Pub Date : 2026-04-01Epub Date: 2026-02-09DOI: 10.1016/j.enconman.2026.121175
Nur Amilya Zainul Asri , Mohammad Shaheer Akhtar , Seung Beop Lee
This work presents a simulation-driven, constraint-aware optimization framework for the systematic design of crystalline silicon solar cells. The proposed framework integrates automated large-scale device simulation with explicit feasibility filtering and objective-function evaluation to identify optimal design configurations within a predefined parameter space. A high-resolution simulation dataset comprising 14,641 design cases was generated using PC1D to capture performance trends with respect to key structural and electrical parameters. The optimal configuration identified through the proposed workflow achieved a conversion efficiency of 29.39% under the specified simulation conditions. To assess robustness, a subset of corresponding cases was independently evaluated using SCAPS, demonstrating consistent convergence to the same optimal design and confirming trend-level agreement across different simulation environments. It is emphasized that the proposed framework is demonstrated and validated exclusively for crystalline silicon solar cells in this study. The reported performance values represent deterministic simulation outcomes dependent on simulator assumptions, and experimental fabrication-level validation is required for practical deployment. The term “large-scale dataset” refers to a high-resolution simulation-driven design-space exploration rather than a machine-learning-scale dataset. Accordingly, the framework should be interpreted as a decision-support and trend-based optimization tool that can guide device-level design prior to fabrication, rather than as an absolute predictor of real-world performance or a turnkey solution for immediate deployment.
{"title":"Big data-driven optimization framework for solar cell design","authors":"Nur Amilya Zainul Asri , Mohammad Shaheer Akhtar , Seung Beop Lee","doi":"10.1016/j.enconman.2026.121175","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.enconman.2026.121175","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This work presents a simulation-driven, constraint-aware optimization framework for the systematic design of crystalline silicon solar cells. The proposed framework integrates automated large-scale device simulation with explicit feasibility filtering and objective-function evaluation to identify optimal design configurations within a predefined parameter space. A high-resolution simulation dataset comprising 14,641 design cases was generated using PC1D to capture performance trends with respect to key structural and electrical parameters. The optimal configuration identified through the proposed workflow achieved a conversion efficiency of 29.39% under the specified simulation conditions. To assess robustness, a subset of corresponding cases was independently evaluated using SCAPS, demonstrating consistent convergence to the same optimal design and confirming trend-level agreement across different simulation environments. It is emphasized that the proposed framework is demonstrated and validated exclusively for crystalline silicon solar cells in this study. The reported performance values represent deterministic simulation outcomes dependent on simulator assumptions, and experimental fabrication-level validation is required for practical deployment. The term “large-scale dataset” refers to a high-resolution simulation-driven design-space exploration rather than a machine-learning-scale dataset. Accordingly, the framework should be interpreted as a decision-support and trend-based optimization tool that can guide device-level design prior to fabrication, rather than as an absolute predictor of real-world performance or a turnkey solution for immediate deployment.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11664,"journal":{"name":"Energy Conversion and Management","volume":"353 ","pages":"Article 121175"},"PeriodicalIF":10.9,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146146313","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-04-01Epub Date: 2026-02-10DOI: 10.1016/j.enconman.2026.121187
Yang Yu , Zhipeng Zhang , Binjian Nie , Nan He , Qicheng Chen , Zhihui Wang , Liang Yao
In concentrated solar thermochemical cycles, CO2 utilization enables both energy storage and release. However, the high energy consumption associated with CO2 compression has limited the overall performance of solar power generation. In this work, an energy storage system coupling thermochemical and electrochemical cycles is proposed. This system constructs a “heat storage − electricity storage − electricity release − heat release” closed-loop path for the multi-functional utilization of CO2, achieving efficient and low-cost green power production. Energy analysis showed that the thermoelectric cycle coupling enabled the thermochemical subsystem to achieve a round-trip efficiency of 37.78 %, which represented a relative increase of 9.54 % compared to the conventional thermochemical system. Furthermore, the peak round-trip efficiency of the electrochemical subsystem is 74.70 %. The hybrid system achieved a maximum round-trip efficiency of 52.28%. Exergy analysis revealed that the thermochemical subsystem achieved an exergy efficiency of 41.55 %. The hybrid system achieved an exergy efficiency of 53.47%, with a relative increase of 28.69 %. Economic analysis showed that the hybrid system achieved the levelized cost of 94.55 $/MWh, representing a reduction of 40.42 % compared to the conventional thermochemical storage system. Therefore, this hybrid system has great potential for the multi-functional utilization of CO2.
