Experimental and numerical investigation of packed-bed thermal energy storage utilizing two phase change materials (PCM) in spherical capsules

Author Identifier

Shayan Pourhemmati: https://orcid.org/0009-0007-4345-065X

Document Type

Journal Article

Publication Title

International Journal of Thermal Sciences

Volume

210

Publisher

Elsevier

School

School of Engineering

RAS ID

77156

Comments

Pourhemmati, S., Hossainpour, S., & Haeri, S. Z. (2025). Experimental and numerical investigation of packed-bed thermal energy storage utilizing two phase change materials (PCM) in spherical capsules. International Journal of Thermal Sciences, 210. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijthermalsci.2024.109605

Abstract

Thermal energy storage is an essential subsystem for periodic energy generation sources, such as solar energy, whereby rapid energy storage and recovery are key aspects of every energy storage medium. Phase change materials are desirable due to their higher storage density and slight temperature variation in thermal energy storage systems. This study aims to evaluate the thermal performance of packed-bed thermal energy storage (PBTES) by conducting an experimental study and numerical simulations. For this purpose, cylindrical storage is built as part of the experimental setup for validation purposes, where capsules containing paraffin are randomly embedded in the tank, and then integrated with a constant-temperature water tank for further assessment. Meanwhile, the numerical study has been developed towards assessment using two-phase change material (PCM) in the shell and core of spherical capsules. The obtained results indicate an average reduction of 46 % in melting time when the capsule size decreases from 75 mm to 54 mm. Additionally, using two PCMs in the spherical capsule is considered to increase the temperature difference between the melting point of the PCM and the charging temperature to compensate for the low heat transfer rate. Five cases with different volume ratios for two PCMs are compared to the base case with one PCM. The results indicate that the new model can reduce melting time by 16.38 %–45.19 % compared to the base model with a single phase.

DOI

10.1016/j.ijthermalsci.2024.109605

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