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Renewable Energy 126 (2018) 137e155

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Renewable Energy
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/renene

Nano-PCM filled energy storage system for solar-thermal applications


Manar Al-Jethelah, Syeda Humaira Tasnim, Shohel Mahmud*, Animesh Dutta
School of Engineering, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: In this paper, a nano-PCM filled enclosure, which is a representative geometry of a thermal energy
Received 6 October 2017 storage (TES) system, is investigated using scale analysis, numerical simulation, and experimental
Received in revised form analysis. The enclosure is assumed to be square in shape. It is also assumed that one vertical wall of the
18 February 2018
enclosure is actively participating in absorbing energy from a source while the remaining walls are
Accepted 26 February 2018
insulated. The thermal boundary condition at the active wall is treated as ‘constant heat flux boundary
Available online 19 March 2018
condition’ in this paper. The energy absorbing material, i.e., the nano-PCM, is CuO nanoparticles
dispersed in coconut oil PCM. The influence of the volume fraction of nanoparticles (0  4  5%) is
Keywords:
Thermal energy storage
investigated on the flow and thermal fields, heat transfer rate, energy stored and liquid fraction during
Nano-PCM the melting process of nano-PCM at different values of Rayleigh number based on base PCM
Solar thermal applications (104  Ra4¼0%  108 ). The Rayleigh number is adjusted by adjusting the size of the enclosure (i.e., higher
Volume fraction Ra represents the larger enclosure). In addition to the isothermal lines and velocity vectors, heatlines are
Constant heat flux utilized to exhibit the energy flow patterns inside the enclosure during the melting process. Besides the
numerical calculations, scale analysis is presented to demonstrate the different stages of melting process
of nano-PCM. The detailed scale analysis assists to identify relationship of Nusselt number and solid-
liquid interface location as a function of well established dimensionless numbers: Stefan number (Ste),
Fourier number (Fo), and Rayleigh number (Ra4¼0% ). Finally, an experimental setup is developed to
visualize the melting process of nano-PCM inside a prototype enclosure. Experiments are conducted to
illustrate the impact of adding nanoparticles into PCM on the melting process. The numerical and
experimental results show the significant improvement of the melting process by adding nanoparticles
to PCM.
© 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction advancement of energy efficient buildings and structures, such as,


‘low energy buildings’, ‘net-zero buildings’, and ‘green buildings’.
Buildings utilize approximately 40% of the total energy Therefore, more and more emerging energy conversion and storage
consumed in North America [1]. Therefore, there is an increasing technologies exhibit potential to be incorporated into the building
need for saving energy consumed by buildings. Large portions of as an integral part of it or as retrofit to the existing building com-
building materials have relatively low thermal conductivities and ponents. Storing energy in the building components once consid-
high heat capacities. Therefore, the building structures have sig- ered as an accessorial function, however, growing number of
nificant potential to be used as temporary thermal energy storage technical articles related to building [3e5] have suggested a gradual
(TES) systems [2]. Additionally, the large surface areas of structures shift of accessorial need to a necessity towards achieving sustainable
also assist proper distributions of thermal energy. Although the or high performance building.
central idea of thermal management of a building was originated to Typically, a moderate temperature difference is required for the
reduce incoming heat during the summer months (to lower the thermal management of the building. Therefore, low grade energy
cooling load) and outgoing heat during the winter months (to sources (e.g., solar, waste heat, and district energy) can be effec-
lower the heating load), the concept of thermal management have tively utilized for thermal management of buildings [3e5]. The
been evolved over the time further with the introduction and performance of the structural component based TES system can be
improved further by incorporating phase change material (PCM)
which can be used in encapsulated form to store energy. PCM is an
* Corresponding author. attractive choice for latent heat thermal energy storage (LHTES)
E-mail address: smahmud@uoguelph.ca (S. Mahmud).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.renene.2018.02.119
0960-1481/© 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
138 M. Al-Jethelah et al. / Renewable Energy 126 (2018) 137e155

