Comparison of Organic and In-organic Phase Change Materials on Curing Time and Mechanical Properties of Geopolymer Bricks in Passive Solar Dryers

Conventionally, phase change materials (PCM) are used as energy storage materials for latent and sensible heat in solar applications. PCM are generally classified as organic and inorganic. In this work, an organic PCM like paraffin wax and an inorganic PCM like manganese chloride tetrahydrate have been compared in terms of curing time and mechanical properties of Geopolymer bricks (GPB) obtained from fly ash, ground granulated blast furnace slag, Rice husk ash, and Nano silica, which are a target in construction industries for their reliable properties, when compared to conventional cement and sand bricks. The novelty of this work is to use an inorganic PCM in a Solar dryer to cure GPB, find its effect on the mechanical properties of GPB, and finally compare it with Organic PCM. It has been experimentally observed that GPB in Solar dryers with Inorganic PCM shows higher curing time, lesser compressive strength, lesser tensile strength, and lesser flexural strength when compared to GPB in Solar dryers with Organic PCM. The present study was also performed using ANSYS simulation software to correlate with experimental values. Simulation results predict a significant variation from experimental values, demanding more accuracy in simulation modeling. In conclusion, organic PCM performs better than inorganic PCM based on curing time, properties, and cost of the GPB in applications like construction, structural, and buildings.