Thermal performance assessment of the dynamic rotating latent-energy-storage envelope (DRLESE) during winter

Abstract

The conventional latent-energy-storage-envelope relies solely on the phase changes of Phase-Change Materials (PCMs) to regulate heat transfer, thereby lacking the effectiveness in active indoor heating or cooling. To overcome this technical barrier, the Dynamic Rotating Latent-Energy-Storage Envelope (DRLESE) was proposed to achieve active indoor heating by rotating the PCM layer. The DRLESE can absorb solar gain efficiently and release thermal energy directly indoors. In order to assess the application efficiency of DRLESE, two high-insulation walls incorporating a PCM layer were constructed, with the static one serving as a reference. A numerical heat transfer method was employed and verified an experiment. The numerical results demonstrated that compared to the Static Latent-Energy-Storage Envelope (SLESE), the DRLESE system can release stored thermal energy directly indoors by rotating the PCM layer near the interior, resulting in a released heat flow ranging from −22W/m2 to −80W/m2. However, due to differences in the heat release environment, DRLESE exhibits a lower thermal release rate leading to a reduction of up to 33.8 %∼34.8 % in its thermal release and storage capacity. The DRLESE not only limits thermal dissipation from outdoors but also provides indoor heating, while it provides the thermal energy per unit area to minimize the cooling load of the SLESE with 10.39 m2∼14.10 m2. Finally, it is identified on the present deficiencies and limitations for further the comprehensive investigations.