systems. Sharma et al. [23] numerically studied the effect of adding


PCMs usually refer to the materials that witness a phase tran- nanoparticles to PCM (Cu nano-particles dispersed in water PCM)
sition, within a small temperature variation, from the solid to liquid on the freezing process of the nano-PCM that filled an isosceles
(or liquid to solid) phases while absorbing (or releasing) thermal trapezoidal enclosure. The side walls of the enclosure were differ-
energy [6]. PCM is the core component of latent heat thermal en- entially heated at constant temperatures. The authors concluded
ergy storage system (LHTES). The amount of thermal energy stored that use of nanoparticles decreases the freezing time of the nano-
per unit volume in a LHTES system is typically 5 to 14 times more PCM.
than the sensible heat thermal energy storage system (SHTES) [7]. Ranjbar et al. [24] numerically investigated the solidifications of
PCMs have been widely applied to solar thermal systems [8,9], nano-PCM (Cu nano-particles dispersed in water) in a rectangular
electronic cooling [10], heating and cooling of buildings [11], and enclosure. The enclosure was differentially heated at constant
food storage [12]. However, PCM suffers from poor thermal con- temperature from the vertical walls, while the horizontal walls
ductivity which reduces the performance of TES systems during were thermally insulated. The results showed that adding nano-
energy transport [13]. Dispersing high thermal conductivity PCM improves the heat transfer rate. Also with higher volume
nanoparticles into PCM (also known as nano-PCMs) [14] is one of fractions of nanoparticles, the heat transfer rate improves more.
the methods of improving the thermal conductivity of PCM. Other Fan and Khodadadi [25] theoretically (combination of analytical
methods include use of porous matrix [15] and fin [16] which and integral methods) studied 1-D solidification problem of nano-
reduce the effective volume of PCM in a TES. PCM (CuO nano-particles dispersed in cyclohexane PCM). One
Dhaidan et al. [17] experimentally and numerically investigated vertical wall was cooled at constant temperature, while the oppo-
the melting process of nano-PCM (CuO nano-particles dispersed in site wall was thermally insulated. The authors found that the so-
n-octadecane PCM) in a square enclosure. One vertical wall of the lidification time is reduced by adding nanoparticles.
enclosure was exposed to a constant heat flux, while other walls Hosseinizadeh et al. [26] numerically studied the melting of
were thermally insulated. The authors found that utilizing nano- nano-PCM (Cu nano-particles dispersed in RT27 PCM) inside a
particles increase the thermal conductivity of the nano-PCM and spherical container. The spherical container is heated at constant
subsequently heat transfer rate increases causing faster melting. temperature. The authors found that the nanoparticles addition
The melting process improves as the nanoparticle volume fraction improves the thermal conductivity and reduces the latent heat of
increases. However, higher volume fractions of nanoparticles could the nano-PCM in comparison with base PCM.
cause agglomeration and precipitation. Ho and Gao [18] conducted Kashani et al. [27] numerically investigated the solidification of
an experimental investigation of melting of nano-PCM (Al2O3 nano- nano-PCM (Cu nano-particles dispersed in water) in a vertical wavy
particles dispersed in n-octadecane PCM) in a square enclosure enclosure. Constant temperatures were applied on the side walls to
heated from left with constant heat flux and cooled from right at heat the left wall and cool the right wall. The authors concluded
constant temperature. The observed results indicated that adding that adding nanoparticles into the PCM accelerates process of the
nanoparticles to PCM reduces the effect of natural convection heat nano-PCM.
transfer. The authors observed a reduction in the Nusselt number Numerical investigation was conducted by Kashani et al. [28] to
(defined based on the pure PCM's properties) and total energy investigate the solidification of nano-PCM (Cu nano-particles
passes through the hot wall with increasing mass fractions of nano- dispersed in n-hexadecane PCM) in a vertical enclosure. The left
particles. In a later work, Dhaidan et al. [19] experimentally and vertical wall was heated and the right vertical wall was cooled at
numerically investigated the melting of nano-PCM (CuO nano- constant temperature. The results showed that the solidification
particles dispersed in n-octadecane PCM) filled cylindrical process of the nano-PCM is accelerated when nanoparticles are
annulus under constant heat flux condition at the inner cylinder added to the base PCM.
and adiabatic condition at the outer cylinder. The reported results Several articles presented excellent reviews on the fundamental
revealed that at lower nanoparticles mass fractions the melting and applied research works on PCM. For example, excellent reviews
process is faster than at higher mass fractions. The enhancement of on the recent progresses on the melting and solidification processes
thermal conductivity due to adding nanoparticles is compensated inside different shaped cavities using PCM and nano-PCM are
with increasing the viscosity. Dhaidan et al. [20] further experi- presented by different researchers [e.g., 29e32], phase change
mentally and numerically investigated the melting of nano-PCM processes inside different shaped containers using regular PCM by
(CuO nano-particles dispersed in n-octadecane PCM) inside a hor- Dhaidan and Khodadadi [30], thermal conductivity enhancement of
izontal tube exposed to a constant heat flux boundary condition. PCM using colloidal suspension by Khodadadi et al. [31], thermo-
The authors observed that the melting process enhanced after physical properties of nano-PCM by Kibria et al. [32]. Thermal
incorporation of nanoparticles in PCM. analysis of PCM and applications to TES by Zalba et al. [33], and PCM
The solidification process of nano-PCM (Cu nano-particles materials and their applications by Farid et al. [34]. Additionally,
dispersed in water PCM) inside a differentially-heated square fundamental and applied research works on pure PCM were dis-
enclosure was numerically studied by Khodadadi and Hosseiniza- cussed in numbers of articles [35e38].
deh [21]. The authors observed increment in the rate of the released A good number of articles in existing literature are devoted to
heat throughout the freezing process. Khodadadi and Hosseiniza- understand the melting and/or solidification characteristics of wide
deh [21] referred that the increment is due to higher thermal range of pure PCMs inside different shaped geometries subjected to
conductivity and lower latent heat of fusion because of adding different initial/boundary conditions [e.g., 29, 36]. In contrast, a
nanoparticles to the PCM. limited number of articles have been devoted for nano-PCM inside
Using lattice Boltzmann method, Feng et al. [22] numerically enclosed spaces of rectangular, cylindrical, and spherical shapes
investigated the melting of nano-PCM (Cu nano-particles dispersed [e.g., 27, 29, 39, 40]. Correlations are proposed as well to determine
in water PCM) in a rectangular enclosure. The enclosure was heated melt fraction and/or Nusselt number based on experimental ana-
from the bottom at a constant temperature while the top part of the lyses [18,36] and numerical predictions. A few articles [e.g., 41]
enclosure was maintained at the melting temperature of the PCM. carried out extensive scale analyses using pure PCM inside
The numerical results indicated that the improvement in the heat enclosed space with isothermal boundary condition to determine
transfer and the melting rates besides higher stored energy due to complete functional relationships between Nusselt number, melt
the dispersion of nanoparticles in the PCM. fraction, and dimensionless time. Nevertheless, a rigorous scale
M. Al-Jethelah et al. / Renewable Energy 126 (2018) 137e155 139

