Simulation of melting and solidification process of polyethylene glycol 1500 as a PCM in rectangular, triangular, and cylindrical enclosures

Abstract

Energy storage systems are critical as the world strives to reduce its reliance on fossil fuel energy for environmental and economic reasons. Because of their large latent heat storage capacity, phase change materials (PCM) are well characterized as candidates in this respect. Material selection, operational conditions, and geometrical configurations are all important elements to consider when designing an energy storage system. The simulation study's major purpose is to assess the solidification, melting time, and heat transfer processes for triangular, rectangular, and cylindrical enclosures with polyethylene glycol 1500 as the same PCM volume and fully isothermal walls. This is a critical issue in the industry because full contact of the enclosure's walls with surrounding fluids such as air, oil, and so on is unavoidable in some industrial applications (such as heating–cooling systems and air conditioning, panels used in building walls, the automotive industry, and the textile industry). The results indicated that horizontal rectangular and triangular enclosures melted the fastest because of their sharp angles and long-flat bottom walls, which are thought to have the most influence on natural convection. The results illustrated that the quantity of solidification liquid fraction for a cylindrical is higher at a given time than for other geometries.