Development of Phase Change Plywood Composites Using Pickering Emulsion-Based Adhesives for Thermal Energy Storage

Wood-based phase change materials (WBPCM) have the potential to significantly reduce energy consumption in plywood structures, but the quest for a streamlined production strategy to facilitate their industrialization remains a formidable challenge. In this work, phase change plywood (PCP) was prepared by phase change adhesive (PCA), in which urea-formaldehyde resin (UF) served as the adhesive and different contents of paraffin wax (PW) as phase change materials (PCM). The use of PCA enabled the efficient and simplified production of wood-based composites with excellent energy-saving properties. By combination of the low thermal conductivity of wood with the energy storage capabilities of PCA, PCP demonstrated a high latent heat capacity of 67.53 J/g at 47.6 °C. 2D correlation Fourier transform infrared (2D FTIR) was carried out to analyze the phase transition mechanism. By adding PCA, the heat transfer time of PCP-3 from 40 to 55 °C was extended by 181%, compared with conventional plywood, which indicated an excellent energy-saving ability. Furthermore, finite element simulation was conducted to statistically simulate the thermal transition process of PCP. Our work presents a strategy for the design of phase change plywood with excellent energy-saving properties, while also enabling large-scale production.