The Effect of Al_2 O_3 Addition on Solidification Process of Phase Change Material: A Case Study on Heating of Automobile Cabin in Cold Climate Conditions

Abstract

In this paper, an experimental investigation is revealed on the solidification process of the latent heat thermal energy storage (LHTES) system, in which the heat energy emitted into the atmosphere with the exhaust gases of ICE vehicles is stored by phase change material (PCM) enhanced with nanoparticles (Al2O3). In the study using RT55 paraffin wax as the PCM, the interior heating process of a typical sedan automobile in cold climate conditions is used as the heat release medium for the LHTES system. Experimental studies carried out in real climatic conditions were repeated for pure paraffin (RT55) and five dif-ferent Al2O3 fractions (5 wt.%, 10 wt.%, 15 wt.%, 20 wt.%, and 25 wt.%). Ex-periments are performed in an optical PCM container and are completed after 1200 seconds (20 minutes). The heat energy stored in the PCM container is discharged to the automobile cabin via the closed-circuit liquid circulation system by the heating radiator system in the automobile cabin. The findings showed that the solidification process is improved considerably up to 10 wt.% Al2O3 fractions compared with pure paraffin RT55, and the temperature in the cabin could be increased by approximately 29%. In addition, the Al2O3 frac-tion increased by more than 10 wt.%, which has a negative effect on the im-provement in the solidification process, but higher solidification ability and in-cabinet temperature were obtained with all Al2O3 fractions compared to pure RT55.

A novel design of heating system using phase change material for passenger car cabin in cold starting conditions

“…In a paper on in-cabin heating with the LHTES system using the RT55 as the PCM, the temperature in the center of the PCM dropped from 366 K to 350 K after 1200 seconds. The temperature inside the cabin, which was 275 K at the beginning, increased to 279 K after 1200 seconds, and the cabin interior temperature increased by approximately 4.2 °C [26]. In Fig.…”

“…As a result, it has been determined that it can be reached at 36 °C, which is the closest to the atmospheric temperature, in 11 minutes with PCM-coated copper tubing. Gübrüz et al [26] experimentally investigated the solidification process of the LHTES system, in which the heat energy thrown into the atmosphere along with the exhaust gases from the internal combustion vehicles is stored by the PCM. In the LHTES system, RT55 paraffin wax enriched with Al2O3 nanoparticles was used as PCM.…”