analysis for the phase change processes involving nano-PCM is not a solid form of a nano-PCM. Constant heat flux thermal source is
reported in the literature, specifically for constant heat flux suddenly exposed to one of the vertical walls of the enclosure to
boundary condition, which is essential to establish functional initiate the melting process. The remaining three walls are assumed
relationship between important parameters with single correla- properly insulated by an insulation liner or surrounded by a pri-
tions covering the complex phase change processes in all regimes mary insulating material (e.g., glass fiber, polyurethane foam, and
of melting. This paper is the first one to report a detailed scale urethane rigid foam) having thermal conductivity much lower than
analysis on the melting process of nano-PCM inside an enclosed the conductivity of the PCM itself. The main focus of this paper is on
space under constant heat flux boundary condition. the unit enclosure (Fig. 1(b)). However, a detailed strength and
Kimura and Bejan [42] proposed the concept of heatlines as an structural analyses are required to perform on the entire system
effective technique to visualize the energy flow as isotherms and (Fig. 1(a)) to identify its structural integrity, which is beyond the
streamlines provide typically inadequate pictures of energy flow in scope of this paper.
convection heat transfer problems. Although the heatline tech- Once the melting process is initiated the liquid-solid interface of
nique [42] has been extensively used in the literature for single nano-PCM will advance as time increases. It is further assumed that
phase fluid, the use of this technique for melting/solidification the liquid nano-PCM is incompressible and Newtonian fluid so that
problems is extremely limited. For example, Dhar et al. [43] visu- the thermophysical properties will remain constant except the
alized the heatlines throughout the solidification of a eutectic so- density term in the vertical momentum equation. To approximate
lution. More recently, heatlines are used to describe a convection the density variation with temperature, the Boussinesq approxi-
problem involving single phase CuO-water nanofluid [44]. The mation is used.
present paper is the first one to incorporate a heat line visualization The conservation of mass, momentum, and energy can be
and analysis during melting of nano-PCM inside an enclosed space expressed by the following differential equations:
under constant heat flux boundary condition.
Furthermore, paraffin based PCMs are very popular among the vr vðruÞ vðrvÞ
Mass Conservation ðliquidÞ: þ þ ¼0 (1)
researchers. Specifically, a large number of research articles [e.g., vt vx vy
18,36] used research grade n-octadecane which is an ideal PCM
having melting temperature (z28  C) several degrees above a vu vu vu
usual room/lab temperature (22e23  C) and has excellent Momentum Conservation ðliquidÞ: þu þv
vt vx vy
temperature-time transition characteristics. Different types of " !#
2 2
nanoparticles were incorporated into n-octadecane to prepare 1 vp v u v u
¼  þ mnf þ (2)
nano-PCMs (e.g. [18]) and a moderate stability with sedimentation rnf vx vx2 vy2
was reported in the literature. The relatively inexpensive coconut
oil PCM (used in this work) is edible, having melting temperature " !
(z24  C) close to the typical room/lab temperature (22e23  C), and vv vv vv 1 vp v2 v v2 v
þu þv ¼  þ mnf þ
exhibits excellent stability and very small sedimentation for longer vt vx vy rnf vy vx2 vy2
uses once nanoparticles are incorporated (tested in the lab). #
However, the temperature-time transition characteristics of coco- þ gðrbÞnf ðT  Tm Þ ; (3)
nut oil is not as ideal/smooth as n-octadecane, which probably
makes it less used PCM in research application.
In summary, in the present article the authors first time studied vT vT vT
the melting process of edible coconut oil PCM (Tm ¼ 24  C) with Energy Conservation ðliquidÞ: þu þv
vt vx vy
CuO nanoparticles inside a rectangular enclosure with one isoflux " #
2 2
wall and remaining adiabatic walls. Properties of the nano-PCM knf v T v T
¼  þ ; (4)
were measured and compared with the modeled equations, a rcp nf vx2 vy2
maximum discrepancy of ±5% was observed for the thermal con-
ductivity of nano-PCM. Furthermore, a detailed scale analysis is " #
reported and functional relationships between melt fraction, Nus- vT knf v2 T v2 T
Energy Conservation ðsolidÞ: ¼   þ ; (5)
selt number, and dimensionless time were established for nano- vt rcp nf vx2 vy2
PCM inside rectangular enclosure with isoflux boundary condi-
tion. Heatline visualization technique was successfully applied to where u, v, t, rnf , p, mnf , g, bnf , T, Tm , knf , and cpnf are the velocity
understand the energy flow pattern inside the enclosure with component in the x-direction, velocity component in the y-direc-
nano-PCM during the melting process. tion, time, density of the nano-PCM, pressure, dynamic viscosity of
nano-PCM, gravitational acceleration, coefficient of thermal
2. Problem description, physical model, and mathematical expansion of the liquid nano-PCM, temperature, melting temper-
approximation ature of the nano-PCM, thermal conductivity of the nano-PCM, and
specific heat at constant pressure of the nano-PCM, respectively.
Active wall thermal energy storage (AW-TES) systems are typi- The thermophysical properties of the liquid and solid forms of
cally structural components of energy efficient buildings [45]. Such nano-PCM, available in Eqs. (1)e(5), can be obtained from the
components are capable of storing energy from low potential following equations [26,46]:
sources (e.g., solar and waste heat) and releasing the stored energy
when required. A schematic diagram of an AW-TES system is shown density of nano  PCM: rnf ¼ ð1  4Þrf þ 4rn ; (6)
in Fig. 1(a) which contains multiple PCM filled enclosures. In this
paper, the enclosures of the AW-TES system are assumed packed  
with nano-PCM. heat capacity of nano  PCM: rcp nf
   
