Viability of Paraffin Wax as a Thermal Reservoir

Home   Assumptions  Coefficients  Calculations  Review  Sources

  The use of paraffin wax, CH_3-CH_2*n-CH_3 where n tends to be between 20 and 40, has been suggested as a thermal reservoir to be used in electric vehicles in
place of conventional engine dependent or electric element heating systems. Paraffin wax is appealing in this capacity for several reasons, not the least of which is
         the large specific heat of the substance combined with its considerably low melting point. A wax heating block would also have the advantage of being able to store energy for use later without taxing the batteries of an electric vehicle. On these pages you will find an examination of the viability of such a reservoir,
demonstrating the advantages and drawbacks of the system.