PCMs (phase change materials / latent heat accumulators) have a variety of applications in the automotive sector.

An initial overview of the spectrum of possibilities, with special emphasis on EV / NEV Battery Thermal Control, is summarized in the following presentation: Battery Thermal Managment

PCMs contribute to cooling of the passenger's cabin, they can be used for tempering of electrical components or accumulators as well.

In many vehicles that comprise a start-stop system PCM effectively provides environmental cooling of the cabin when the engine has been switched off. While driving the PCM storage is recharged by the cold that comes from the air conditioning. At a temperature below the melting point of the PCM cold is stored. During waiting periods, e.g. at traffic lights, this stored cold is liberated by a ventilator from the PCM thus keeping the temperature on a comfortable level while simultaneously saving fuel. For this application e.g. RT11HC can be used.

Furthermore, PCMs can minimize temperature variations in electronic devices and accumulators and can keep such components in an optimum temperature range. Due to a large variety of our PCM materials and corresponding melting points a tailored PCM can be offered for almost every desired temperature between -20°C und 100°C (-4°F and 212°F).

A further application is the storage of engine heat in order to provide that heat later for the next (cold) engine start. In this way, the warm-up phase can be considerably shortened. In addition to that, the deterioration of the engine and the higher fuel consumption can be minimised.