Organic porous form-stable composite phase change energy storage materials: multifunctional fabrication strategies and thermal performance optimization

Phase-change thermal storage technology has emerged as an effective approach to address energy supply-demand imbalances and enhance energy utilization efficiency. Organic porous shape-stabilized composite phase-change materials (PCMs), as core materials, have attracted significant attention due to their ability to overcome leakage, low thermal conductivity, and limited functionality of traditional PCMs. This review systematically summarizes the preparation methods, performance optimization strategies, and applications of biomass-based and polymer-based porous shape-stabilized composite PCMs. Key techniques, including physical blending, vacuum impregnation, chemical grafting, and electrospinning, are analyzed with emphasis on their process characteristics and applicable scenarios. The synergistic mechanism between pore-size regulation of porous scaffolds and the loading efficiency of PCMs is elucidated. Furthermore, strategies for achieving multifunctionality (e.g., photothermal/electrothermal conversion, electromagnetic shielding) through incorporating functional components such as carbon materials and metal nanoparticles are discussed. Studies indicate that carbonized biomass-based materials exhibit superior thermal conductivity networks and structural stability, while polymer-based materials achieve enhanced interfacial bonding and multifunctionality via chemical modification. Both types of composites demonstrate high latent heat, excellent cycling stability, and significantly improved thermal conductivity, showing prominent potential in solar energy storage, industrial waste heat recovery, intelligent building temperature control, and wearable thermal management. This work aims to provide theoretical guidance and technical references for developing high-performance, multifunctional organic porous shape-stabilized composite PCMs. • Org. porous shape-stabilized PCMs solve leakage & low conductivity issues of traditional PCMs. • Biomass & polymer-based porous shape-stabilizers, via various methods, yield composite PCMs with excellent performance. • Both biomass-based and polymer-based composites show significant application potential in multiple fields.