Author
Frank Bruno
Other affiliations: University of South Africa, Australian National University
Bio: Frank Bruno is an academic researcher from University of South Australia. The author has contributed to research in topics: Thermal energy storage & Phase-change material. The author has an hindex of 38, co-authored 151 publications receiving 4927 citations. Previous affiliations of Frank Bruno include University of South Africa & Australian National University.
Papers published on a yearly basis
Papers
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TL;DR: In this article, the authors provide a comprehensive summary of concentrating solar power (CSP) plants both in operation and under construction, covering the available technologies for the receiver, thermal storage, power block and heat transfer fluid.
Abstract: A concentrating solar power (CSP) system converts sunlight into a heat source which can be used to drive a conventional power plant. Thermal energy storage (TES) improves the dispatchability of a CSP plant. Heat can be stored in either sensible, latent or thermochemical storage. Commercial deployment of CSP systems have been achieved in recent years with the two-tank sensible storage system using molten salt as the storage medium. Considerable research effort has been conducted to improve the efficiency of the CSP system and make the cost of electricity comparable to that of the conventional fossil-fuel power plant. This paper provides a comprehensive summary of CSP plants both in operation and under construction. It covers the available technologies for the receiver, thermal storage, power block and heat transfer fluid. This paper also reviews developments in high temperature TES over the past decade with a focus on sensible and latent heat storage. High temperature corrosion and economic aspects of these systems are also discussed.
672 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors reviewed concentrated solar thermal power plants that are currently operating and under construction and provided the necessary information for further research in the development of cost-effective high temperature phase change thermal storage systems.
Abstract: Designing a cost-effective phase change thermal storage system involves two challenging aspects: one is to select a suitable storage material and the other is to increase the heat transfer between the storage material and the heat transfer fluid as the performance of the system is limited by the poor thermal conductivity of the latent heat storage material. When used for storing energy in concentrated solar thermal power plants, the solar field operation temperature will determine the PCM melting temperature selection. This paper reviews concentrated solar thermal power plants that are currently operating and under construction. It also reviews phase change materials with melting temperatures above 300 °C, which potentially can be used as energy storage media in these plants. In addition, various techniques employed to enhance the thermal performance of high temperature phase change thermal storage systems have been reviewed and discussed. This review aims to provide the necessary information for further research in the development of cost-effective high temperature phase change thermal storage systems.
669 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors investigated the dynamic thermal behavior of phase change material (PCM) melting in a rectangular enclosure at various inclination angles and found that the inclination has a significant effect on the formation of natural convection currents and consequently on the heat transfer rate and melting time of the PCM.
236 citations
TL;DR: A detailed review of shell materials that have the potential to be used for high temperature thermal energy storage (TES) applications, particularly in conjunction with concentrated solar power (CSP) plants, is presented in this article.
Abstract: This paper presents a detailed review of shell materials that have the potential to be used for high temperature thermal energy storage (TES) applications, particularly in conjunction with concentrated solar power (CSP) plants. This paper considers shell materials that are thermally stable at more than 300 °C and have successfully been used to encapsulate a phase change material (PCM). The current review does not consider the thermal performance of the shell material and PCM combinations that have been studied. Using these constraints several feasible materials were identified including: steel (carbon and stainless), nickel (and nickel alloy), sodium silicate, silicon dioxide, calcium carbonate and titanium dioxide. These materials have the potential to encapsulate high temperature PCMs and thus provide a suitable method of high temperature TES.
210 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the thermal performance of a phase change thermal storage unit is analyzed and discussed, based on both experimental results and a theoretical two dimensional mathematical model of the phase change material (PCM) employed to analyse the transient thermal behaviour of the storage unit during the charge and discharge periods.
196 citations
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TL;DR: In this article, the authors summarized previous works on latent thermal energy storage in building applications, covering PCMs, the impregnation methods, current building applications and their thermal performance analyses, as well as numerical simulation of buildings with PCMs.
1,569 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the state of the art of phase change materials for thermal energy storage applications is reviewed and an insight into recent efforts to develop new phase change material with enhanced performance and safety.
1,399 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a review of thermal energy storage system design methodologies and the factors to be considered at different hierarchical levels for concentrating solar power (CSP) plants is presented.
1,031 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a review of thermal energy storage (TES) for cold storage applications using solid liquid phase change materials has been carried out, focusing on different aspects: phase change material (PCM), encapsulation, heat transfer enhancement, and the effect of storage on food quality.
851 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors focus on the application of various phase change materials based on their thermophysical properties, in particular, the melting point, thermal energy storage density and thermal conductivity of the organic, inorganic and eutectic phases.
813 citations