Experimental investigation of thermal and mechanical properties of magnesium oxychloride cement with form-stable phase change material

Abstract To increase the heat storage efficiency of the building enclosure structure, form-stable phase change material (FSPCM) was implanted into the magnesium oxychloride cement (MOC) system to generate MOC/FSPCM composites with both high heat storage efficiency and considerable mechanical strength. The microstructure, mechanical properties, hydration process and thermal properties of MOC/FSPCM composites were investigated. The results indicated the structure of MOC was not destroyed and the hydration rate, hydration temperature and total hydration heat also dropped after adding FSPCM. The compressive strength and flexural strength of the MOC/FSPCM composites with 30 wt% FSPCM can still reach to 52.9 MPa and 5.9 MPa, respectively, and the melting and crystallizing enthalpy of MOC/FSPCM composites were 29.91 J/g and 26.52 J/g, respectively. Thermal performance tests indicated that thermal conductivity of MOC/FSPCM composites decreased with the increase in the mass percentage of FSPCM. Meanwhile, MOC/FSPCM composites show excellent performance of indoor temperature regulate, conserve energy and thermal comfort.