One enclosure, which is further approximated by a two- ¼ ð1  4Þ rcp f þ 4 rcp n ; (7)
dimensional enclosure (Fig. 1(b)), is investigated under constant
heat flux boundary condition. The enclosure is initially occupied by
140 M. Al-Jethelah et al. / Renewable Energy 126 (2018) 137e155

Fig. 1. Schematic diagrams of the (a) active wall thermal energy storage (AW-TES) system, (b) enclosure, (c) conduction regime of melting, (d) transition (conduction þ convection)
regime of melting, (e) convection regime of melting, and (f) variable height (or shrinking solid) regime of melting.

Table 1
Thermophysical properties of CuO [47] and coconut oil.

expansion coefficient of nano  PCM: ðrbÞnf Properties (units) CuO nanoparticles [47] Coconut Oil (Measured)

Solid (15  C) Liquid (32  C)


¼ ð1  4ÞðrbÞf þ 4ðrbÞn ; (8)
r (kg/m3) 6500.0 920 914
    m (Pa.s) e e 0.0326
latent heat of nano  PCM: rhf ¼ ð1  4Þ rhf ; (9) cp (kJ/kg K) 0.540 3.75 2.01
nf f k (W/m K) 18.0 0.228 0.166
b (1/K) 8.5  106 0.7  103
hf (kJ/kg) e 103
mf Pr 394.73
viscosity of liquid nano  PCM: mnf ¼ ; (10) e
ð1  4Þ2:5 Tm ( DTm) e 24  C (±1  C)

and

thermal conductivity of nano  PCM: knf measured using KD2 Pro and TPS-500 which showed a maximum
 
kn þ 2kf  24 kf  kn discrepancy of ±5% with the modeled equation. Viscosity was
¼   kf ; (11) measured using a Rotational Viscometer and a Vibration Viscom-
kn þ 2kf þ 4 kf  kn eter which showed a maximum discrepancy of ±2.5% with the
modeled equation. The remaining properties (i.e., density, specific
In Eqs. (6)e(11), 4, rf , rn , kf , and kn the volume fraction of the heat, and heat of fusion) showed discrepancies within ±1% with the
nanoparticles, density of the base-PCM, density of the nano- modeled equations. Density was measured directly and using a
particles, thermal conductivity of the base-PCM, and thermal con- DMA 35 Density meter, while specific heat and heat of fusion were
ductivity of the nanoparticles, respectively. measured using a Differential Scanning Calorimeter. The stability of
The thermophysical properties of the coconut oil and CuO the nano-PCM was tested by periodically melting and solidifying
nanoparticles [47] are listed in Table 1 for some selected temper- some samples in a temperature controlled bath. Additionally,
atures. To validate the accuracy and uncertainty involved for using selected samples of the nano-PCM were stored and tested for
the thermophysical property models (Eqs. (6)e(11)), properties approximately six months in the lab environment and negligible
were directly measured in our facilities at the Advanced Energy sedimentation was identified.
Conversion and Control Lab, Bio-Innovation Research Lab, and Food In subsequent sections, scale analysis and numerical methods
Research Lab for a temperature range of 10e40  C. Measurements are applied to solve Eqs. (1)e(5) using the following boundary and
were executed for 4 ¼ 0e1% as well. The thermal conductivity was initial conditions:
M. Al-Jethelah et al. / Renewable Energy 126 (2018) 137e155 141

vTðx; 0; tÞ vTðx; L; tÞ
horizontal walls ðtop and bottomÞ: ¼ ¼ 0; u ¼ v ¼ 0;
vy vy
vTð0; y; tÞ 00
left wall vertical wall:  knf ¼ q_ ;
vx
vTðL; y; tÞ
right wall vertical wall ¼ 0; u ¼ v ¼ 0; (12)
vx
00 vD
interface condition: TðD; y; tÞ ¼ Tm ; q_ ¼ rnf hfnf ;
vt
and
initial condition:Tðx; y; 0Þ ¼ T0 ; u ¼ v ¼ 0

