Abstract
Nowadays, buildings sector contributes to climate change by consuming a considerable amount of energy to afford thermal comfort for occupants. Passive cooling techniques are a promising solution to increase the thermal inertia of building envelopes, and reduce temperature fluctuations. The phase change materials, known as PCM, can be efficiently employed to this purpose, because of their high energy storage density. Among the various existing solutions, the present study is dedicated to solid-liquid phase change materials. Temperature evolution (according to their defined temperature range) induces the chemical change of the material and its state. For building applications, the chemical transition can be accomplished from liquid to solid (solidification) and from solid to liquid (melting). In fact, this paper presents a comparative thermal analysis of several test rooms with and without phase change materials embedded in a composite wallboard in different climates. The used PCM consist in a flexible sheet of 5 mm thickness (Energain, manufactured by the company DuPont de Nemours). The main properties of such a commercial solution have been delivered by the manufacturer and from analyses. The room model was validated using laboratory instrumentations and measurements of a test room in four cities: Lyon; Reading and Casablanca. Results indicate that this phase change material board can absorb heat gains and also reduce the indoor air temperature fluctuations during daytime. The aim of the study is to show the benefits of this layer with phase change material and compare it in different climatic zones.
Highlights
IntroductionInterest in energy consumption is increasing steadily. The building sector is responsible for causing one part of global CO2 emissions
In recent years, interest in energy consumption is increasing steadily
That is why it’s necessary to reduce this consumption and try to improve the energy efficiency. Many researchers focused their studies on thermal energy storage (TES) methods, which it can be classified as sensible, thermochemical and latent heat energy storage
Summary
Interest in energy consumption is increasing steadily. The building sector is responsible for causing one part of global CO2 emissions. Many researchers focused their studies on thermal energy storage (TES) methods, which it can be classified as sensible, thermochemical and latent heat energy storage. These systems can provide better energy efficiency and low carbon footprint. Known as PCM, represent one of these methods that use latent heat energy storage (LHTES). These materials can be directly integrated in the envelope of a building. These materials can be immersed in the wall or in combination with a mixture of other wall panels, for example in concrete [1, 2, 3] or gypsum [4, 5, 6]
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