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12 

 

 

 

Perspective 

Electrical power consumption reduction in the 

bitcoin mining process using phase change 

material 
Jacob Geels 

Department of Mechanical Engineering, Arkansas Tech University, 1811 N Boulder Ave, Russellville, AR, 72801, USA 

A R T I C L E   I N F O 
 

Article history: 
Received 26 February 2022  
Received in revised form 
01 April 2022 
Accepted 06 April 2022 
 
Keywords: 
Phase Change Materials, Cryptocurrency, Bitcoin 
Latent Heat Capacity, Sensible Heat Capacity 
 
Corresponding author 
Email address: jacobgeels808@gmail.com 
 
DOI: 10.55670/fpll.fuen.1.1.10 

A B S T R A C T 
 

In this paper, the idea of applying phase change materials (PCMs) as a method 
of energy use reduction in bitcoin mining will be investigated. The possible 
applications discussed include the implementation of PCMs in the mining 
equipment itself, the integration of PCMs into the mining warehouse envelope, 
and the use of PCMs in air conditioning systems. These applications aim to 
decrease energy requirements for warehouse climate control systems by 
decreasing their cooling load, and by increasing the efficiency of the miners by 
keeping them at a cooler operating temperature. This reduction in energy usage 
will help reduce bitcoin’s carbon footprint produced by fossil fuels electricity 
production. 
 

 
 
 
 

 
1. Introduction  

Cryptocurrencies have been around for a little more than 
a decade and have gained enormous popularity over the last 
few years due to their decentralized nature and increasing 
value. With the prices of the most notable cryptocurrency, 
bitcoin, being over $57,000 per unit as of the writing of this 
paper, it is no wonder so many individuals and companies 
have taken up bitcoin mining [1]. Bitcoin “mining” is the 
process of validating a user-to-user transaction on the bitcoin 
network, also known as the blockchain. There is a need to 
check the validity of each coin being exchanged since bitcoin 
is a digital currency, making it easy to counterfeit. Known as 
double-spending, it is one of the digital currency’s biggest 
issues and is a security threat to the coin's value [2]. The 
validation is done by using computational power provided by 
“miners” or network users to verify the history of the bitcoin 
being used in the transaction [3]. Each transaction or block is 
checked to ensure all bitcoins involved have a history within 
the blockchain and are valid. If a person tried to use a 
counterfeit coin in a transaction, it would not be verified, and 
the transaction would not go through. The blockchain is 
known as a Proof of Work Mechanism [4]. Whichever user 
verifies the transaction is then rewarded with a set amount of 
bitcoin for their efforts. That is where the “mining” comes in. 
The more computational power you have, the more likely you 

are to solve a block and get rewarded. These computations 
are usually done either by CPU or GPU, which draw power.  

An estimate of bitcoin’s network wide power usage can 
be seen in the bitcoin Energy Consumption Index and is 
estimated to be around 199.41 TWh annually. If bitcoin were 
a country, it would rank 23rd in the world in power usage. 
This much power usage makes an estimated carbon footprint 
of 94.72 Mt of CO2 per year, comparable to the country of 
Thailand [5]. Due to the daunting nature of bitcoin’s CO2 
emissions and the risk, it poses to the environment, much 
research is going into developing technologies that reduce 
bitcoin’s energy usage and, thereby, carbon footprint. One 
such technology is the implementation of PCMs into the 
mining equipment itself, as well as the mining warehouse 
envelope. This new idea has the potential to reduce the 
temperature of the electronics and the buildings they are 
housed in, reducing energy usage needed to keep them cool 
so that they run at peak efficiency. Applications of PCM’s in 
this field were examined for their feasibility. 

2. Energy usage of bitcoin mining  

The major issue with bitcoin mining, or the mining of any 

cryptocurrency for that matter, is the enormous amounts of 

energy required to run their networks. This is because bitcoin 

and most other cryptocurrencies are proof of work systems. 

