Latent energy storage study in simple and honeycomb structures filled with a phase change material

Abstract

Heat storage in wall building via phase change materials (PCMs) can be an alternative solution to problems related to high energy consumption for air conditioning. Paraffins are usually used as thermal storage materials thanks to their quality of high storage capacity and nearly constant thermal energy. The objective of this study was to compare the thermal behavior and the heat storage capacity of two aluminum panels: a simple panel and a honeycomb panel both filled with paraffin RT27. For this aim, a 3D numerical model based on the effective heat capacity method using Fluent® software was adopted to study the process of phase change.