calculation models. Due to its particular meso-structure, this material is characterised by strongly anisotropic properties. The void space of this cellular metal is filled with the phase-change material paraffin in order to enhance the energy storage capacity. A recently extended Lattice Monte Carlo method is used to evaluate the anisotropic thermal properties of these promising materials.