Enhanced Thermal Management via Phase Change Energy Storage Radiator a Numerical Study

Based on the enthalpy-porosity model, this study establishes a numerical framework for simulating phase change material (PCM) melting and solidification in a thermal energy storage radiator, addressing increased thermal dissipation demands from high-performance electronic devices. The influence of PCM melting temperature on heat storage performance under transient heat flux is examined, along with heat storage/release characteristics under periodic high/low heat flux and pulsed intermittent heating. Results indicate that the PCM radiator effectively mitigates initial thermal shocks and substantially extends the safe operational time of the heat source. Under exponentially increasing heat flux, the thermal buffering capacity is highly dependent on matching the PCM melting temperature with the transient thermal load to maximize latent heat utilization. Furthermore, under periodic and pulsed intermittent heating, increasing the cycle frequency significantly enhances the overall cooling performance. Higher frequencies prevent severe thermal accumulation and lower the peak heat source temperature, as the shortened heating intervals and subsequent off-periods allow for effective heat dissipation and partial PCM solidification recovery. Overall, this study provides generalized guidelines for optimizing PCM-based heat sinks under complex, highly transient thermal loads.