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Heat storage material: a hope in solar thermal
Ravin Sehrawat1, Ravinder Kumar Sahdev2, Sumit Tiwari3
1University Institute of Engineering & Technology, Maharshi Dayanand University, Rohtak, 124001, Haryana, India. ravinme19@gmail.com.
Environmental Science and Pollution Research International
|December 12, 2022
Summary
Thermal energy storage using phase change materials (PCMs) can improve solar energy reliability. Integrating metallic foam, carbon fiber, or fins enhances PCM thermal conductivity, with metallic foam composites showing the best performance.
Area of Science:
- Renewable Energy Systems
- Materials Science
- Thermal Engineering
Background:
- Solar energy presents a vast renewable resource, but its intermittent nature and geographical variations create supply and demand uncertainties.
- Thermal energy storage systems are crucial for mitigating these uncertainties and ensuring consistent energy availability.
- Phase change materials (PCMs) are highly favored for thermal energy storage due to their high energy storage density.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review and analyze various thermal energy storage systems for overcoming solar energy supply and demand uncertainties.
- To investigate methods for enhancing the thermal conductivity of phase change materials (PCMs).
- To compare the performance of different enhancement strategies for PCMs.
Main Methods:
- Review of literature on thermal energy storage systems, focusing on phase change materials.
- Analysis of integration methods for enhancing PCM thermal conductivity, including metallic foam, carbon fiber, and metallic fins.
- Comparative assessment of the performance impacts of these integrated materials.
Main Results:
- Low thermal conductivity is a critical limitation of PCMs.
- Integration of metallic foam (0.1-3% by weight) shows minor thermal conductivity improvement at high cost.
- Addition of carbon (0.1-9% by weight) enhances PCM performance.
- Metallic fins improve thermal conductivity irrespective of shape and size.
- Metallic foam composites demonstrate superior performance compared to carbon composites and metallic fin inclusions.
Conclusions:
- Metallic foam composites offer the most effective solution for enhancing phase change material performance in thermal energy storage.
- Further research into cost-effective integration of materials like carbon fiber and metallic fins is warranted.
- Optimized thermal energy storage is key to maximizing the potential of solar energy as a reliable power source.
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