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A comparative numerical analysis of concentric and hairpin heat exchanger for efficient energy storage using phase-change material

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Abstract

The use of latent heat energy storage can minimize the consumption of conventional fuels. The application of latent heat energy storage using phase-change materials (PCMs) can contribute to domestic energy demand without polluting the environment. This study is planned to provide more information to design latent heat energy storage systems for industrial and domestic applications. The study includes the comparison of the latent heat storage or melting of PCM in concentric and hairpin heat exchangers. The study also includes the effect of PCM type on the melting process. The numerical results obtained show an increase in heat transfer which is achieved by decreasing the diameter and increasing the length of the high-temperature fluid (HTF). The rate and the amount of energy stored are also found to be improved. The melting time is inversely proportional to thermal diffusivity. In this study, the thermal diffusivity is the highest for RT 50 (1.2 × 10–7 m2 s−1); hence, the melting time for RT 50 is the lowest (86 min for Stefan number 0.35). Also, the melting time is directly proportional to viscosity. For RT 35, the viscosity is the highest (0.023 kg m−1. sec), and the rate of melting is the lowest (146 min for Stefan number 0.35). The evaluated energy storage capacity of hairpin and concentric heat exchangers is 455 and 140 W, respectively. Hence, the storage capacity is 3.25 times higher for the hairpin heat exchanger compared to the concentric heat exchanger. On the other hand, phase-change materials with a sizeable latent heat value can store more energy but the rate of energy stored depends on the temperature difference between high-temperature fluid and the initial temperature of phase-change materials. Therefore, an effective energy storage system can be proposed through numerical analysis.

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Abbreviations

PCM:

Phase-change material

HEX:

Heat exchanger

LHTES:

Latent heat thermal energy storage

HTF:

High-temperature fluid

C mushy :

Mushy zone constant

SIMPLE:

Semi-implicit method for pressure-linked equations

H :

Enthalpy (kJ kg−1)

β :

Thermal expansion coefficient (1/K)

ρ :

Density (kg m−3)

γ :

Liquid fraction

v :

Velocity component in y direction (m s−1)

T s :

Solidus temperature (K)

T l :

Liquids temperature (K)

T m :

Mean melting temperature (K)

T ref :

Reference temperature (K)

T :

Temperature (K)

\({\Delta T}_{\mathrm{Dr}}\) :

Temperature difference between HTF at inlet and initial temperature of PCM

S :

Momentum source (kg m−2 s2)

k :

Thermal conductivity (W m−1 K)

L :

Latent heat of solid/liquid phase-change (kJ kg−1)

\({\mathrm{L}}_{c}\) :

Characteristic length of HEX

g :

Gravitational force (m s−2)

St:

Stefan number

Grm:

Modified Grashof number

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Acknowledgements

The authors are grateful for the financial support of the Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB) of India (file No. SPG/2021/004530).

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  1. Department of Chemical Engineering, Birla Institute of Technology, Mesra, Ranchi, India

    Pallavi Kumari & Debasree Ghosh

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Kumari, P., Ghosh, D. A comparative numerical analysis of concentric and hairpin heat exchanger for efficient energy storage using phase-change material. J Therm Anal Calorim 148, 12211–12224 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10973-023-12501-w

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