{"title":"Constructing a novel closed-loop and efficient pathway for multi-functional CO2 utilization in concentrated solar power systems","authors":"Yang Yu , Zhipeng Zhang , Binjian Nie , Nan He , Qicheng Chen , Zhihui Wang , Liang Yao","doi":"10.1016/j.enconman.2026.121187","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.enconman.2026.121187","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In concentrated solar thermochemical cycles, CO<sub>2</sub> utilization enables both energy storage and release. However, the high energy consumption associated with CO<sub>2</sub> compression has limited the overall performance of solar power generation. In this work, an energy storage system coupling thermochemical and electrochemical cycles is proposed. This system constructs a “heat storage − electricity storage − electricity release − heat release” closed-loop path for the multi-functional utilization of CO<sub>2</sub>, achieving efficient and low-cost green power production. Energy analysis showed that the thermoelectric cycle coupling enabled the thermochemical subsystem to achieve a round-trip efficiency of 37.78 %, which represented a relative increase of 9.54 % compared to the conventional thermochemical system. Furthermore, the peak round-trip efficiency of the electrochemical subsystem is 74.70 %. The hybrid system achieved a maximum round-trip efficiency of 52.28%. Exergy analysis revealed that the thermochemical subsystem achieved an exergy efficiency of 41.55 %. The hybrid system achieved an exergy efficiency of 53.47%, with a relative increase of 28.69 %. Economic analysis showed that the hybrid system achieved the levelized cost of 94.55 $/MWh, representing a reduction of 40.42 % compared to the conventional thermochemical storage system. Therefore, this hybrid system has great potential for the multi-functional utilization of CO<sub>2</sub>.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11664,"journal":{"name":"Energy Conversion and Management","volume":"353 ","pages":"Article 121187"},"PeriodicalIF":10.9,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146146460","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-04-01Epub Date: 2026-02-04DOI: 10.1016/j.enconman.2026.121154
César Gracia-Monforte , Alejandro Lete , Frédéric Marias , Javier Ábrego , Jesús Arauzo
This work presents the methodology and results of the energy, exergy, and mass balances of a fixed-bed downdraft biomass pyrolysis pilot plant. The analysis covers different operating modes: pyrolysis without energy recovery, with energy recovery from products, and with combustion of non-condensable gases including exhaust-gas heat recovery. The proposed framework enables consistent comparison of energy and exergy performance under varying process configurations. Experimental results show that the external heat demand of the pyrolysis process strongly depends on the energy recovery strategy. When products are cooled to the reference state, the required heat input is approximately 1.3 MJ/kg, increasing to about 3 MJ/kg when products leave at the pyrolysis temperature. The combustion of process gases significantly reduces this demand, while integrating exhaust-gas heat recovery leads to quasi-autothermal operation. Exergy analysis reveals that gas combustion and heat recovery lower exergy efficiency due to the conversion of high-quality pyrogases into exhaust gases. Nevertheless, the methodology developed allows quantifying these trade-offs and provides a comprehensive tool to evaluate process integration strategies in biomass pyrolysis systems aimed at improved thermal performance and sustainability.
