Session: 04-24-01: Advancing Composite Materials through Integrated Multiscale Modeling and Experimental Techniques

Paper Number: 150494

150494 - Enhancing Thermal Cycling Fatigue Resistance in High-Temperature Thermal Energy Storage Composites: A Combined Strategy of Microcrack Engineering and Multiscale Optimization 

Advancing the field of large-scale, deployable, emission-free energy storage for renewable energy, High-Temperature Thermal Energy Storage (HT-TES) emerges as a potential solution, that is cost-effective, scalable, stable, and efficient. The technology has the potential to generate more than 1 MWh per unit cube of material and store energy for periods ranging from tens to hundreds of hours. Operating at temperatures above 1500°C, the HT-TES system can provide high-grade heat to industrial processes, which account for approximately one-third of total energy consumption in the United States. Furthermore, this technique can supply electricity for various applications when paired with a heat engine. If successful, these materials could enable the cost-effective storage of several Gigawatt-hours of renewable energy, enough to power an entire city for days during unpredictable periods of low solar and wind energy production solving the energy storage issue, which is one of the most significant remaining technological impediments to our transition to 100% renewable energy and a fully decarbonized society.

In this talk, I will delve into the design of HT-TES materials, specifically exploring how deliberately engineered microcracks can imbue a material with superior thermal cycling fatigue resistance. Thermal cycling produces extreme spatial and temporal temperature gradients leading to thermal fracture due to fatigue. This is due to thermal strain energy being converted into new crack surface energy. Carbon-ceramic composites were designed to control this failure mode. A high concentration of filler particles with a mismatched Coefficient of Thermal Expansion (CTE) is added to the ceramic matrix to induce microcracks, which the thermal strain energy will distribute into thus significantly improving the thermal shock resistance of the material. These composites are suitable for research due to their high energy density, exceptional mechanical strength, excellent electrical and thermal conductivity, and low cost.

Future work involves investigating the effect of the filler particle concentration and stress concentration factor, dictated by the ratio of the CTE mismatch on the thermal cycle fatigue and thermal shock resistance of these carbon-ceramic composites. Various carbon-ceramic composites will be fabricated and subjected to scanning electron microscopy to analyze the microstructure and the composition. The material will undergo thermal cycling at a maximum temperature above 1500°C, during which thermal properties will be measured using a high-temperature thermal wave sensor.  Through this, I will provide a deeper understanding of the parameters that dictate the material’s thermal shock and cycle fatigue resilience to design a better-performing novel composite for HT-TES applications.

Presenting Author: Gyeongjae (Jay) Yoo Boston University

Presenting Author Biography: Gyeongjae (Jay) Yoo is a PhD student in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Boston University. He is working on designing High-Temperature Thermal Energy Storage Materials using cost-efficient materials. His interest includes energy storage and sustainability.

Authors:

Gyeongjae (Jay) Yoo Boston University
Sean Lubner Boston University