Articles containing precisely branched functional polymeric phase change materials

• US 8,673,448 B2
• Filed: 03/04/2011
• Issued: 03/18/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/04/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Latent Heat Solutions, LLC
• Original Assignee: Outlast Technologies, Incorporated
• Inventors: Hartmann, Mark, Henton, David E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Wilson, Michael H
• Assistant Examiner(s): Rea, Christine
• Application Number:
  US13/040,692
• Publication Number:
  US 20120225290A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,110 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 428/411.1
• CPC Class Codes: C08F 120/32 containing epoxy radicals
• CPC Class Codes: C08F 136/06 Butadiene
• CPC Class Codes: C08F 20/32 containing epoxy radicals
• CPC Class Codes: C08F 210/06 Propene
• CPC Class Codes: C08F 220/325 containing glycidyl radical, e.g. glycidyl (meth)acrylate
• CPC Class Codes: C08F 236/06 Butadiene
• CPC Class Codes: C08F 32/04 having one carbon-to-carbon double bond
• CPC Class Codes: C08F 36/20 unconjugated
• CPC Class Codes: D01F 1/10 Other agents for modifying properties
• CPC Class Codes: D06M 15/227 of hydrocarbons, or reaction products thereof, e.g. afterhalogenated or sulfochlorinated
• CPC Class Codes: D06M 15/27 of alkylpolyalkylene glycol esters of unsaturated carboxylic acids
• CPC Class Codes: D06M 15/327 of unsaturated alcohols or esters thereof
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/2913 Rod, strand, filament or fiber
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/2933 Coated or with bond, impregnation or core
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/31504 Composite [nonstructural laminate]
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 442/20 Coated or impregnated woven, knit, or nonwoven fabric which is not [a] associated with another preformed layer or fiber layer or, [b] with respect to woven and knit, characterized, respectively, by a particular or differential weave or knit, wherein the coating or impregnation is neither a foamed material nor a free metal or alloy layer
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 442/2213 Coating or impregnation is specified as weather proof, water vapor resistant, or moisture resistant

Abstract

In accordance with one aspect a temperature regulating article comprises a substrate and a polymeric phase change material bound to the substrate, wherein the polymeric phase change material is characterized by including a precisely branched polymer with substantially equally spaced repeating sidechains. In other embodiments the polymeric phase change material includes between 20 and 200 branches per 1000 carbon units, has a latent heat of at least 5 Joules per gram, and a transition temperature between 0° C. and 40° C.

Claims

1. A temperature regulating article comprising:

a substrate; and

a polymeric phase change material bound to the substrate, wherein the polymeric phase change material is characterized by including a precisely branched polymer with substantially equally spaced repeating sidechains each separated by carbon segments of the backbone having at least three carbon atoms, wherein the length of the carbon segments of the backbone controls a degree of crystallization of the polymeric phase change material at a given transition temperature, wherein the polymeric phase change material includes between 20 and 200 branches per 1000 carbon atoms,

wherein the polymeric phase change material has a latent heat of at least 5 Joules per gram and a transition temperature between 0°

C. and 40°

C. dependent upon the length of the carbon segments of the backbone, and

wherein the sidechains are selected from the group consisting of CH₃, C₂H₅, C_nH_2n+1, OCH₃, and OC₂H₅.

2. The temperature regulating article of claim 1, wherein the polymeric phase change material includes a mole percentage of the branches of between 4% and 50%.

3. The temperature regulating article of claim 1, wherein the polymeric phase change material includes a weight percentage of the branches of between 5% and 50%.

4. The temperature regulating article of claim 1, wherein the polymeric phase change material includes between 20 and 45 branch units per 1000 carbon atoms.

5. The article of claim 1, wherein the branches are methyl branches derived from propylene as the comonomer.

6. The article of claim 5, wherein the propylene is 20-30 mole percentage of the polymer.

7. The article of claim 5, wherein propylene is between 27-39 weight percentage of the polymer.

8. The article of claim 1, wherein at least two of the branches are the same.

9. The article of claim 1, wherein at least one of the branches have a degree of stereocontrol associated with them.

10. The article of claim 1, wherein at least two of the branches are isotactic or syndiotactic.

11. The article of claim 1, wherein at least one of the branches is controlled for chirality to yield L-chiral homo and copolymers.

12. The article of claim 1, wherein the polymer has a degree of unsaturation.

13. The article of claim 12, wherein the unsaturation is between 1-99 mole percentage.

14. The article of claim 1, wherein the polymer includes double bonded atoms.

15. The article of claim 1, wherein the ethylene length between branches is at least 5.

16. The article of claim 1, wherein the ethylene length between branches is at least 10.

17. The article of claim 1, wherein the substrate selected from the group consisting of a fiber composition, a film composition, a laminated film composition or a coating composition.

18. A temperature regulating composition, comprising:

a polymeric phase change material, wherein the polymeric phase change material is characterized by including a precisely branched polymer with substantially equally spaced repeating sidechains each separated by at least three carbon backbone atoms, wherein the number of carbon backbone atoms between sidechains controls a degree of crystallization of the polymeric phase change material at a given transition temperature, wherein the polymeric phase change material includes between 20 and 200 branches per 1000 carbon atoms,

wherein the polymeric phase change material has a latent heat of at least 5 Joules per gram and a transition temperature between 0°

C. and 40°

C. dependent upon number of carbon backbone atoms between sidechains, and

wherein the sidechains are selected from the group consisting of CH₃, C₂H₅, C_nH_2n+1, OCH₃, and OC₂H₅.

19. The temperature regulating article of claim 18, wherein the polymeric phase change material includes a mole percentage of the branches of between 4% and 50%.

20. The temperature regulating article of claim 18, wherein the polymeric phase change material includes a weight percentage of the branches of between 5% and 50%.

21. The temperature regulating article of claim 18, wherein the polymeric phase change material includes between 20 and 45 branch units per 1000 carbon atoms.

22. The article of claim 18, wherein the branches are methyl branches derived from propylene as the comonomer.