Numerical study on thermal energy storage tube filled by metal foam with gradient porosities

International Conference on Sustainable Energy and Green Technology 2018

能源学;生态环境科学

Wei, Pan^1 ; Cheng, Haonan^1 ; Liu, Weiyi^1 ; Congfu, Ma^1 ; Hailong, Li^2 ; Yang, Xiaohu^1 ; Jin, Liwen^1

Institute of the Building Environment and Sustainability Technology, School of Human Settlements and Civil Engineering, Xi'An Jiaotong University, Xi'an

710049, China^1

School of Sustainable Development of Society and Technology, Malardalen University, Vasteras

721 23, Sweden^2

关键词: Melting fraction;    Open-cell metal foams;    Peak load shifting;    Phase change heat transfer;    Shell and tube heat exchangers;    Shell-and-tube;    Thermal Performance;    Transient melting;   

Others  :  https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1755-1315/268/1/012163/pdf
DOI  :  10.1088/1755-1315/268/1/012163

学科分类：环境科学（综合）

来源: IOP

【 摘 要 】

Thermal energy storage has attracted more and more attentions due mainly to its ability of peak load shifting. Shell-and-tube configuration is a typical heat exchanger for thermal energy storage. To enhance phase change heat transfer, open-cell metal foam has been involved in various kinds of shell-and-tube heat exchangers. To further improve the overall thermal performance of a shell-and-tube heat exchanger, metal foams with gradient porosities were inserted into the shell side. Positive and negative gradients in porosity were studied for comparison. Numerical model was developed based on the finite volume method and three sets of numerical simulations were performed. Transient melting front and melting fraction were illustrated for comparison. Results demonstrated that the positive gradient in porosity outperformed the other two kinds of configurations, resulting in a 17.5% reduction in full melting time.