This means that the network of users each simultaneously 

 

 

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Jacob Geels/Future Energy                                                                                                                May 2022| Volume 01 | Issue 01 | Pages 12-15 

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tries to solve “blocks”, or puzzles given to the users by the 

network to verify transactions. The process of verifying 

transactions must start with a proof of ownership. Since 

bitcoin is a digital currency, it could be easily counterfeited, 

flooding the market with fake coins leading to inflation and 

the devaluation of the coin. This is avoided by the proof of 

work system. All users on the network agree on a set of rules 

that determine who owns what coins. If someone were to 

make a duplicate coin and try to use it in a transaction, the 

network would not be able to verify ownership, and the 

transaction would not go through. Whichever user solves the 

problem the fastest gets a reward of a few bitcoins for their 

efforts. This is how “mining” of bitcoin is done. The problem 

comes in with how this proof of work system operates. All 

users on a network must have the computational power to 

solve these puzzles. These devices are usually CPU or GPU, 

which both draw power. Since all users on the network are 

trying to solve a single block at once, there are many 

computers running at once, only doing a single task. Once the 

block is solved, all the computing devices move to the next 

block [4]. This is an incredibly inefficient system. Bitcoin is 

estimated to use approximately 1994.26 kWh of electrical 

energy per transaction. This is enough to power the average 

household in the United States for 68.35 days [5]. The 

enormous energy consumption is not the only issue. Per 

transaction, bitcoin also has an estimated carbon footprint of 

947.27 kg CO2. This is comparable to the carbon footprint of 

2,099,484 VISA transactions [5]. All this energy is being used, 

and carbon is being released for a single transaction. Clearly, 

something must be done to mitigate this issue. One might 

think, why not just get rid of bitcoin? The issue is that it has 

value. With a price per coin of over $57,000 as per the writing 

of this paper, mining bitcoin is very lucrative [1]. Companies 

that have invested millions of dollars into their mining 

operations will not simply stop due to its ever-increasing 

environmental impact. Because of this, ways to lower 

bitcoin’s energy consumption and thereby its carbon 

footprint are the alternative. That is what this paper aims to 

investigate, and it is discussed below. 

3. Phase Change Materials  

A Phase Change Material (PCM) is a material that absorbs 

and releases heat as it changes from one phase to another 

(solid-liquid, liquid-gas, etc.). Known as latent heat capacity, 

this property of a material is how much heat energy it can 

absorb or release per unit mass before it transitions to 

another phase. As the material absorbs heat energy, it thaws 

at a constant temperature until the entire body moves to a 

higher energy phase. The opposite is also true. Once the 

material is in a higher energy phase and heat energy is no 

longer being added, the PCM will steadily release heat energy 

until it freezes back into its solid state. This is also true for 

liquid-gas transformations, but most applications only use 

solid-liquid transformations due to the volumetric changes 

that occur in the latter case. Different materials have their 

own well-defined melting, freezing, and evaporating 

temperatures. This means that PCMs can be tailored to a 

specific application based on the operating temperature 

ranges for that application. The primary advantage of a PCM 

over a constant phase material is sensible heat capacity 

versus latent heat capacity. Sensible heat capacity is a 

material's ability to absorb heat energy per unit mass per 

degree Celsius when no phase changes occur. This is 

important because, for most substances, their latent heat 

capacity is much higher than their sensible heat capacity. 

Take water as an example. Its latent heat capacity is 334 

kJ/kg, where its sensible heat capacity is only 2.1 kJ/kg/C [6]. 

This means that it takes approximately 159 times more 

energy to melt 1 kg of ice than it does to raise the temperature 

of 1 kg of ice by 1 degree C. Because of this PCM’s make 

excellent insulation/thermal storage materials. Also, due to 

being able to absorb such huge amounts of energy, they can 

also be used as passive heat sinks. If a system cannot get rid 

of enough heat at peak operating temperatures, PCMs can be 

used to store that heat until it can later be removed once the 

system is no longer at peak conditions. These two premises 

are what will be investigated further later in this paper. 

As with the application of any technology, PCMs are 

chosen based on a variety of selection criteria. The first 

criteria for a PCM are that it must be able to absorb vast 

amounts of heat energy when changing phase. This means it 

needs a high latent heat capacity (heat of fusion) and be very 

dense. Next, the PCM must have a fixed/well-defined boiling 

and freezing point so that it can be used as a design criterion. 

