Abstract
Thermal energy storage systems present a multitude of possible thermal applications. It is a more effective means of narrowing the difference between supply and demand for energy. The interest generated by this technology has led to its success in many types of applications in industry. This investigation conducted a thorough parametric study of a LHS system. This system exploits the latent heat to store part of the heat transported by a HTF. The tank studied in this work was modeled in two dimensions using the CFD tool. Numerous investigations have been conducted to determine how the different factors, such as mass flow rate and HTF inlet temperature, affected the PCM change process inside the tank. The results were analyzed and discussed, including the evolution of HTF outlet temperature profiles, the liquid fraction in the capsules, the PCM temperature, and the energy stored, and the energy recovered during the charging and discharging periods. Among the results obtained, when the flow rate changes from 0.01 Kg/s to 0.03 Kg/s reduces the energy stored by all PCM capsules from 28.6920 kWh to 10.5980 kWh, and the energy recovered from 25.6422 kWh to 7.3435 kWh.