{"title":"Energy, exergy and mass balances of a biomass pyrolysis pilot plant","authors":"César Gracia-Monforte , Alejandro Lete , Frédéric Marias , Javier Ábrego , Jesús Arauzo","doi":"10.1016/j.enconman.2026.121154","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.enconman.2026.121154","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This work presents the methodology and results of the energy, exergy, and mass balances of a fixed-bed downdraft biomass pyrolysis pilot plant. The analysis covers different operating modes: pyrolysis without energy recovery, with energy recovery from products, and with combustion of non-condensable gases including exhaust-gas heat recovery. The proposed framework enables consistent comparison of energy and exergy performance under varying process configurations. Experimental results show that the external heat demand of the pyrolysis process strongly depends on the energy recovery strategy. When products are cooled to the reference state, the required heat input is approximately 1.3 MJ/kg, increasing to about 3 MJ/kg when products leave at the pyrolysis temperature. The combustion of process gases significantly reduces this demand, while integrating exhaust-gas heat recovery leads to quasi-autothermal operation. Exergy analysis reveals that gas combustion and heat recovery lower exergy efficiency due to the conversion of high-quality pyrogases into exhaust gases. Nevertheless, the methodology developed allows quantifying these trade-offs and provides a comprehensive tool to evaluate process integration strategies in biomass pyrolysis systems aimed at improved thermal performance and sustainability.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11664,"journal":{"name":"Energy Conversion and Management","volume":"353 ","pages":"Article 121154"},"PeriodicalIF":10.9,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146116470","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-04-01Epub Date: 2026-02-07DOI: 10.1016/j.enconman.2026.121163
Qingyu Yang , Tao Yang , Wenqiang Zhang , Jun Shen
Phase change cold storage technology has attracted significant interest due to its high energy density and stable temperature regulation, offering promising prospects for renewable energy utilization and thermal management. However, under practical conditions, cold sources are often distributed unevenly, and the influence of this non-uniformity on freezing behavior and system performance remains insufficiently understood. This study integrates experimental measurements and numerical simulations to investigate the effect of non-uniform cold source configurations on the water–ice phase change process. A phase change heat transfer model is developed using ANSYS to examine the phase interface evolution, temperature distribution, solidification behavior, and cold energy storage performance under five representative cold source arrangements. Experimental measurements demonstrate good agreement with the numerical simulations, thereby validating the model. The results indicate that the configuration of the cold source significantly affects temperature uniformity, freezing dynamics, and energy storage efficiency. The fully covered uniform cold source configuration (Case 1) achieved the fastest freezing and highest storage rate. In contrast, a concentrated and uneven layout (Case 2) causes a 33.12% reduction in storage rate and a 52.80% increase in freeing time, showing the least effective performance. A moderately spaced, dispersed configuration (Case 3) improved heat transfer and enhanced storage efficiency when cold source resources were limited. This work emphasizes that the uniformity, continuity, spacing, and positioning of cold sources to the storage volume are critical factors affecting the system performance. These insights provide practical guidance for the development of more efficient thermal storage devices.
{"title":"Experimental and numerical investigations of water–ice phase change under non-uniform cold source configurations","authors":"Qingyu Yang , Tao Yang , Wenqiang Zhang , Jun Shen","doi":"10.1016/j.enconman.2026.121163","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.enconman.2026.121163","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Phase change cold storage technology has attracted significant interest due to its high energy density and stable temperature regulation, offering promising prospects for renewable energy utilization and thermal management. However, under practical conditions, cold sources are often distributed unevenly, and the influence of this non-uniformity on freezing behavior and system performance remains insufficiently understood. This study integrates experimental measurements and numerical simulations to investigate the effect of non-uniform cold source configurations on the water–ice phase change process. A phase change heat transfer model is developed using ANSYS to examine the phase interface evolution, temperature distribution, solidification behavior, and cold energy storage performance under five representative cold source arrangements. Experimental measurements demonstrate good agreement with the numerical simulations, thereby validating the model. The results indicate that the configuration of the cold source significantly affects temperature uniformity, freezing dynamics, and energy storage efficiency. The fully covered uniform cold source configuration (Case 1) achieved the fastest freezing and highest storage rate. In contrast, a concentrated and uneven layout (Case 2) causes a 33.12% reduction in storage rate and a 52.80% increase in freeing time, showing the least effective performance. A moderately spaced, dispersed configuration (Case 3) improved heat transfer and enhanced storage efficiency when cold source resources were limited. This work emphasizes that the uniformity, continuity, spacing, and positioning of cold sources to the storage volume are critical factors affecting the system performance. These insights provide practical guidance for the development of more efficient thermal storage devices.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11664,"journal":{"name":"Energy Conversion and Management","volume":"353 ","pages":"Article 121163"},"PeriodicalIF":10.9,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146134818","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-04-01Epub Date: 2026-02-12DOI: 10.1016/j.enconman.2026.121211
Dohee Kim , Jinsu Kim , Jinwoo Park
Efforts to decarbonize the steel sector primarily follow two pathways: the use of alternative low-carbon fuels (e.g., hydrogen, ammonia) for blast furnace (BF)-based ironmaking, and the adoption of electrified processes utilizing direct reduced iron in electric arc furnace-based ironmaking. In this study, synergistic process integration is proposed for hydrogen-based BF ironmaking, and its techno-economic and environmental impacts are assessed. Turquoise hydrogen, produced via natural gas pyrolysis, is designed across four cases to examine how variations in injection temperature and hydrogen purity affect the balance among process design, economic performance, and CO2 mitigation potential. Heat supply strategies, including hydrogen purification units, are also considered. Each case is evaluated in terms of energy consumption, BF injection performance, economic feasibility, and environmental impact. The findings reveal that Case A achieved the highest energy efficiency of 60.4%, while Case D showed the lowest at 47.6%. Regarding BF performance, increasing the injection temperature of high-purity H2 improved the H2-to-coke replacement ratio from 1.10 to 1.46 kg_coke/Nm3-gas, enabling a significantly higher H2 injection rate of up to 41 kgH2/tHM. Economically, the integration proved highly competitive due to the solid carbon byproduct; Case D achieved the most favorable unit production cost (UPC) of − 0.29 US$/kg-gas, compared to 0.016 US$/kg-gas for Case A. Environmentally, Case D also demonstrated the superior sustainability profile with a net-negative CO2 emission of − 7.43 kg CO2-eq./kg-gas. Overall, the proposed integration of turquoise H2 with BF ironmaking demonstrates strong economic and environmental performance. A remaining challenge is determining the optimal degree of hydrogen purification for alternative applications within the ironmaking process.