The PCMs must also be resistant to cycling fatigue. As they are 

frozen and thawed many times over their life, PCMs that wear 

out or lose heat transfer capabilities with this fatigue is 

undesirable. PCMs chosen have to be able to avoid 

supercooling. This is the ability of the substance to stay liquid 

well below its freezing point. Materials that have this ability 

are undesirable for thermal storage applications since they do 

not change phase at the design temperature, not utilizing the 

energy storage benefits that occur at the phase transition. 

PCMs must also be non-hazardous. They must not be 

poisonous or corrosive to typical construction materials. 

Lastly, PCMs must be practical economically. To be used 

commercially, PCMs must be price competitive with current 

insulations [7]. 

There are two main types of PCMs: organic and 

inorganic. There are also Eutectic PCMs, which are just 

various mixtures of organic or inorganic PCMs. Both organic 

and inorganic PCM’s have their benefits and disadvantages. 

Organic PCM’s advantages are that they are chemically stable, 

freeze without supercooling, are compatible with 

conventional construction materials, and melt congruently. 

Their initial cost is more than inorganics, but after installation 

costs, they are competitive. The drawbacks of organic PCMs 

are that they are highly flammable, can produce toxic fumes 

when burned, and have low latent heat storage capacity. Some 

examples of organic PCMs are paraffin waxes and fatty acids. 

Inorganic PCMs consist primarily of salt hydrates. Their main 

advantages are that they are non-flammable, low-cost, readily 

available, and have a high latent heat capacity. The 

disadvantages of using inorganic PCMs are chemical 

instability, issues with supercooling, and corrosiveness [8].  

4. Applications of PCMs in Electronics 

One way to implement PCMs into a mining setup is to 

have them in the electronics themselves. This can be done at 

different levels in electronics. The first level PCMs can be 

applied at is the chip level. At this level, PCMs are most useful 

whenever the electronics operate transiently, they cycle 



Jacob Geels/Future Energy                                                                                                                May 2022| Volume 01 | Issue 01 | Pages 12-15 

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between on/off or to take care of peak heat levels. In both 

cases, the PCMs would act as a heat reservoir, either to store 

excess heat until the off-cycle as in the first case or to store 

excess heat until peak heat load subsides and release it then 

as in the second case [9]. For bitcoin mining operations, 

however, the former is not useful since most mining 

operations run 24/7, meaning there is no off-cycle for the 

PCM to release its stored heat. However, it can be used if there 

is an allowable operating temperature range that contains the 

PCM in use’s freeze/melt point. This would allow the PCM to 

thaw and refreeze, keeping the electronics within the desired 

range while still utilizing the high heat capacity of the PCM 

when it changes phase. Another method of PCM 

implementation in electronics would be at the circuit board 

level. Like their application at the chip level, the 

implementation of PCMs at the board level requires either 

transient operation or an established operational 

temperature range that contains the PCM's freeze/melting 

point. The PCMs can be integrated into the board structure or 

help passively cool the electronics. They can also be added to 

more widely used heat sinks, such as cooling fins, to increase 

the sink’s thermal mass [9]. 

5. Applications of PCMs in the bitcoin mining 

warehouse 

One of the most promising applications of PCMs is their 

integration into buildings. There are multiple ways how this 

can be done, including active building systems, passive 

building systems, free cooling systems, and peak load shifting 

systems. The primary system of focus in this paper will be 

passive building systems, or the integration of PCMs into 

building materials, effectively increasing heat storage 

capacity. In these systems, the entire building envelope acts 

as thermal storage. The PCM melts during the day, absorbing 

energy, and freezes at night, releasing that energy back into 

the building environment. This reduces both the energy 

needs for cooling the building during the day and heating it 

during the night. This type of system also has the benefit of 

not needing pumps or fans to cool the PCMs like active 

systems do, further lowering energy needs.  