The thickness of the melted nano-PCM D can be expressed, after


In Eq. (12), L, hfnf , and D represent the height of the enclosure, re-arranging Eq. (14), as
latent heat of fusion of the nano-PCM, and position of the liquid-
solid interface from the left wall, respectively. D  LðSte  FoÞ (15)
Finite element method is used to numerically solve the gov-
erning equations (i.e., Eqs. (1)e(5)) with the initial and boundary 00
where Ste is the Stefan number (Ste ¼ q_ cpnf L=knf hfnf ) and Fo is the
conditions (Eq. (12)). A grid system of 26484 triangular and quad-
rilateral elements was formed for a time step of 0.1 s from the Fourier number, (Fo ¼ knf t=rnf cpnf L2 ), respectively. The term
beginning of the simulation until 9 s, 1 s from 10 s to 99 s, and 5 s Ste  Fo is called time group [41]. Equation (15) concludes that the
from 100 s to the end of the melting process. The solution algorithm thickness of the melted portion of nano-PCM in conduction regime
started by assuming initial values for the temperature, velocity, and is proportional to L and ðSte  FoÞ. The nanoparticle volume fraction
the pressure of the nano-PCM. Then the new values of the tem- (4) appears inside Ste  Fo through the thermophysical property
perature, velocity, and the pressure are re-calculated. If the differ- definitions. Therefore, any change in 4 directly influences the value
ence between the previous and recent values is higher than the of Ste  Fo, as well as, the interface thickness D. For example, spe-
convergence criteria, the calculations were repeated; otherwise, cific heat and the latent heat of fusion decreases with increasing 4,
the values will be confirmed. The selected convergence criteria while density and thermal conductivity decreases. However,
were 103. The detailed description of the numerical methods is reduction in the specific heat is smaller in comparison with the
available elsewhere [48] and is not repeated here. reduction in the latent heat of fusion, which leads to higher Ste.
Similar, conclusion can be achieved for Fo. In conclusion, Ste  Fo
increases with increasing 4 which leads to an increase in the
3. Scale analysis
thickness D.
Nu in conduction regime can be defined as [49]:
In this section, a scale analysis is preformed to identify appro-
priate dimensionless numbers and establish functional relation-
00
ships between these numbers to understand the melting process of q_ L
nano-PCM better. The melting process passes through four quali- Nu ¼ (16)
kf ðTh  Tm Þ
tatively predictable regimes as shown in Fig. 1(c)e(f): (i) conduc-
tion regime (Fig. 1(c)), (ii) mixed (conduction þ convection) regime 00
where q_ can be expressed as,
(Fig. 1(d)), (ii) pure convection regime (Fig. 1(e)), and (iv) shrinking
solid (or variable height) regime (Fig. 1(f)) [41]. The following

subsections detail the scale analysis for these regimes. 00 vT 
q_ ¼ knf : (17)
vx x¼0
3.1. Conduction regime
Using the scaling parameters, T  ðTh  Tm Þ, x  D, Eq. (17)
becomes
Conduction is the dominant mode of heat transfer at the
beginning of the melting process. Therefore, one can balance the
00
amount of heat transfer flux q_ through the interface with the rate 00 ðTh  Tm Þ
q  knf (18)
of enthalpy absorbed using D
Using Eqs. (15), (16) and (18) and after simplifications, the scale
00 00 dx
q_ ¼ q_ lat ¼ rnf hfnf ; (13) of Nu can be expressed as
dt
00
where q_ is the rate of the enthalpy absorbed at the interface per knf
Nu  ðSte  FoÞ1 (19)
unit area and hfnf is the latent heat of fusion of the nano-PCM. One kf
can substitute the scaling parameter x  D into Eq. (13) to obtain
As can be observed from Eq. (19), Nu decreases with advancing
00 D time in the conduction regime. Also, Eq. (19) reveals the increment
q_  rnf hfnf : (14) in Nu due to the increase in the thermal conductivity of the nano-
t
PCM.
142 M. Al-Jethelah et al. / Renewable Energy 126 (2018) 137e155