{"title":"Process integration of turquoise hydrogen via natural gas pyrolysis for blast furnace ironmaking: techno-economic viability and CO2 mitigation","authors":"Dohee Kim , Jinsu Kim , Jinwoo Park","doi":"10.1016/j.enconman.2026.121211","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.enconman.2026.121211","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Efforts to decarbonize the steel sector primarily follow two pathways: the use of alternative low-carbon fuels (e.g., hydrogen, ammonia) for blast furnace (BF)-based ironmaking, and the adoption of electrified processes utilizing direct reduced iron in electric arc furnace-based ironmaking. In this study, synergistic process integration is proposed for hydrogen-based BF ironmaking, and its techno-economic and environmental impacts are assessed. Turquoise hydrogen, produced via natural gas pyrolysis, is designed across four cases to examine how variations in injection temperature and hydrogen purity affect the balance among process design, economic performance, and CO<sub>2</sub> mitigation potential. Heat supply strategies, including hydrogen purification units, are also considered. Each case is evaluated in terms of energy consumption, BF injection performance, economic feasibility, and environmental impact. The findings reveal that Case A achieved the highest energy efficiency of 60.4%, while Case D showed the lowest at 47.6%. Regarding BF performance, increasing the injection temperature of high-purity H<sub>2</sub> improved the H<sub>2</sub>-to-coke replacement ratio from 1.10 to 1.46 kg_coke/Nm<sup>3</sup>-gas, enabling a significantly higher H<sub>2</sub> injection rate of up to 41 kg<sub>H2</sub>/tHM. Economically, the integration proved highly competitive due to the solid carbon byproduct; Case D achieved the most favorable unit production cost (UPC) of − 0.29 US$/kg-gas, compared to 0.016 US$/kg-gas for Case A. Environmentally, Case D also demonstrated the superior sustainability profile with a net-negative CO<sub>2</sub> emission of − 7.43 kg CO<sub>2</sub>-eq./kg-gas. Overall, the proposed integration of turquoise H<sub>2</sub> with BF ironmaking demonstrates strong economic and environmental performance. A remaining challenge is determining the optimal degree of hydrogen purification for alternative applications within the ironmaking process.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11664,"journal":{"name":"Energy Conversion and Management","volume":"353 ","pages":"Article 121211"},"PeriodicalIF":10.9,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146160948","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-04-01Epub Date: 2026-02-12DOI: 10.1016/j.enconman.2026.121184
Fayu Guo , Lili Dong , Wan Sun , Bo Su , Guanggui Cheng , Tong Guo
This study proposes a novel fork-shaped piezoelectric galloping-based energy harvester featuring multi-modal vibration characteristics, which can adaptively switch between the first two vibration modes in response to variations in incoming wind velocity. The side beams of the fork-shaped structure are specially connected to the central beam through a connecting plate, enabling independent motion under transverse aerodynamic loads. A distributed-parameter aero-electro-mechanical coupled model, taking into account the rotational motion of the bluff bodies, is established based on the extended Hamilton’s principle and quasi-steady hypothesis. Systematic analysis of in-phase and out-of-phase modal characteristics via the theoretical model reveals that the proposed structure exhibits a remarkably low critical wind velocity of 0.4 m/s. Wind tunnel experiments demonstrate that as wind velocity increases, the structure undergoes an adaptive mode transition from the first-mode-dominated to the second-mode-dominated response. Benefiting from this adaptive mode transition at high wind velocities, the proposed system achieves excellent output performance, with the overall average output power increased by 49.61% compared to an array of two galloping-based piezoelectric energy harvesters. Overall, this study provides new insights and theoretical guidance for enhancing multi-modal energy harvesting capacity over a broad wind velocity range.
