Document Type

Article

Publication Title

Next Materials

Abstract

Eggplant tissue and pomelo peel waste were converted into lightweight biomass porous foams via freeze-drying and subsequently used as sustainable scaffolds for shape-stable PCMs. Paraffin (PA) and PEG 20 K were incorporated into the biomass-derived foams, where the naturally interconnected cellular structures provided abundant capillary channels for PCM uptake and confinement. The resulting composites achieved high PCM loadings of 81.44–93.50 wt%. The melting enthalpies of Eggplant-PA, Pomelo-PA, Eggplant-20K, and Pomelo-20K reached 169.31, 166.11, 155.76, and 143.56 J g⁻¹ , respectively, confirming their considerable latent heat storage capability. In particular, Eggplant-20K and Pomelo-20K exhibited high enthalpy efficiencies of 106.77% and 112.98%, respectively, indicating that the latent heat storage capacity of PEG 20 K was well preserved after incorporation into the biomass-derived porous scaffolds. In the leakage resistance test, Eggplant-20K retained 98.08% of its initial mass after 3.5 h of heating, demonstrating good shape stability and leakage resistance. These results highlight a simple and green strategy for upcycling porous plant biomass into high-loading, shape-stabilized PCMs with promising potential for passive thermal regulation and energy-saving applications.

DOI

10.1016/j.nxmate.2026.103101

Publication Date

7-8-2026

Language

eng

Rights

open access

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