Synthesis and encapsulation of 1, 4-butanediol esters as energy storage phase change materials for overheating protection of electronic devices

Development and application of thermal energy storage phase change materials (PCMs) with different temperature ranges, non-toxic, high latent heat and thermostability has been the focus of research. This study aims to synthesize a series of diester PCMs with high latent heat and thermostability based on the esterification of 1, 4-butanediol and fatty acids, following microencapsulation of the synthesized diester for overheating protection application. The obtained diester PCMs show a phase change temperature range of 30–80 °C, latent heat up to 240 J/g and volatilization temperature over 230 °C. Considering the suitable phase change temperature for overheating protection, octadecanoic acid 1, 4-butanediol ester was selected and encapsulated with silica as shell by a novel one-pot interfacial polymerization route. The microencapsulated phase change material (MEPCM) achieves a high encapsulation rate of 88.4 % and a satisfactory latent heat capacity of about 211 J/g. After consecutive heating and cooling cycles, the retention rate of thermal storage capacity exceeds 98 %, showing excellent thermal cycling stability. When used in overheating protection, the MEPCM exhibits effective temperature regulation and thermal management performance. During the application of overheating protection, a remarkable temperature hysteresis was observed on a MEPCM treated semiconductor chilling chip due to the heat storage of the MEPCM. The results imply that the MEPCM can provide effective overheating protection as a passive thermal management system.