{"title":"Wind velocity driven mode transition based piezoelectric energy harvesting utilizing fork-shaped configuration","authors":"Fayu Guo , Lili Dong , Wan Sun , Bo Su , Guanggui Cheng , Tong Guo","doi":"10.1016/j.enconman.2026.121184","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.enconman.2026.121184","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study proposes a novel fork-shaped piezoelectric galloping-based energy harvester featuring multi-modal vibration characteristics, which can adaptively switch between the first two vibration modes in response to variations in incoming wind velocity. The side beams of the fork-shaped structure are specially connected to the central beam through a connecting plate, enabling independent motion under transverse aerodynamic loads. A distributed-parameter aero-electro-mechanical coupled model, taking into account the rotational motion of the bluff bodies, is established based on the extended Hamilton’s principle and quasi-steady hypothesis. Systematic analysis of in-phase and out-of-phase modal characteristics via the theoretical model reveals that the proposed structure exhibits a remarkably low critical wind velocity of 0.4 m/s. Wind tunnel experiments demonstrate that as wind velocity increases, the structure undergoes an adaptive mode transition from the first-mode-dominated to the second-mode-dominated response. Benefiting from this adaptive mode transition at high wind velocities, the proposed system achieves excellent output performance, with the overall average output power increased by 49.61% compared to an array of two galloping-based piezoelectric energy harvesters. Overall, this study provides new insights and theoretical guidance for enhancing multi-modal energy harvesting capacity over a broad wind velocity range.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11664,"journal":{"name":"Energy Conversion and Management","volume":"353 ","pages":"Article 121184"},"PeriodicalIF":10.9,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146160952","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-04-01Epub Date: 2026-02-11DOI: 10.1016/j.enconman.2026.121196
Liuyang Xu , Linhan Yu , Yumin Wang , Heyuan Zhang , Wenyun Qiao , Hu He , Ruiyang Qu , Xuesen Du
Metal hydride hydrogen storage offers a safe, compact solution for solid-state hydrogen storage but is fundamentally limited by the poor thermal conductivity of the storage alloys, which severely restricts system reaction kinetics. To overcome this bottleneck, this study developed an optimized reactor geometry through integrated kinetics experimentation and multiphysics simulation. The absorption/desorption kinetics of a Ti-Fe-Mn alloy were first characterized, with the Johnson-Mehl-Avrami-Kolmogorov (JMAK) model providing the most accurate description (R2 > 0.995). This model was then implemented in CFD simulations to evaluate a novel hub-type finned reactor design. Results indicate that compared to conventional reactors, the hub-type reactor achieves a 46.1% increase in hydrogen storage rate and a 48.8% increase in hydrogen desorption rate. Compared to finned reactors with different ring widths, the hydrogen storage rate increased by 11%, 16.4%, and 32.4%, respectively, while the hydrogen desorption rate increased by 11.8%, 18.3%, and 33.5%, respectively. Analysis of the flow and temperature fields revealed that these improvements stem from the design’s “uniform thermal partitioning,” which enhances both heat conduction and hydrogen permeation. Structural optimization identified an optimal configuration with 4 hubs and a 3 mm fin thickness. This work provides a quantitatively validated design principle and a scalable modeling framework for engineering high-performance metal hydride storage systems.
