Thermal Energy storage of phase change material

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the numerical simulation of melting phase change materials (PCM) within a rectangular enclosure, focusing on potential project scopes and ideas for enhancing heat transfer, such as incorporating fins. Participants share personal experiences, project suggestions, and resources for literature review.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Homework-related
  • Historical

Main Points Raised

  • A participant seeks suggestions for defining the scope of a project involving PCM melting simulations using CFD software, specifically Gambit and Fluent.
  • Another participant recommends using university-provided Fluent tutorials that address similar PCM problems and suggests fins as a viable enhancement for heat transfer.
  • A participant references a past project related to PCM heat exchangers for solar CSP plants, providing a link to relevant documentation.
  • One participant shares their experience with a similar project from the late 1970s, discussing the importance of boundary conditions and inputs in modeling, and suggests innovative heating methods.
  • A later reply humorously implies that the original poster may have already resolved their project issue, given the time elapsed since their inquiry.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express various ideas and suggestions without reaching a consensus on the best approach or scope for the project. Multiple viewpoints and historical references are presented, indicating a range of experiences and opinions.

Contextual Notes

Some discussions involve assumptions about software capabilities and project parameters, such as the limitation of using only one fluid in simulations. The historical context of PCM applications is also mentioned but remains unresolved in terms of current applicability.

Who May Find This Useful

Students and professionals interested in thermal energy storage, phase change materials, numerical simulation techniques, and heat transfer enhancement methods may find this discussion relevant.

anthro
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Hi all you braniacs out there... I am a final year mechanical engineering student. I need to do a final year project on numerical simulation on melting of phase change material.. I will be required to make use of gambit and fluent CFD software of which i have no idea about... However currently, my main concern is to define a scope of the study which i intend to do.. It has got to do with the above topic... I will most probably require to do a study, modelling and numerical simulation on melting of PCM in a rectangular enclosure.

However, i am free to define a scope, such as maybe putting fins on the enclosure to increase the heat transfer rate and so on... I am quite void of ideas... Does anyone have any suggestions?? I am open to any ideas..

plus any recommendation for books that i could pick to do some literature review??

Thanks for letting me waste your time...
 
Last edited:
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WEll other than ur heat transfer book u can ask ur university for Fluent tutorials provided by the manufacturer of the program they have EXACTLY the same problem ur trying to solve, a tutorial involving phase change :). As for ideas i think fins is a good idea, other ideas would be difficult to solve in FLuent especially that u can't use 2 different fluids.
 
Anthro, there was a project in european 6th Marco Program called Distor that was to design, build and test a PCM heat exchanger for solar CSP plants (I was involved). Find a web related:
http://www.iberdrolaingenieria.com/ibding/contenido/documentacion/14.pdf
good luck
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Oh like wow man deja vu to the max dude

I worked on a similar project in 1979/80!

It was a Jimmy Carter solar energy technology development grant looking at phase change materials in a hybrid (active & passive) solar energy device.

It was canceled by Reagan along with all the other solar research but I've always thought PCMs would one day find their application.

Anyone can do a finite element model these days. It's the boundary conditions, the inputs to your model that make things interesting. Look to your inputs for ideas for making this a useful project. Maybe two modes of heating, partially submerged with air on top or something. Invent something.

OIC a post indicating only one fluid at a time. But what if you used superposition and summed two simulations? The prof might like that.

The thing we were working on was a window replacement with the PCM tubes in the middle, and louvers on each side, reconfigured at dawn and dusk. Gather the heat of the sun in the day, heat the house at night. Maybe something like that.

Can you share any specs, i.e. size, form factor, temps, heat capacities, etc?
 
Considering he was a final year engineering student 3 years ago, I think he probably already solved the problem.
 

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