Using solar energy and phase change materials to supply energy to a building to reduce environmental pollution

Abstract

In this paper, a small building with a Trombe wall with a blade made of phase change material is simulated. This numerical study was performed by changing the stoutness of the blades in the range of 5–25 cm. This building has also been compared to a similar building without a Trombe wall in terms of fuel consumption and CO2 production. This evaluation is conducted in a frigid climate during several months of the year. The Energy Plus program is utilized to calculate the needed heat and fuel load, while the COMSOL software is used to solve the PCM melting front. The findings of this investigation demonstrated that using bigger blades leads in a higher nighttime wall temperature and longer wall function. The use of a 25 cm blade leaves more molten PCM at different times so that the use of this blade stoutness has caused the molten PCM to still be on the wall for more than 8 h. The effect of Trombe wall on reducing fuel consumption has been greater in the hot months of the year. The highest CO2 production occurred in the cold months of the year. The use of a Trombe wall has reduced CO2 production. This decrease was greater in the warmer months of the year.