Thermodynamic investigation of cascaded latent heat storage system based on a dynamic heat transfer model and DE algorithm

Chunwei Zhang, Xuejun Zhang, Limin Qiu and Yang Zhao

Energy, 2020, vol. 211, issue C

Abstract: In cascaded latent heat storage (CLHS) systems, the phase change processes of phase change materials (PCMs) can hardly sync due to different parameters in each stage. Hence, the thermodynamic analyses based on the static state hypothesis have limitations. In this study, a dynamic heat transfer model, which can describe the transient variation of the PCM temperature, was developed. Based on the model, six objective functions were defined to evaluate the CLHS system performance. The differential evolution (DE) algorithm was used to optimize the melting temperatures and mass of PCMs under different conditions. The results indicate that the objective functions based on the discharging process are superior to those based on the charging process, and they can be selected as optimization criteria according to specific design purposes. The switching operation can effectively improve the CLHS system performance for the unsteady heat sources that include a drop in temperature. The more extensive the temperature fluctuation range, the more significant the improvement. Furthermore, the stage number and the maximum discharging time have an important impact on the system efficiencies, and the former should be longer than the maximum charging time. This study provides theoretical guidance for practical applications of CLHS systems.

Keywords: Cascaded latent heat storage; Differential evolution algorithm; Thermodynamics; Dynamic heat transfer model; Exergy; Entransy (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:energy:v:211:y:2020:i:c:s0360544220316868

DOI: 10.1016/j.energy.2020.118578

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