PCMs can be integrated into many different construction 

materials. Wall panels, roof panels, wall insulation, and 

concrete floors are some examples. Walls panels for many 

buildings consist of plasterboard/drywall because of its 

cheap nature. These panels consist of a gypsum-water 

mixture put between two pieces of paper. PCMs could be 

added to these panels by either direct integration or by 

encapsulation, depending on the design considerations for 

the desired PCM. It has been shown that the temperature of a 

room can be reduced by up to 4oC when using PCMs 

impregnated gypsum board [10]. Plasterboard/drywall is 

also commonly used as roof panels, so a similar process to 

that of the wall panels could be applied here as well. Wall 

insulation’s thermal performance can also be increased when 

PCMs are added. PU-enhanced foam has the potential to 

reduce the peak cooling load of a wall by up to 40%. In 

addition, standard cellulose insulation impregnated by 

microencapsulated PCMs has also been shown to have a 

measurable impact on cooling load; however, the exact 

measured impact depends on the wall orientation [11]. Floor 

thermal performance can also benefit from PCM 

impregnation. PCMs can be added to concrete slabs by either 

direct immersion, some form of encapsulation, or by utilizing 

lightweight aggregates to absorb the PCM before adding to 

the concrete [12]. PCM panels can also be used as a floor 

substitute [13]. This addition gives the possibility of the most 

energy savings. This is because the floor is the only envelope 

surface that is in direct contact with another solid (the 

ground), its main mode of heat transfer is conduction, which 

is the most efficient form of heat transfer. This means that the 

heat flux of the floor of a building is typically much higher than 

the walls or roof, leading to a larger heat loss through this 

surface. The application of PCM in building materials is 

usually done in buildings where people work/live to help 

keep the building at a comfortable temperature without 

running an HVAC system continually. In addition to 

implementation into mining warehouse envelopes, PCMs can 

also be implemented into air conditioning systems to help 

shift the cooling load away from peak hours. These 

augmented systems are similar in configuration to traditional 

air conditioning systems as they still have a compressor, heat 

exchanger, evaporator, etc. However, they also include a cold 

storage device that uses PCMs as its energy storage medium 

[14]. These cold storage devices charge themselves during the 

night when cooling loads and power demand are low and 

release it during the day to supplement the main cooling 

system. This cold energy is stored in the form of solidified 

PCMs and is released as excess waste heat from the air 

conditioning system is inputted into the cold storage device, 

melting the PCM. This type of system helps to maintain the 

desired temperature band more easily within the building 

and lowers operational costs by not having to pay premium 

electric prices during peak hours [15]. The mentioned 

methods can similarly be applied to bitcoin mining setups as 

the electronics must be kept cool. While human comfort 

temperatures and optimal electronic temperatures are in 

different temperature ranges, the same premise of reducing 

cooling load can still be applied. The only difference would be 

the need to select a PCM whose phase change range is within 

the desired operating range for the mining equipment. 

6. Conclusions 

The enormous energy requirements of bitcoin mining 

and the ability of PCMs to be used as excellent thermal storage 

materials were discussed. In addition, design requirements 

and considerations of PCMs were reviewed. Lastly, the 

possible applications of PCMs in building envelopes in the 

form of impregnation of the wall, roof, and floor materials 

were evaluated. PCMs have been shown to be able to reduce 

the cooling requirements of electronics and rooms. With this 

knowledge, bitcoin’s miners can reduce the energy use, and 

thereby carbon footprint, of their mining operations. More 

research needs to be done to make PCM-impregnated 

construction materials cheaper to manufacture, making them 

cheaper to implement. These materials must be competitive 

with traditional construction materials if they are to be used, 

as Bitcoin mining is done to make turn profit.  

Ethical issue 
The author is aware of and complies with best practices in 

publication ethics, specifically with regard to authorship 
(avoidance of guest authorship), dual submission, 
manipulation of figures, competing interests, and compliance 



Jacob Geels/Future Energy                                                                                                                May 2022| Volume 01 | Issue 01 | Pages 12-15 

15 

 

with policies on research ethics. The author adheres to 
publication requirements that the submitted work is original 
and has not been published elsewhere in any language. 

Data availability statement 
Data sharing is not applicable to this article as no datasets 

were generated or analyzed during the current study. 

Conflict of interest 

The author declares no potential conflict of interest. 

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 This article is an open-access 

article distributed under the terms and conditions 

of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) 

license 

(https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). 

https://madhavuniversity.edu.in/phase-changing-materials.html
https://madhavuniversity.edu.in/phase-changing-materials.html
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