Engineering thermal enhanced gypsum composites with novel moss biomass based shape-stabilized phase change material for solar heat storage composites

Abstract

This study addresses the development of new composite materials based on natural biomass and renewable resources in response to the increasing demand for solar photothermal energy storage composites. The raw materials used include gypsum, moss biomass (MBM), and ethyl palmitate (EP) as the phase change material (PCM). The highest ratio shape-stable PCM in gypsum was determined to be 10%. The composites prepared with this ratio were then added to the gypsum matrix at 2.5%, 5%, 7.5%, and 10%, respectively, to produce the final composite panels. The morphological, thermal, and chemical properties of the shape-stable MBM/EP composites were investigated using SEM, TGA, and DSC analyses. Furthermore, the solar thermal regulation performance of the produced gypsum-based composite panels was tested under open-air conditions. The phase transition temperature and melting enthalpy of the shape-stable MBM/EP composites were determined to be 19.5 °C and 173.2 J/g, respectively. The shape-stable MBM/EP composites exhibited a melting enthalpy of 171.2 J/g, with only a minor decrease after 500 cycles. Under conditions where the ambient temperature exceeded 46.38 °C, the internal temperature of the PCM-containing cabinets was measured at least 12.15 °C lower than that of the gypsum-only cabinets. On the other hand, when the temperature dropped to approximately 15 °C, the core temperature of the PCM-containing cabinets was observed to be approximately 4.70 °C higher. This study presents an innovative approach for the development of environmentally friendly gypsum/moss/PCM composites for use in thermal energy storage systems. © 2026 Elsevier Ltd