Enhancing the efficiency of latent heat thermal energy storage units with twisted fin induced natural convection

IF 4.9 2区工程技术 Q1 ENGINEERING, MECHANICAL International Journal of Thermal Sciences Pub Date : 2025-03-10 DOI:10.1016/j.ijthermalsci.2025.109842

Peng Ding, Qiangqiang Ji, Yuxiang Zou

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Abstract

This study presents the design of a novel twisted fin structure aimed at enhancing natural convection to examine its effects on phase change material (PCM) melting in a shell-and-tube thermal storage system. Numerical simulations are employed to assess the performance of the latent thermal energy storage system with twisted fins, utilizing the enthalpy-porosity method. Two key factors are analyzed: the twist angle of the fins and the orientation of the thermal storage unit (vertical and horizontal). Thermal performance is evaluated by comparing the liquid fraction, average temperature, and velocity distribution. This paper attempts to demonstrate the advantages of the novel structure through a more visual representation of spatial streamlines. The results indicate that in the vertical orientation, twisted fins significantly improve the melting rate of the PCM compared to annular fins by alleviating the suppression of natural convection. In the horizontal orientation, twisted fins generate strong upward convection and weaker lateral convection. A fin twist angle of 35°is found to yield the highest melting enhancement, with average heat storage rates increasing by 10.7 % in the vertical and 14.8 % in the horizontal configurations, compared to annular fins.

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来源期刊

International Journal of Thermal Sciences 工程技术-工程：机械

CiteScore

8.10

自引率

11.10%

发文量

531

审稿时长

55 days

期刊介绍： The International Journal of Thermal Sciences is a journal devoted to the publication of fundamental studies on the physics of transfer processes in general, with an emphasis on thermal aspects and also applied research on various processes, energy systems and the environment. Articles are published in English and French, and are subject to peer review. The fundamental subjects considered within the scope of the journal are: * Heat and relevant mass transfer at all scales (nano, micro and macro) and in all types of material (heterogeneous, composites, biological,...) and fluid flow * Forced, natural or mixed convection in reactive or non-reactive media * Single or multi–phase fluid flow with or without phase change * Near–and far–field radiative heat transfer * Combined modes of heat transfer in complex systems (for example, plasmas, biological, geological,...) * Multiscale modelling The applied research topics include: * Heat exchangers, heat pipes, cooling processes * Transport phenomena taking place in industrial processes (chemical, food and agricultural, metallurgical, space and aeronautical, automobile industries) * Nano–and micro–technology for energy, space, biosystems and devices * Heat transport analysis in advanced systems * Impact of energy–related processes on environment, and emerging energy systems The study of thermophysical properties of materials and fluids, thermal measurement techniques, inverse methods, and the developments of experimental methods are within the scope of the International Journal of Thermal Sciences which also covers the modelling, and numerical methods applied to thermal transfer.