3.2. The mixed (conduction þ convection) regime Equation (27) combines the conduction and convection heat
transfer in the mixed conduction-convection regime. At the
With the advancement of time during the melting process, the beginning of the mixed conduction-convection regime, conduction
upper part of the liquid nano-PCM region starts expanding due to is the dominant mode of heat transfer. Then as time progresses, the
the appearance of convection current, while the lower portion of effect of conduction inclines and the effect of convection
the liquid nano-PCM is still dominated by conduction. As a result, strengthens. The mixed (conduction þ convection) regime ends
the liquid-solid interface of the nano-PCM is deformed. The when z  L. Eq. (25) suggests that end of the mixed regime occurs
deformation of the interface indicates ending the pure conduction at ðSte  FoÞ1 such that
regime.
Applying scaling parameters to the continuity equation (Eq. (1)), knf
ðSte  FoÞ1  Ra5 and Numin 
1 1
Ra5 (28)
x  db and y  b, one can obtain the following relationship kf

u v
 (20)
db b
Establishing a balance between the friction force and the 3.3. The convection regime
buoyancy force in the y-momentum equation and recalling that
when Pr>1 [41] (for coconut oil Pr ¼ 394.73, Table 1) for the liquid When the deformed interface touches the lower surface of the
nano-PCM, one obtains after re-arrangements enclosure, it indicates the beginning of pure convection regime. In
this stage, the convection currents occupied the whole melted
00
gðrbÞnf q_ b3 d3b nano-PCM region. The dimensionless Nusselt number in the con-
v (21) vection regime can be defined by the following equation assuming
knf mnf b3 Pr > 1
Similarly, applying the scale analysis to the energy equation in
hL
the liquid region of nano-PCM results in Nu ¼ : (29)
kf
b
v  anf (22) By using a simple energy balance, the scale for the convection
d2b heat transfer coefficient (h) can be expressed in terms of thermal
conductivity and thermal boundary layer thickness (dT ) as
Combing Eqs. (21) and (22), the thermal boundary layer thick-
ness in the upper convection region can be expressed as knf
h ; (30)
1 dT
db  bRab 5 (23)
which gives a scale for Nuin the convection regime
where Rab is the Rayleigh number based on the length scale b
00
(Rab ¼ gðrbÞnf q_ b4 =knf mnf anf ). knf 1
Nu  Ra5 (31)
At the lower part of the convection region, the conduction- kf
convection transition level scales as
Next, we focus on the average interface distance (Dav ) in the
convection regime as the interface remains as a curvature
db  D (24)
throughout this regime. The total heat transfer rate at the interface
At this level, the convection effect disappears and the conduc- is
tion effect starts. Combining Eqs. (15), (23) and (24) and knowing
00 dDav
that Rab ¼ ðb=LÞ4 Ra result in a scale for the vertical height (b) of the q_  rnf hfnf ; (32)
upper convection region dt
After using Eqs. (16), (31) and (32), the scale of the average
b  LðSte  FoÞ5 Ra (25) melted nano-PCM thickness (Dav ) becomes
1
where Ra is the Rayleigh number based on the length scale L (Ra ¼ Dav  LðSte  FoÞRa5 (33)
00
gðrbÞnf q_ L4 =knf mnf anf ).
When Dav  L, the convection regime ends. This event occurs as
In the mixed regime, the total heat transfer rate per unit length suggested by Eq. (33) at time of order
can be calculated using the convection over the height b and the
conduction over L  b as ðSte  FoÞ2  Ra5
1
(34)
ðT  Tm Þ ðT  Tm Þ
Q_ ¼ knf ðL  bÞ h þ knf b h : (26)
D db
Using Eq. (15) for the conduction region and Eq. (23) for the 3.4. The shrinking solid (or variable height) regime
convection region, a scale of Nu in the mixed regime can be
expressed as The fourth stage of melting (i.e., the shrinking solid or variable
height regime [41]) starts after the liquid-solid interface reaches
knf h i the top right corner of the enclosure, as shown in Fig. 2(d). The heat
Nu  ðSte  FoÞ1 þ ðSte  FoÞ4 Ra : (27) transfer and melting rates affect the amount of remaining solid
kf
nano-PCM. It is assumed that the cross section (lz) of the remaining
The heat transfer behavior in the liquid nano-PCM region in the solid nano-PCM takes the form of a triangle. The hypotenuse of the
mixed conduction-convection regime is revealed in Eq. (27). triangle represents the liquid-solid interface of the nano-PCM. The
M. Al-Jethelah et al. / Renewable Energy 126 (2018) 137e155 143

Fig. 2. Time evolution of flow and thermal fields for the nano-PCM (CuO nanoparticles dispersed in coconut oil PCM) at Ra4¼0% ¼ 105 and f ¼ 2% for ðSte  FoÞf¼2% ¼ (a) 0.045, (b)
0.13, (c) 0.22, (d) 0.37, (e) 0.42, and (f) 0.57.

base of the triangle l is assumed to be fixed. Therefore, the


dimensionless height of the remaining solid (z ¼ z=L) can be
5
L 1  6
calculated as z  1  Ra5 ðSte  FoÞ  ðSte  FoÞ2 (37)
l
1 L 1  The full melting stage, Eq. (37) can be written as
z5  1  Ra5 ðSte  FoÞ  ðSte  FoÞ2 (35)
l
 