{"title":"Design and optimization of a hub-type reactor configuration based on the kinetics experiments of AB-type hydrogen storage alloys","authors":"Liuyang Xu , Linhan Yu , Yumin Wang , Heyuan Zhang , Wenyun Qiao , Hu He , Ruiyang Qu , Xuesen Du","doi":"10.1016/j.enconman.2026.121196","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.enconman.2026.121196","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Metal hydride hydrogen storage offers a safe, compact solution for solid-state hydrogen storage but is fundamentally limited by the poor thermal conductivity of the storage alloys, which severely restricts system reaction kinetics. To overcome this bottleneck, this study developed an optimized reactor geometry through integrated kinetics experimentation and multiphysics simulation. The absorption/desorption kinetics of a Ti-Fe-Mn alloy were first characterized, with the Johnson-Mehl-Avrami-Kolmogorov (JMAK) model providing the most accurate description (R<sup>2</sup> > 0.995). This model was then implemented in CFD simulations to evaluate a novel hub-type finned reactor design. Results indicate that compared to conventional reactors, the hub-type reactor achieves a 46.1% increase in hydrogen storage rate and a 48.8% increase in hydrogen desorption rate. Compared to finned reactors with different ring widths, the hydrogen storage rate increased by 11%, 16.4%, and 32.4%, respectively, while the hydrogen desorption rate increased by 11.8%, 18.3%, and 33.5%, respectively. Analysis of the flow and temperature fields revealed that these improvements stem from the design’s “uniform thermal partitioning,” which enhances both heat conduction and hydrogen permeation. Structural optimization identified an optimal configuration with 4 hubs and a 3 mm fin thickness. This work provides a quantitatively validated design principle and a scalable modeling framework for engineering high-performance metal hydride storage systems.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11664,"journal":{"name":"Energy Conversion and Management","volume":"353 ","pages":"Article 121196"},"PeriodicalIF":10.9,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146153030","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-04-01Epub Date: 2026-02-11DOI: 10.1016/j.enconman.2026.121180
M.A. Mahmoud , Sameh Nada , Shinsuke Mori , Hamdy Hassan
<div><div>Recovering energy from low-grade saturated industrial steam remains a significant thermodynamic challenge because of the dominance of latent heat, which makes conventional sensible-heat recovery systems ineffective. To make use of this underused resource, this study introduces a tri-generation system that combines an Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC), a Humidification–Dehumidification (HDH) desalination unit, and a silica-gel Adsorption Cooling System (ACS) in a fully decoupled parallel setup. The ORC acts as a thermal conditioner, capturing a large amount of latent energy from the steam source, converting it into electricity, and producing a steady 85°C subcooled condensate stream that powers the HDH and ACS units. The system is designed to operate effectively across a wide range of conditions (source temperatures from 90 to 150°C and steam qualities from 0.05 to 0.97), ensuring its versatility for various real-world applications. A hybrid MATLAB–Engineering Equation Solver (EES) computational framework was utilized to simulate the multi-physics integration. The model reliability was established through subsystem-level validation against experimental datasets, yielding a Mean Absolute Percentage Error (MAPE) of less than 7.5% for individual components. Thermodynamic analysis reveals that ORC performance is susceptible to steam quality; net power output surges from 213 kW to 1299 kW at 150°C as steam quality rises from 0.05 to 0.97. Notably, the ORC thermal efficiency remains stable across varying loads, driven by flowrate scaling rather than state-point shifts. Regarding the bottoming cycles, the HDH unit was optimized at a Mass Ratio (MR) of 2, achieving a peak Gain Output Ratio (GOR) of ≈1.8. Crucially, a unified optimal operating window was identified within the 20–30% heat allocation range, where desalination performance aligns with the ACS maximum Coefficient of Performance (COP ≈ 0.5). Consequently, the integrated framework amplifies the Energy Utilization factor (EUF) for overall system from a baseline of 7.27% (stand-alone ORC) to a peak of 53.09% at 90°C (compared to 33.2% at 150°C) under the water-prioritized Configuration A (95% HDH / 5% ACS allocations with maximum seawater flow), effectively converting the entire latent heat content into valuable outputs. The techno-economic assessment demonstrates exceptional commercial viability. At high steam quality (0.97), the Levelized Cost of Electricity (LCOE) drops to 0.0094 $/kWh at 150°C and 0.0128 $/kWh at 90°C. Additionally, Levelized Costs of Water (LCOW) and Cooling (LCOC) settle at 0.22–0.38 $/m<sup>3</sup> and 0.036 $/kWh, respectively. Profitability analysis indicates rapid returns, with payback periods falling below 2 years for high-quality steam. Finally, addressing the dynamic nature of real-world operations, a comprehensive annual optimization was conducted for New Borg El-Arab City. By defining the Total Annualized Cost (TAC) as the sole objective function, the study evalu
