The Characteristics of Phase Change Material (PCM) Based on Coconut Oil and Glycerin for Cold Storage)
Rini Yulianingsih1*, Nurkholis Hamidi2, Anang Lastriyanto 1, Mega Nur Sasongko2, Mimin Fitrianingsih1, Ahmad Rayyan Tarik1

1) Department of Biosystems Engineering Faculty of Agricultural Technology Universitas Brawijaya Indonesia
2) Department of Mechanical Engineering Faculty of Engineering Universitas Brawijaya Indonesia

Abstract

Increasing energy efficiency in cold storage can be achieved by utilizing phase changes which have specific phase change temperatures. This research examines using coconut oil as a Phase Change Material (PCM) in combination with distilled water, glycerin, and tween 80. Coconut oil with a composition of 5, 10, 15 and 20%, glycerin 40, 50, and 60%, water and tween 80 was homogenized at 15000 rpm for 5 minutes. PCM characterization includes freezing point, degree of supercooling, droplet size, viscosity, creaming index, density, and specific heat and PCM performance. The research results showed that in emulsion form, PCM was unable to maintain its stability, especially stability against coalescence, even though PCM with an oil composition of 20 glycerin 50% was stable against creaming. The freezing point of PCM ranges from -13.93 C to -12.87 C, where PCM from coconut oil and glycerin does not show any degree of supercooling for all compositions. The PCM made from 15% glycerin improved the energy efficiency in freezer by 15%.

Keywords: Coconut Oil- Cold Storage- Glyserin- Phase Change Materials

Topic: Agricultural and bioprocess engineering