IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/renene/v36y2011i11p2906-2917.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Characterization of melting and solidification in a real-scale PCM–air heat exchanger: Experimental results and empirical model

Author

Listed:
  • Dolado, Pablo
  • Lazaro, Ana
  • Marin, Jose M.
  • Zalba, Belen

Abstract

This paper describes the experimental studies carried out to test thermal cycling of a real-scale PCM–air heat exchanger at ambient temperatures. To achieve this goal an experimental setup previously designed and used for testing real-scale prototypes of PCM–air heat exchangers is modified. The PCM used is commercially available, organic, and paraffin based. The total energy exchanged during melting and solidification, as well as the time elapsed until total melting/solidification are determined from the power curves experimentally obtained. The influence of the inlet air temperature and air flow is studied, and results show that the continuous thermal cycling of the unit is a repetitive process: running experiments with similar conditions leads to the same thermal behavior, no degradation in the PCM properties is noticed. Pressure drop is measured for different air flows. Depending on the inlet air temperature, full solidification of the PCM could be achieved in less than 3h for an 8°C temperature difference between the inlet air and the average phase change of the PCM. Average thermal powers of up to 4.5kW and 3.5kW for 1h are obtained for melting and solidification stages, respectively. An empirical model is developed from the experimental results, which could be a useful designing tool for applications that use such technology: green housing, curing and drying processes, plant production, HVAC, and free-cooling.

