Thermal energy storage using phase change material: Analysis of partial tank charging and discharging on system performance in a building cooling application

McKenna, P.; Turner, William J.N.; Finn, Donal

doi:10.1016/j.applthermaleng.2021.117437

Cited by 45 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 34 publications

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“…They showed that the partial loading strategy enables significant time savings (up to 50%) during the TES process. According to the findings due to McKenna et al, 19 a partial charging/discharging strategy leads to improvement of energy efficiency. Also, significant energy is produced as a result of the higher charging and lower discharging loop flow rates.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Investigation of partial charging of enhanced ice storage systems

Laouer,

Bellahcene,

Atia

et al. 2024

Energy Storage

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Partial storage strategy can save energy and reduce emissions. In this study, analysis of the partial melting process of ice inserted with nanoparticles inside a square enclosure is investigated for thermal energy storage. The lattice Boltzmann method is for melting and heat transfer in the storage unit. The validation demonstrates strong concurrence between the current findings and the experimental data documented in the literature. The analysis is performed for various Rayleigh numbers, nanoparticle volume fractions, and their effect on melting time and energy storage. Two types of nanoparticles are tested that is, copper and alumina. The outcomes indicate that the Rayleigh number and volume fraction of nanoparticles have a significant impact on the phase change process. The nanoparticles addition leads to homogenous and hence expedited melting process including the final stage of the ice melting process which is very slow without nanoparticles. Furthermore, copper nanoparticles are slightly more effective than alumina. Moreover, using 6% copper nanoparticles can reduce the melting time by up to 12.4%.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Investigation of partial charging of enhanced ice storage systems

Laouer,

Bellahcene,

Atia

et al. 2024

Energy Storage

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“…Compared with the centralized heating method, the proposed TES system could save up to 61% of heating cost. McKenna et al 15 investigated the effect of charging strategy on the operational characteristics required by a light-weight commercial building located in a Mediterranean climate. They found that the higher charging loop flow rates and lower discharge loop flow rates could reach to the better energy performance.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Heat transfer investigation on the thermal energy storage using phase change material in low-carbon building

Xia,

Li,

XiangLi

et al. 2024

Building Services Engineering Research and Technology

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The use of high-conductivity porous medium is an effective method to enhance the heat transfer rate of phase change material (PCM) in thermal energy storage (TES), reducing the energy consumption of low-carbon buildings. This paper establishes a solid-liquid phase change lattice Boltzmann model of a TES unit and investigates the effects of Rayleigh number, inclination angle, porous array, and porosity. The findings indicate that inserting the porous medium enhances conductive heat transfer and weakens convective heat transfer. When the Rayleigh number is increased from 103 to 104, the liquid fraction increases by 3.0%, while an increase from 104 to 105 only results in a 1.6% increase, suggesting a diminishing effect of increasing the Rayleigh number. Results also show that the inclination angle can be disregarded in this study. Furthermore, increasing the specific surface area enhances conductive heat transfer. However, when the array n is changed to 7, the fastest variation of liquid fraction is obtained among the range from 5 to 9. Increasing the porosity will delay the moment that temperature standard deviation reaches to the maximum, getting the temperature distribution more nonuniform. The findings from this paper are valuable for the design of TES systems in low-carbon buildings. Practical application The porous medium can enhance heat transfer in the phase change process. In the field of low-carbon buildings, porous medium is applied to strengthen the energy storage rate. By investigating the parameters of the Rayleigh numbers, inclination angles, porosities and arrangement of porous medium arrays of the composed energy storage unit, the regularity of the effects on the energy characteristics are obtained, which would provide some valuable practice references for designing these parameters of the energy storage units in the future energy-efficient building sector.

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“…By increasing the cylinder diameter or decreasing the Reynolds number, they found that PCM melting is accelerated. The ACS integrated with PCM's TES was simulated by McKenna et al [ 21 ] during partial discharge and charging of the PCM. The energy performance was enhanced by applying partial charging and discharging of PCM, but this varies with the specifics of the control strategy and the overall cooling load.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Experimental Investigation of Energy and Exergy Assessment of Vapor Compression Refrigeration Unit Enhanced via Encapsulated Phase Change Material

Ismail,

Hassan

2023

Energy Tech

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Energy and exergy performance of simple vapor compression refrigeration unit is investigated experimentally with and without coupling heat exchanger of phase change material before the condenser. The hot outside air is cooled before entering the condenser throughout the day by flowing over the cooled phase change material structure that previously solidified during nighttime. Phase change material SP24 is employed because its melting/freezing range is suitable for most selected countries' climates. An experimental set‐up of an air‐phase change material heat exchanger coupled with the unit is constructed to examine its performance, including pressure–enthalpy curve, coefficient of performance, exergy performance, and power consumption including inflow air temperatures and flow rates impacts. Results affirm that the coefficient of performance, cooling capacity, power usage, and exergy destruction are improved by using phase change material. Compared to the unmodified unit, the maximum percentage of saved power and exergy destruction enhancement for the modified refrigeration unit with phase change material is about 8.8% and 10%, respectively. The maximum coefficient of performance and exergy efficiency rise is about 15.1% and 14.2%, respectively. Increasing the temperature differential across the phase change material heat exchanger, either by increasing inlet temperature or decreasing airflow, enhances the refrigeration unit power saving.

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Thermal energy storage using phase change material: Analysis of partial tank charging and discharging on system performance in a building cooling application

Cited by 45 publications

References 34 publications

Investigation of partial charging of enhanced ice storage systems

Investigation of partial charging of enhanced ice storage systems

Heat transfer investigation on the thermal energy storage using phase change material in low-carbon building

Experimental Investigation of Energy and Exergy Assessment of Vapor Compression Refrigeration Unit Enhanced via Encapsulated Phase Change Material

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