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This work studied the thermophysical properties of Mg-24%Cu, Mg-31%Cu, and Mg-45%Cu (wt.%) alloys to comprehensively consider the possibility of using them as thermal energy storage (TES) phase change materials (PCMs) used at high temperatures. The microstructure, phase composition, phase change temperatures, and enthalpy of these alloys were investigated by an electron probe micro analyzer (EPMA), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The XRD and EPMA results indicated that the binary eutectic phase composed of α-Mg and Mg2Cu exists in the microstructure of the prepared Mg–Cu series alloys. The microstructure of Mg-24%Cu and Mg-31%Cu is composed of α-Mg matrix and binary eutectic phases, and Mg-45%Cu is composed of primary Mg2Cu and binary eutectic phases. The number of eutectic phases is largest in Mg-31%Cu alloy. The DSC curves indicated that the onset melting temperature of Mg-24%Cu, Mg-31%Cu, and Mg-45%Cu alloys were 485, 486, and 485 °C, and the melting enthalpies were 152, 215, and 91 J/g. Thermal expansion and thermal conductivity were also determined, revealing that the Mg–Cu alloys had a low linear thermal expansion coefficient and high thermal conductivity with respect to increasing temperatures. In conclusion, the thermal properties demonstrated that the Mg–Cu alloys can be considered as a potential PCM for TES.

Conventional plain organic or inorganic shell for microcapsules has their own drawbacks, the organic shell has defects in thermal conductivity and stability; while the compactness and coverage of inorganic shell are not satisfactory. Herein, a novel approach to synthesis of organic–inorganic composite double‐layer shell phase change microcapsule (DLSPCM) is proposed, which is achieved by forming inorganic outer shell on the surface of organic shell via atomic layer deposition (ALD). Taking the pristine microcapsule with paraffin core and melamine formaldehyde (MF) shell as an example, MF‐ZnO composite double‐layer shell (DLS) is formed in this paper. The melting enthalpy of DLSPCM obtained by 100 ALD cycles is 159.7 J g−1, which is only 12.1 J g−1 lower than that of paraffin @ MF microcapsules (control sample), while the thermal conductivity of DLSPCM surges by 77.8%, and the thermal energy storage ability and thermal regulation performance are basically maintained. After 900 thermal cycles, the heat storage capacity of DLSPCM obtained by 100 ALD cycles decreased by only 3%. Besides, the photocatalytic performance and antibacterial activity of ZnO‐reinforced DLSPCM are further confirmed. The successful design of DLSPCM via ALD is prospective for the encapsulation, modification, and reinforcement of phase change microcapsules.

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