Review on optimization of phase change parameters in phase change material building envelopes

Abstract

The addition of phase change material (PCM) to the building envelope can improve the indoor thermal comfort and save building energy consumption. In the application of PCM envelope, the selection of PCM which is the key problem that must be solved is directly related to its performance. However, the selection of PCM can be considered as an optimization problem. For an optimization problem, parameters, goals, methods and models are four necessary parts. Many researchers have reviewed the selection of the PCM. However, most of them only reviewed one or two parts of the optimization problem. In this paper, four parts were all reviewed. First, the parameters that affect the performance of PCM in the building envelop were reviewed in detail, such as phase-change temperature, latent heat, thickness, thermal conductivity, etc. Subsequently, different optimization goals of thermal comfort, energy saving and other influencing factors (mechanical/economic/environmental) for passive and active buildings were summarized. Thirdly, optimization methods based on simulation and inverse problems were reviewed and compared. Finally, a report was made on the heat transfer models used in the optimization process of the PCM building envelope. This paper can give a systematic understanding of the selection of the PCM.