ðSte  FoÞ3  ðSte  FoÞ2  Ra5
1
Equation (35) suggests that the height of the remaining solid (38)
nano-PCM deceases beyond the time of scale ðSte  FoÞ2 . If
For the shrinking solid nano-PCM regime, Nu scale can be
z=L < < 1, the melting process completes at time of order
expressed as
ðSte  FoÞ3 . Equation (35) can be written as

  l knf h 1 i23 1
ðSte  FoÞ3  ðSte  FoÞ2  Ra5
1
(36) Nu  1  Ra5 ðSte  FoÞ  ðSte  FoÞ2 Ra5 (39)
L kf

During the fourth stage of the melting process in some stages, a Equation (39) suggests that Nu drops with increasing Ra as the
similar reduction rate of l and z is assumed. In this case, the liquid-solid interface touches the right wall.
dimensionless height of the remaining solid nano-PCM z is A summary of the equations, derived from the scale analysis, is
expressed as reported in Table 2.
144 M. Al-Jethelah et al. / Renewable Energy 126 (2018) 137e155

4. Results and discussion each individual image title. Initial and boundary conditions are
given in Equation (12). The phase change material used in this
In the previous sections, the dimensionless Nusselt numbers paper has a melting point of Tm ¼ 24  C with a temperature tran-
and interface distances are identified by applying scale analysis on sition of DTm ¼ ±1  C (approximately) during melting. Therefore, a
the governing mass, momentum, and energy equations. This sec- mushy zone has appeared for approximately a 2  C temperature
tion is devoted to present the results obtained from numerical difference (i.e., 23  Ce25  C). The liquid fraction (LF) in this paper is
solutions of the governing equations. Numerical technique is calculated by applying an area integration technique over the total
applied to investigate detail transport characteristics of nano-PCM domain of the enclosure using the following temperature
(CuO nanoparticles disperse in coconut oil PCM) during the melting constraint T  ðTm þ DTm Þ. Therefore, the calculated areas will be
process inside an enclosed space. A detailed description of the zero for the elements where T < ðTm þ DTm Þ (i.e., area representing
numerical technique is presented in Mahmud and Pop [48]. solid or semi-solid) or non-zero where T  ðTm þ DTm Þ (i.e., area
Constant heat flux boundary condition is applied to the left representing liquid).
vertical wall of the enclosed space, while the remaining walls are The solid nano-PCM is assumed initially at its melting temper-
kept thermally insulated. Numerical simulation is carried out for ature (i.e., no sub-cooling) inside the enclosure. Melting process
nanoparticle volume fraction range 0%  4  4% and Rayleigh starts after a constant heat flux thermal source is applied to the left
number range 104  Ra4¼0%  108 . wall of the enclosure. Shortly after the initiation of the melting
It should be noted that two definitions of ðSte  FoÞ and Raare process, the liquid-solid interface appears, and it is parallel to the
used in the paper based on the thermophysical properties used for vertical wall of the enclosure as can be seen from Fig. 2(a) for
the definitions: ðSte  FoÞ4¼2% ¼ 0.05. Such interface indicates that conduction is
the dominant mode of heat transfer within the liquid nano-PCM
(i) ðSte  FoÞ4¼0% and Ra4¼0% are based on the thermophysical region. As time advances the liquid-solid interface starts to
properties of base-PCM (i.e., thermophysical properties deform and the liquid nano-PCM region becomes wider at its upper
when no nanoparticles are added to the PCM). part as can be seen in Fig. 2(b) for ðSte  FoÞ4¼2% ¼ 0.13. The
(ii) ðSte  FoÞ4 and Ra4 are based on the thermophysical prop- deformation of the interface at the top and the semi-straightness at
erties of nano-PCM. For example, the definition of Ra4¼2% the lower part of the liquid-solid interface reveal the existence of
includes the thermophysical properties of nano-PCM at the mixed conduction-convection regime. As energy transfer at the
4 ¼ 2% loading. left wall continued, the deformation of the liquid-solid interface
increases further as shown in Fig. 2(c). The relatively warm liquid
nano-PCM, adjacent to the hot vertical wall, moves upward direc-
tion and then it moves horizontally along the upper adiabatic wall
4.1. Progression of the melting process at Raf¼0% ¼ 105 and 4 ¼ 2%
of the enclosure. The thermal energy, carried by the hot liquid
nano-PCM, penetrates gradually into the solid nano-PCM through
The progression of the melting process of nano-PCM over the
the interface during the downward motion of the liquid nano-PCM.
time using flow and thermal fields plots at Ra4¼0% ¼ 105 and vol- Because of the thermal stratification effect, the warmest liquid
ume fraction of 2% is presented in Fig. 2(a)e(f). The flow field in the nano-PCM occupies the upper portion of the liquid nano-PCM re-
liquid nano-PCM region is represented by velocity vectors. While gion. Therefore, the interface energy transfer rate gradually de-
the thermal fields in liquid and solid regions are represented by creases towards the downwards direction along the interface.
isothermal flood-contour plots. The blue region represents solid Therefore, the melting rate is higher at the upper portion and
nano-PCM, while the colored region represents liquid nano-PCM. It gradually slows down along the downward direction of the inter-
should be noted that, a change in 4 alters the magnitudes of ther- face which results in a wider liquid region at the top of liquid nano-
mophysical properties (see Eqs. (6)e(11)) of nano-PCM. Such PCM region as shown in Fig. 2(c). As heating continued further, the
changes in the properties subsequently alter the values of Rayleigh liquid-solid interface moves until it reaches to the top right corner
numbers even the thermophysical properties of base-PCM remain of the enclosure as shown in Fig. 2(d). Beyond this point, the height
constants. It is observed that the value of Ra4¼0% reduces with of the solid nano-PCM will not remain fixed during subsequent
increasing 4. For example, Ra4¼0% ¼ 105 when 4 ¼ 0%, melting process. This last stage of melting is typically termed as
Ra4¼3% ¼ 78967 (21.03% reduction) when 4 ¼ 3%, and variable height or shrinking solid regime [41]. Fig. 2(e) reveals a
Ra4¼5% ¼ 67463 (32.54% reduction) when 4 ¼ 5%. Therefore, a case of variable height melting regime where the melting rate of
6.08% increase in the dimension of the enclosure when 4 ¼ 3% and a the remaining solid nano-PCM is higher at the top of the liquid-
10.34% increase in the dimension when 4 ¼ 5% are required to solid interface than at its bottom. At a particular time, the
maintain Ra4¼0% ¼ 105 . To handle this issue, dimension of the melting process will be entirely completed (see Fig. 2(f)) and the
enclosure is adjusted to achieve same Rayleigh number at higher remaining liquid nano-PCM will be heated up sensibly until it
values of 4. reaches to a thermal equilibrium.
Additionally, the magnitude of the liquid fraction is presented in The transient temperature variations at eleven specified