{"title":"Advanced tri-generation waste heat recovery system for simultaneous power, freshwater, and cooling production","authors":"M.A. Mahmoud , Sameh Nada , Shinsuke Mori , Hamdy Hassan","doi":"10.1016/j.enconman.2026.121180","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.enconman.2026.121180","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Recovering energy from low-grade saturated industrial steam remains a significant thermodynamic challenge because of the dominance of latent heat, which makes conventional sensible-heat recovery systems ineffective. To make use of this underused resource, this study introduces a tri-generation system that combines an Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC), a Humidification–Dehumidification (HDH) desalination unit, and a silica-gel Adsorption Cooling System (ACS) in a fully decoupled parallel setup. The ORC acts as a thermal conditioner, capturing a large amount of latent energy from the steam source, converting it into electricity, and producing a steady 85°C subcooled condensate stream that powers the HDH and ACS units. The system is designed to operate effectively across a wide range of conditions (source temperatures from 90 to 150°C and steam qualities from 0.05 to 0.97), ensuring its versatility for various real-world applications. A hybrid MATLAB–Engineering Equation Solver (EES) computational framework was utilized to simulate the multi-physics integration. The model reliability was established through subsystem-level validation against experimental datasets, yielding a Mean Absolute Percentage Error (MAPE) of less than 7.5% for individual components. Thermodynamic analysis reveals that ORC performance is susceptible to steam quality; net power output surges from 213 kW to 1299 kW at 150°C as steam quality rises from 0.05 to 0.97. Notably, the ORC thermal efficiency remains stable across varying loads, driven by flowrate scaling rather than state-point shifts. Regarding the bottoming cycles, the HDH unit was optimized at a Mass Ratio (MR) of 2, achieving a peak Gain Output Ratio (GOR) of ≈1.8. Crucially, a unified optimal operating window was identified within the 20–30% heat allocation range, where desalination performance aligns with the ACS maximum Coefficient of Performance (COP ≈ 0.5). Consequently, the integrated framework amplifies the Energy Utilization factor (EUF) for overall system from a baseline of 7.27% (stand-alone ORC) to a peak of 53.09% at 90°C (compared to 33.2% at 150°C) under the water-prioritized Configuration A (95% HDH / 5% ACS allocations with maximum seawater flow), effectively converting the entire latent heat content into valuable outputs. The techno-economic assessment demonstrates exceptional commercial viability. At high steam quality (0.97), the Levelized Cost of Electricity (LCOE) drops to 0.0094 $/kWh at 150°C and 0.0128 $/kWh at 90°C. Additionally, Levelized Costs of Water (LCOW) and Cooling (LCOC) settle at 0.22–0.38 $/m<sup>3</sup> and 0.036 $/kWh, respectively. Profitability analysis indicates rapid returns, with payback periods falling below 2 years for high-quality steam. Finally, addressing the dynamic nature of real-world operations, a comprehensive annual optimization was conducted for New Borg El-Arab City. By defining the Total Annualized Cost (TAC) as the sole objective function, the study evalu","PeriodicalId":11664,"journal":{"name":"Energy Conversion and Management","volume":"353 ","pages":"Article 121180"},"PeriodicalIF":10.9,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146153031","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-04-01Epub Date: 2026-02-10DOI: 10.1016/j.enconman.2026.121190
Luman Yang, Qian Chen
The environmental threats posed by the high volume and salt content of hypersaline wastewater necessitate effective treatment strategies to prevent untreated discharge. Traditional mechanical vapor compression (MVC) technology, while effective, is energy-intensive and costly. This study proposes a heat pump-driven evaporative crystallization (HPEC) system, which employs photovoltaic (PV) electricity to power a heat pump for evaporative crystallization processes, thus achieving zero liquid discharge. To assess the feasibility of the proposed HPEC system, thermodynamic and thermo-economic analyses are conducted to compare its performance with that of conventional MVC system. Results show that the HPEC benefits from energy-efficient cold startup using its heat pump, leading to >50% of energy saving compared to MVC. Furthermore, the incorporation of thermal energy storage in HPEC significantly reduces storage costs that would otherwise be incurred with expensive batteries. With a daily processing capacity of 800 m3, the levelized costs of water treatment for the HPEC is reduced to $5.7/m3, as compared to $6.85/m3 for MVC. The results will pave the way for cost-effective and energy-efficient hypersaline water treatment systems driven by solar energy.
