A modified kapok fiber based phase change composite for highly-efficient solar-thermal conversion

Phase change material (PCM) has attracted considerable attention as thermal energy management technology for thermal storage. However, the low thermal conductivity and poor solar-thermal conversion performance severely limit their further practical applications. Herein, we successfully design a novel form-stable polyethylene glycol (PEG)-kapok fiber (KF)@Ti3C2Tx nanosheets phase change composite with favorable thermal conductivity (0.630 W/mK) and outstanding solar-thermal conversion efficiency (98.49%). The Ti3C2Tx on KF could offer more thermally conductive channels, thus greatly improve the thermal conductivity of PEG PCM. The strong solar absorption of Ti3C2Tx and the black surface of the composite conjointly resulted in the highly efficient solar-thermal conversion procedure. When the as-prepared composite exposed to sunlight, the surface temperature could reach over 90 °C in just 10 min. This work could not only exhibit the great potential of [email protected]3C2Tx in thermal energy management, but also provide a new and efficient way for high solar-thermal conversion.