Suggested Citation

  • Dolado, Pablo & Lazaro, Ana & Marin, Jose M. & Zalba, Belen, 2011. "Characterization of melting and solidification in a real-scale PCM–air heat exchanger: Experimental results and empirical model," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 36(11), pages 2906-2917.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:renene:v:36:y:2011:i:11:p:2906-2917
    DOI: 10.1016/j.renene.2011.04.008
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960148111001807
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.renene.2011.04.008?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Enibe, S.O., 2003. "Thermal analysis of a natural circulation solar air heater with phase change material energy storage," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 28(14), pages 2269-2299.
    2. Sharma, Atul & Tyagi, V.V. & Chen, C.R. & Buddhi, D., 2009. "Review on thermal energy storage with phase change materials and applications," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 13(2), pages 318-345, February.
    3. Zhou, Guobing & Zhang, Yinping & Zhang, Qunli & Lin, Kunping & Di, Hongfa, 2007. "Performance of a hybrid heating system with thermal storage using shape-stabilized phase-change material plates," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 84(10), pages 1068-1077, October.
    4. Raj, V. Antony Aroul & Velraj, R., 2010. "Review on free cooling of buildings using phase change materials," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 14(9), pages 2819-2829, December.
    5. Enibe, S.O, 2002. "Performance of a natural circulation solar air heating system with phase change material energy storage," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 27(1), pages 69-86.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Waqas, Adeel & Ud Din, Zia, 2013. "Phase change material (PCM) storage for free cooling of buildings—A review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 18(C), pages 607-625.
    2. Rohit Jogineedi & Kaushik Biswas & Som Shrestha, 2021. "Experimental Study of the Behavior of Phase Change Materials during Interrupted Phase Change Processes," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(23), pages 1-13, December.
    3. Li, Gang, 2015. "Energy and exergy performance assessments for latent heat thermal energy storage systems," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 926-954.
    4. Rouault, Fabien & Bruneau, Denis & Sebastian, Patrick & Lopez, Jérôme, 2013. "Numerical modelling of tube bundle thermal energy storage for free-cooling of buildings," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 111(C), pages 1099-1106.
    5. Zeinelabdein, Rami & Omer, Siddig & Gan, Guohui, 2018. "Critical review of latent heat storage systems for free cooling in buildings," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 82(P3), pages 2843-2868.
    6. Sharif, M.K. Anuar & Al-Abidi, A.A. & Mat, S. & Sopian, K. & Ruslan, M.H. & Sulaiman, M.Y. & Rosli, M.A.M., 2015. "Review of the application of phase change material for heating and domestic hot water systems," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 42(C), pages 557-568.
    7. Klimeš, Lubomír & Charvát, Pavel & Mastani Joybari, Mahmood & Zálešák, Martin & Haghighat, Fariborz & Panchabikesan, Karthik & El Mankibi, Mohamed & Yuan, Yanping, 2020. "Computer modelling and experimental investigation of phase change hysteresis of PCMs: The state-of-the-art review," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 263(C).
    8. Farah, Sleiman & Liu, Ming & Saman, Wasim, 2019. "Numerical investigation of phase change material thermal storage for space cooling," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 239(C), pages 526-535.
    9. Prieto, M.M. & González, B., 2016. "Fluid flow and heat transfer in PCM panels arranged vertically and horizontally for application in heating systems," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 97(C), pages 331-343.
    10. Zheng, Ziao & Huang, Bin & Lu, Gaofeng & Zhai, Xiaoqiang, 2022. "Design and optimization of an air-based phase change cold storage unit through cascaded construction for emergency cooling in IDC," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 241(C).
    11. Mazhar, Abdur Rehman & Zou, Yuliang & Liu, Shuli & Shen, Yongliang & Shukla, Ashish, 2022. "Development of a PCM-HE to harness waste greywater heat: A case study of a residential building," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 307(C).
    12. Cabeza, Luisa F. & Barreneche, Camila & Martorell, Ingrid & Miró, Laia & Sari-Bey, Sana & Fois, Magali & Paksoy, Halime O. & Sahan, Nurten & Weber, Robert & Constantinescu, Mariaella & Anghel, Elena M, 2015. "Unconventional experimental technologies available for phase change materials (PCM) characterization. Part 1. Thermophysical properties," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 43(C), pages 1399-1414.
    13. Yue Hu & Rui Guo & Per Kvols Heiselberg & Hicham Johra, 2020. "Modeling PCM Phase Change Temperature and Hysteresis in Ventilation Cooling and Heating Applications," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(23), pages 1-21, December.
    14. Nie, Binjian & Zou, Boyang & She, Xiaohui & Zhang, Tongtong & Li, Yongliang & Ding, Yulong, 2020. "Development of a heat transfer coefficient based design method of a thermal energy storage device for transport air-conditioning applications," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 196(C).
    15. Zhou, Dan & Wu, Shaowen & Wu, Zhigen & Yu, Xingjuan, 2021. "Thermal performance analysis of multi-slab phase change thermal energy storage unit with heat transfer enhancement approaches," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 172(C), pages 46-56.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Tyagi, V.V. & Panwar, N.L. & Rahim, N.A. & Kothari, Richa, 2012. "Review on solar air heating system with and without thermal energy storage system," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 16(4), pages 2289-2303.
    2. Sharif, M.K. Anuar & Al-Abidi, A.A. & Mat, S. & Sopian, K. & Ruslan, M.H. & Sulaiman, M.Y. & Rosli, M.A.M., 2015. "Review of the application of phase change material for heating and domestic hot water systems," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 42(C), pages 557-568.
    3. Waqas, Adeel & Ud Din, Zia, 2013. "Phase change material (PCM) storage for free cooling of buildings—A review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 18(C), pages 607-625.
    4. Giwa, Adewale & Alabi, Adetunji & Yusuf, Ahmed & Olukan, Tuza, 2017. "A comprehensive review on biomass and solar energy for sustainable energy generation in Nigeria," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 69(C), pages 620-641.
    5. Wang, Xianglei & Guo, Quangui & Wang, Junzhong & Zhong, Yajuan & Wang, Liyong & Wei, Xinghai & Liu, Lang, 2013. "Thermal conductivity enhancement of form-stable phase-change composites by milling of expanded graphite, micro-capsules and polyethylene," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 60(C), pages 506-509.
    6. Rostami, Sara & Afrand, Masoud & Shahsavar, Amin & Sheikholeslami, M. & Kalbasi, Rasool & Aghakhani, Saeed & Shadloo, Mostafa Safdari & Oztop, Hakan F., 2020. "A review of melting and freezing processes of PCM/nano-PCM and their application in energy storage," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 211(C).
    7. Zeng, Cheng & Liu, Shuli & Shukla, Ashish, 2017. "Adaptability research on phase change materials based technologies in China," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 73(C), pages 145-158.
    8. Salunkhe, Pramod B. & Shembekar, Prashant S., 2012. "A review on effect of phase change material encapsulation on the thermal performance of a system," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 16(8), pages 5603-5616.
    9. Wang, Zeyu & Diao, Yanhua & Zhao, Yaohua & Wang, Tengyue & Liang, Lin & Chi, Yuying, 2018. "Experimental investigation of an integrated collector–storage solar air heater based on the lap joint-type flat micro-heat pipe arrays," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 160(C), pages 924-939.
    10. Abdul Mujeebu, Muhammad & Alshamrani, Othman Subhi, 2016. "Prospects of energy conservation and management in buildings – The Saudi Arabian scenario versus global trends," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 1647-1663.
    11. Rathod, Manish K. & Banerjee, Jyotirmay, 2013. "Thermal stability of phase change materials used in latent heat energy storage systems: A review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 18(C), pages 246-258.
    12. Sharma, Atul & Tyagi, V.V. & Chen, C.R. & Buddhi, D., 2009. "Review on thermal energy storage with phase change materials and applications," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 13(2), pages 318-345, February.
    13. Zhu, Na & Hu, Naishuai & Hu, Pingfang & Lei, Fei & Li, Shanshan, 2019. "Experiment study on thermal performance of building integrated with double layers shape-stabilized phase change material wallboard," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 167(C), pages 1164-1180.
    14. Kalaiarasi, G. & Velraj, R. & Vanjeswaran, M.N. & Ganesh Pandian, N., 2020. "Experimental analysis and comparison of flat plate solar air heater with and without integrated sensible heat storage," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 150(C), pages 255-265.
    15. Li, C. & Wang, R.Z., 2012. "Building integrated energy storage opportunities in China," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 16(8), pages 6191-6211.
    16. Alizadeh, M. & Sadrameli, S.M., 2016. "Development of free cooling based ventilation technology for buildings: Thermal energy storage (TES) unit, performance enhancement techniques and design considerations – A review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 619-645.
    17. Soares, N. & Bastos, J. & Pereira, L. Dias & Soares, A. & Amaral, A.R. & Asadi, E. & Rodrigues, E. & Lamas, F.B. & Monteiro, H. & Lopes, M.A.R. & Gaspar, A.R., 2017. "A review on current advances in the energy and environmental performance of buildings towards a more sustainable built environment," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 77(C), pages 845-860.
    18. Wang, Zhangyuan & Qiu, Feng & Yang, Wansheng & Zhao, Xudong, 2015. "Applications of solar water heating system with phase change material," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 52(C), pages 645-652.
    19. Mettawee, Eman-Bellah S. & Assassa, Ghazy M.R., 2006. "Experimental study of a compact PCM solar collector," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 31(14), pages 2958-2968.
    20. Memon, Shazim Ali, 2014. "Phase change materials integrated in building walls: A state of the art review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 31(C), pages 870-906.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:renene:v:36:y:2011:i:11:p:2906-2917. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.journals.elsevier.com/renewable-energy .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.