Eco-Friendly and Economical Solar Heater Design Using Internal Structure and Phase Change Materials

Jihu Lee, Sung-Hun Son and Kibum Kim
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Jihu Lee: Chungdae-ro 1, Seowon-gu, Cheongju-si 28644, Chungcheongbuk-do, Korea
Sung-Hun Son: Chungdae-ro 1, Seowon-gu, Cheongju-si 28644, Chungcheongbuk-do, Korea
Kibum Kim: Chungdae-ro 1, Seowon-gu, Cheongju-si 28644, Chungcheongbuk-do, Korea

Energies, 2021, vol. 14, issue 21, 1-15

Abstract: Indoor heating systems currently used are highly dependent on fossil fuels; hence, it is urgent to develop a new heating system to achieve carbon zero-emission. A solar air heater is eco-friendly because it generates nearly zero greenhouse gases. In this study, a parametric study was conducted for optimizing solar air heater design applicable to indoor heating. Installing the internal structure in the solar heater changes the interior flow characteristic, resulting in the air temperature increased by about 14.2 K on average compared to the heater without the internal structure. An additional case study was carried out to optimize the ideal quantity of phase change materials (PCM) in terms of mass fraction and heat capacity for various operating conditions. An excessive amount of PCM (e.g., 66% of the storage space filled with PCM) deteriorates the performance of the air heater unless the entire PCM could be melted during the daytime. After heating, the air temperature was maintained the longest when only 33% of the internal space was filled with PCM. The solar air heater can fully replace or partly assist a conventional heater for indoor heating, and it could reduce approximately 0.6 tCO 2 per year.

Keywords: phase change materials; solar air heater; carbon dioxide; simulation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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