The Impact of Baffle Geometry in the PCM Heat Storage Unit on the Charging Process with High and Low Water Streams

Beata Pytlik (), Daniel Smykowski () and Piotr Szulc
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Beata Pytlik: Department of Energy Conversion Engineering, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, 50-370 Wrocław, Poland
Daniel Smykowski: Department of Energy Conversion Engineering, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, 50-370 Wrocław, Poland
Piotr Szulc: Department of Energy Conversion Engineering, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, 50-370 Wrocław, Poland

Energies, 2022, vol. 15, issue 24, 1-17

Abstract: This paper presents the effect of baffle geometry on the charging process of a low-temperature heat storage unit. Four different geometry variants were considered for this purpose. Each of them was simulated and the results were compared. The following parameters were selected as comparison criteria: the charging time of the heat storage unit, the change in the liquid and solid fractions of the phase change material, and the change in its temperature over time. The analysis showed that, independent from the heat transfer fluid velocity, the use of baffles did not significantly affect the charging time. Furthermore, the application of baffles of all studied types did not bring an essential decrease in charging time. It was found that the optimal solution was to use the simplest construction. Tuning of the HTF flow by the use of baffles is applicable to shell and tube heat exchangers; however, it adds no significant effects in the case of heat storage units of the proposed design. The abovementioned effect has been explained by the heat flux analysis, which shows that the heat transfer in the PCM is radically less intense, when comparing to the working fluid. Therefore, it is expected that enhancing the heat transfer between HTF and PCM material is possible by modifying the PCM–side design.

Keywords: phase change material; numerical modeling; heat transfer; geometry optimization (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: 2022
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