Numerical studies on storage process of phase change material with metal foam for prefabricated cabin energy system

Abstract

Latent heat thermal energy storage (LHTES) is a promising technology in prefabricated cabin energy system. This paper proposed a new thermal energy storage (TES) system with phase-change material (PCM) embedded in metal foam and heating source is steam or hot water. The mathematical formulas and numerical models of representative units are studied. The effect of natural convection is considered in the simulation of melting process. Finite volume method is used to discretize the governing equation The Forchheimer-Darcy law is used to model the porous resistance and a local thermal equilibrium model is developed. The model is firstly validated against low temperature experiments from the literature and then used to simulate the charging behaviour of LHTES system proposed by this paper. Foamed metal and fin are effective means to improve the heat transfer performance and shorten the melting time of heat storage system. In this paper, the effects of pore density, porosity, wall temperature and fin spacing on temperature change and melting rate are discussed.