A comprehensive review on the form stable phase change materials for storing renewable heat preparation, characterization and application

With material advancement, phase change materials (PCMs) of high latent heat of phase transition can revolutionize the thermal energy storage market. However, limitations such as volume expansion leading to leakage and low thermal conductivity need to be addressed. These two limitations can be answered by holding the core phase change material in a porous conductive framework, with sites for the PCM to reside by capillarity. This work presents a comprehensive literature review along with bibliometric analysis on form stable composites. The review is conducted to show the evolution of form stable phase materials and their applications. The article has been divided into sections based on the supporting matrix used. In this paper, authors have included sections based on the chemical nature of the supporting matrix. The properties of the composite have been thoroughly compared to those of the parent PCM to provide a clearer and more analytical understanding. A short section is also dedicated to the latest and futuristic applications of the form stable PCM composites in this review article.