Studies on the influence of titanium dioxide nanoparticles on thermal, flammability, and UV properties of PEG-based phase change material composites

The current study is focused on the development of phase change material composites (PCCs), attained by the solvent-casting method, comprising a hydrophilic polymer matrix (polyvinyl alcohol) enclosing polyethylene glycol (PEG600) as an active thermal energy storage (TES) component, and anchored with titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TDN). The impact of the integrated metal oxide nanoparticles at different loadings (0.25%-1%) on the TES attributes, thermal stability, UV resistance, and flame retardancy of the fabricated composites has been studied. The Fourier-transform infrared and field-emission scanning electron microscopy techniques have been used to characterize the PCCs obtained. Phase change attributes and thermal stability of the resultant PCCs are evaluated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and thermogravimatric analysis (TGA). The introduction of TDN particles in different concentrations to the PCCs considerably refines the phase change variables and thermal resistance of the reinforced film samples. PCCs film with 1% TDN concentration exhibited onset melting and crystallization temperatures at −9.9°C and 13.5°C, respectively, and peak melting and crystallization transitions occurred at 8.7°C and 3.6°C, with associated heat enthalpies of 25.57 and 22.22 J g⁻¹, respectively. UV and flame-retardant (FR) features of the PCCs were found to be improved with the presence of metal oxide particles in the composite films. The metal oxide nanoparticles enhance the FR behavior of fabricated composites by 11.45% as compared to unfilled films.