Thermal energy

About: Thermal energy is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 16803 publications have been published within this topic receiving 239157 citations.

Review on thermal energy storage with phase change materials and applications

Abstract: The use of a latent heat storage system using phase change materials (PCMs) is an effective way of storing thermal energy and has the advantages of high-energy storage density and the isothermal nature of the storage process. PCMs have been widely used in latent heat thermal-storage systems for heat pumps, solar engineering, and spacecraft thermal control applications. The uses of PCMs for heating and cooling applications for buildings have been investigated within the past decade. There are large numbers of PCMs that melt and solidify at a wide range of temperatures, making them attractive in a number of applications. This paper also summarizes the investigation and analysis of the available thermal energy storage systems incorporating PCMs for use in different applications.

Energy storage systems—Characteristics and comparisons

Abstract: Electricity generated from renewable sources, which has shown remarkable growth worldwide, can rarely provide immediate response to demand as these sources do not deliver a regular supply easily adjustable to consumption needs. Thus, the growth of this decentralized production means greater network load stability problems and requires energy storage, generally using lead batteries, as a potential solution. However, lead batteries cannot withstand high cycling rates, nor can they store large amounts of energy in a small volume. That is why other types of storage technologies are being developed and implemented. This has led to the emergence of storage as a crucial element in the management of energy from renewable sources, allowing energy to be released into the grid during peak hours when it is more valuable. The work described in this paper highlights the need to store energy in order to strengthen power networks and maintain load levels. There are various types of storage methods, some of which are already in use, while others are still in development. We have taken a look at the main characteristics of the different electricity storage techniques and their field of application (permanent or portable, long- or short-term storage, maximum power required, etc.). These characteristics will serve to make comparisons in order to determine the most appropriate technique for each type of application.

A review of materials, heat transfer and phase change problem formulation for latent heat thermal energy storage systems (LHTESS)

Abstract: This paper reviews the development of latent heat thermal energy storage systems studied detailing various phase change materials (PCMs) investigated over the last three decades, the heat transfer and enhancement techniques employed in PCMs to effectively charge and discharge latent heat energy and the formulation of the phase change problem. It also examines the geometry and configurations of PCM containers and a series of numerical and experimental tests undertaken to assess the effects of parameters such as the inlet temperature and the mass flow rate of the heat transfer fluid (HTF). It is concluded that most of the phase change problems have been carried out at temperature ranges between 0 °C and 60 °C suitable for domestic heating applications. In terms of problem formulation, the common approach has been the use of enthalpy formulation. Heat transfer in the phase change problem was previously formulated using pure conduction approach but the problem has moved to a different level of complexity with added convection in the melt being accounted for. There is no standard method (such as British Standards or EU standards) developed to test for PCMs, making it difficult for comparison to be made to assess the suitability of PCMs to particular applications. A unified platform such as British Standards, EU standards needs to be developed to ensure same or similar procedure and analysis (performance curves) to allow comparison and knowledge gained from one test to be applied to another.

Solar steam generation by heat localization

Abstract: Currently, steam generation using solar energy is based on heating bulk liquid to high temperatures. This approach requires either costly high optical concentrations leading to heat loss by the hot bulk liquid and heated surfaces or vacuum. New solar receiver concepts such as porous volumetric receivers or nanofluids have been proposed to decrease these losses. Here we report development of an approach and corresponding material structure for solar steam generation while maintaining low optical concentration and keeping the bulk liquid at low temperature with no vacuum. We achieve solar thermal efficiency up to 85% at only 10 kW m(-2). This high performance results from four structure characteristics: absorbing in the solar spectrum, thermally insulating, hydrophilic and interconnected pores. The structure concentrates thermal energy and fluid flow where needed for phase change and minimizes dissipated energy. This new structure provides a novel approach to harvesting solar energy for a broad range of phase-change applications.