Phase change thermal storage materials with crust forming stabilizers

A body for the storage of heat or for the storage of coolness is, in its solid phase, a conglomerate of a mass of crystalline particles of a salt-hydrate, and a rigid cellular support structure in the form of a crust formed by a chemical reaction with the surfaces of the crystalline particles. By way of example, strontium nitrate is reacted with uniformly sized crystalline particles of sodium sulfate decahydrate to form an integral support crust structure of the compound strontium sulfate, which compound is insoluble in water. When the crystalline particles are transformed to the liquid phase, the liquid is confined within the cells of the support structure. The body is enclosed in a moisture impermeable skin to prevent evaporation of the water of crystallization in the liquid phase. Several methods of fabricating such a body are disclosed, including the mixing of the crystalline particles with a solution of soluble strontium nitrate in sufficient quantity to provide the desired supporting crust structure, pouring that mixture into a suitable mold, and providing the desired moisture impervious skin for the cast body.