Thermal Properties of Alkali Halide Nanowires for Energy Storage Applications

Recently arrays of NaCl nanowires have been shown to self-assemble on the surface of porous materials. In addition, salts have been found to act as an effective thermal energy storage material, finding application in the storage of heat generated from solar cells with high efficiency and long storage times. It is of interest to determine how nanoscale salt structures, such as arrays of alkali halide nanowires, might be applied in such energy storage applications. In this work we will present simulation of the heat capacity and thermal conductivity of an alkali halide nanowire. A rigid shell model is used to determine the phonon spectrum of the nanowire and thermal properties are simulated using the phonon transport Monte Carlo formulation. Scattering mechanisms included are phonon-phonon scattering and phonon boundary scattering. Results will indicate how size affects the thermal properties of alkali halide nanowires and how these materials can be leveraged as nanoscale heat storage materials.