MOF-derived hierarchical carbon/ZnO hybrid synergistically boosts photothermal conversion and storage capability of phase change materials

The weak photon-capturing ability is a long-standing bottleneck for pristine metal–organic framework (MOF)-based phase change materials (PCMs) in photothermal conversion and latent heat storage applications. Herein, we designed MOF-5-derived hierarchical nanoporous carbon/ZnO nanoparticle hybrid as dual efficient photonic harvester and molecular heater for synergistically boosting photothermal conversion and storage capability of PCMs using an in-situ anchoring strategy. Compared with post-decorated ZnO strategy, ZnO photosensitizers derived in situ from MOF-5 are capable of guaranteeing high dispersibility and enhanced photon-capturing capability in the hierarchical carbon framework. Resultantly, high-performance photothermal composite PCMs are obtained due to the constructed intense and broadband absorption photonic nanoheaters after paraffin wax (PW) is encapsulated inside MOF-5-derived hierarchical nanoporous carbon/ZnO (MOF-5-PC/ZnO). Benefiting from the synergistic effect of dual high-efficiency photonic harvester and molecular heater (MOF-5-derived ZnO nanoparticles and hierarchical nanoporous carbon), [email protected]/ZnO-700 °C composite PCMs obtain the optimal photothermal conversion and storage capacity. Meanwhile, [email protected]/ZnO composite PCMs exhibit superior shape stability, thermal stability, and durable reliability. Importantly, our proposed development strategy of high-efficiency photothermal composite PCMs is universal due to high customization and universality of PCMs and Zn-MOFs.