{"title":"A heat pump-driven evaporative crystallization system for energy-efficient and cost-effective solar-powered hypersaline wastewater treatment","authors":"Luman Yang, Qian Chen","doi":"10.1016/j.enconman.2026.121190","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.enconman.2026.121190","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The environmental threats posed by the high volume and salt content of hypersaline wastewater necessitate effective treatment strategies to prevent untreated discharge. Traditional mechanical vapor compression (MVC) technology, while effective, is energy-intensive and costly. This study proposes a heat pump-driven evaporative crystallization (HPEC) system, which employs photovoltaic (PV) electricity to power a heat pump for evaporative crystallization processes, thus achieving zero liquid discharge. To assess the feasibility of the proposed HPEC system, thermodynamic and thermo-economic analyses are conducted to compare its performance with that of conventional MVC system. Results show that the HPEC benefits from energy-efficient cold startup using its heat pump, leading to >50% of energy saving compared to MVC. Furthermore, the incorporation of thermal energy storage in HPEC significantly reduces storage costs that would otherwise be incurred with expensive batteries. With a daily processing capacity of 800 m<sup>3</sup>, the levelized costs of water treatment for the HPEC is reduced to $5.7/m<sup>3</sup>, as compared to $6.85/m<sup>3</sup> for MVC. The results will pave the way for cost-effective and energy-efficient hypersaline water treatment systems driven by solar energy.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11664,"journal":{"name":"Energy Conversion and Management","volume":"353 ","pages":"Article 121190"},"PeriodicalIF":10.9,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146153338","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2026-04-01Epub Date: 2026-02-12DOI: 10.1016/j.enconman.2026.121194
Zeyu Shi , Zhongwei Wang , Hongyuan Ding , Zhaotong Liu , Zhimin Fu , Wenjie Li , Jingzhou Fei
In practical marine engine health management, single-source diagnostic models often fail to generalize across varying operating conditions and between simulated and measured data, limiting reliable fault diagnostic under realistic service variability. This study addresses these challenges by targeting lubrication-system fault diagnosis and proposing a multi-source domain adaptation framework for four-stroke marine diesel engines. The framework integrates a “shared-specialized collaborative” cross-domain network to balance feature generality and domain specificity, a dynamic weighted adversarial subdomain alignment mechanism based on information entropy to learn batch-level weights for source–target pairs, and a semi-supervised learning strategy with an auxiliary regularizer to stabilize transfer under limited target labels. The validation is carried out on an instrumented 8 V396 testbed at 25%, 50% and 75% load and on complementary simulated source domains. The framework achieves average diagnostic accuracies of 83.64% (pure real measured scenarios) and 82.37% (real-simulation hybrid data scenarios). These results confirm superior classification performance and cross-domain generalisation capabilities. This study provides a feasible pathway for effective multi-source data fusion and utilisation in marine diesel engine health management.
{"title":"Multi-source data fusion for marine four-stroke diesel engine fault diagnosis: An adaptive weight transfer learning framework","authors":"Zeyu Shi , Zhongwei Wang , Hongyuan Ding , Zhaotong Liu , Zhimin Fu , Wenjie Li , Jingzhou Fei","doi":"10.1016/j.enconman.2026.121194","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.enconman.2026.121194","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In practical marine engine health management, single-source diagnostic models often fail to generalize across varying operating conditions and between simulated and measured data, limiting reliable fault diagnostic under realistic service variability. This study addresses these challenges by targeting lubrication-system fault diagnosis and proposing a multi-source domain adaptation framework for four-stroke marine diesel engines. The framework integrates a “shared-specialized collaborative” cross-domain network to balance feature generality and domain specificity, a dynamic weighted adversarial subdomain alignment mechanism based on information entropy to learn batch-level weights for source–target pairs, and a semi-supervised learning strategy with an auxiliary regularizer to stabilize transfer under limited target labels. The validation is carried out on an instrumented 8 V396 testbed at 25%, 50% and 75% load and on complementary simulated source domains. The framework achieves average diagnostic accuracies of 83.64% (pure real measured scenarios) and 82.37% (real-simulation hybrid data scenarios). These results confirm superior classification performance and cross-domain generalisation capabilities. This study provides a feasible pathway for effective multi-source data fusion and utilisation in marine diesel engine health management.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":11664,"journal":{"name":"Energy Conversion and Management","volume":"353 ","pages":"Article 121194"},"PeriodicalIF":10.9,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146186587","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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