Torres González, Deyaneira

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    Assessment of the impact of phase change material encapsulation geometry on rate of heat transfer
    (2021-10-27) Torres González, Deyaneira; Torres Nieves, Sheilla N.; College of Engineering; Gutíerrez, Jorge Gustavo; Quintero Aguiló, Pedro O.; Lebrón-Bosques, José R.; Department of Mechanical Engineering; Marín-Martín, Carlos
    The improvement of encapsulated phase-change materials (PCM) used for thermal energy storage or as a thermal management tool is crucial in the development of more efficient systems with applications in the renewable energy and aerospace fields, among others. The heat transfer mechanisms that encompass PCMs strongly depends on the shape of the container that encloses the PCM. This study seeks to improve the thermal performance of encapsulated PCM by finding the optimal geometry for heat transfer and heat storage capacity. Numerical simulations were performed to assess the effects of geometry on the heat transfer rate and other phenomenon. A three-dimensional computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model was developed to study PCM encapsulated in various geometries. Five cases with the same PCM material and volume were evaluated: (1) sphere, (2) cube, (3) cylinder L/D = 5, (4) cylinder L/D = 39 and (5) cylinder L/D = 71. Results show that the melting and solidification rates were faster for the cylindrical capsule with the highest L=D ratio and the energy stored and released rates were also faster for this geometry. Therefore, this geometry shows better thermal performance overall followed by the cubical capsule. Furthermore, an energy analysis that was completed during the solidification process implies that the geometrical configuration of the PCM plays an important role in the fluid dynamics inside and outside of the capsule and need to be further understood, and, hence, the surface area of the capsule and volume of the PCM are not sufficient selection criteria to design encapsulated PCM.