Analysis on the effect of novel topological optimization fin structures considering eccentricity on the heat storage and release characteristics of shell and tube phase change heat accumulator

Abstract

Shell and tube phase change accumulator (STPCA), as a common type of heat accumulator, can effectively solve the mismatching of time and space in solar thermal power generation by using phase change storage technology. However, the low thermal conductivity of phase change materials (PCMs) reduces its heat storage and release rate. To achieve a rapid latent heat energy storage and release, it needs to carefully modify the structure of STPCA. In the existing literature, insufficient attention has been given to simultaneously addressing the heat storage and release processes, while there is a scarcity of topological optimization methods employed in fin design. On one hand, it is difficult to find the optimal structure. On the other hand, the optimized structure is suitable for melting process but may not be suitable for solidification process. In this contribution, we initially integrated topological optimization and eccentricity to derive fin structures suitable for respective melting and solidification processes. Then, we compared and analyzed the effects of eccentricity and objective function on melting and solidification processes. Finally, we summarized the topology optimization process, objective function and eccentricity suitable for fast heat storage and release. The findings indicated that as the eccentricity increases, the rate of heat storage and release initially rises before subsequently declining. In this work, it is found that an eccentricity of 5 mm is the best. From the whole heat storage and release cycle, when the eccentricity is 5 mm, the objective function is the minimum temperature difference and the topological optimization fin structure calculated during solidification process shows the best heat storage and release performance. Compared with the topology optimization structure without eccentricity, the heat storage speed is increased by 36.43 %, and the heat release speed is increased by 15.53 %. The design law of the STPCA based on combined with the eccentricity influence and topology optimization method is summarized to help improve its heat storage and release performance.