Table 2
Summary of the scale analysis equations for the four melting stages of the nano-PCM.

Melting stage Average interface distance and height Nusselt number (Nu)

Conduction limit D  LðSte  FoÞ Nu 


knf
ðSte  FoÞ1
kf
5
The mixed regime ½ðSte  FoÞ4 Ra þ ðSte  FoÞ1 
knf
b  LðSte  FoÞ Ra Nu  kf
The convection regime Dav  LðSte  FoÞRa
1
5 Nu 
knf 1
Ra5
kf
Variable height region
5 h i2 1
6 knf 1 3
1
z  1  Ll Ra5 ½ðSte  FoÞ  ðSte  FoÞ2  Nu  kf
1  Ra5 ððSte  FoÞ  ðSte  FoÞ2 Þ Ra5
M. Al-Jethelah et al. / Renewable Energy 126 (2018) 137e155 145

locations in the hot vertical wall are plotted in Fig. 3 for adjustment, volume of the enclosure increases to 3.09% and 6.97%
Ra4¼0% ¼ 105 and 4 ¼ 2%. In the same graph, the average tem- for 4 ¼ 2% and 4 ¼ 4%, respectively.
perature of the hot vertical wall is plotted as a function of time. In At the early stage of the melting process (i.e., ðSte  FoÞ4 ¼ 0.08),
the conduction regime, the magnitudes of the hot wall tempera- the appearance of the vertical liquid-solid interface indicates the
tures are same at all specified vertical locations and increase line- existence of the conduction regime of melting for three selected 4s .
arly with time as heat input continued. Gradual appearance of Temperature drops linearly from the isoflux wall to the solid-liquid
boundary layers alters this pattern in the transition regime of interface while maintaining a uniform heat transfer rate from the
melting where the linear variation in temperature with time is still top to the bottom of the enclosure. Dispersing more nanoparticles
visible however the magnitude of temperature is higher at higher has small impact on the melting process in this regime which can
locations at the hot wall. Throughout the convection regime, where be observed from the small improvement in the liquid fraction
boundary layers extend from the top wall to the bottom wall, available in Fig. 4(a). Such enhancement in the melting rate at this
insignificant variations in the hot wall temperatures with time are stage is due to the higher thermal conductivity and lower latent
observed. This trend continues in the shrinking solid regime. heat of fusion at higher 4.
Finally, temperatures at all locations at the hot wall increase line- At the middle stage of the melting process (i.e.,
arly when entire enclosure is occupied with liquid nano-PCM. ðSte  FoÞ4 ¼ 0.27) convection dominates. Appearance of boundary
layers and circulatory motion of liquid nano-PCM is clearly visible
4.2. The effect of the volume fraction (4) on melting process at for all three selected 4s . A considerable improvement in the melting
Ra4¼0% ¼ 104 process is observed at higher 4. Dispersion of more nanoparticles
increases the viscosity, density, and specific heat while reduce the
The effect of the nanoparticles volume fractions on the melting thermal diffusivity of the nano-PCM. However, increase in viscosity
process of nano-PCM inside the enclosure is presented in is comparable to the increase in thermal conductivity. For example,
adding 2% nanoparticles increase the viscosity and thermal con-
Fig. 4(a)e(c) at Ra4¼0% ¼ 104 . Three arbitrarily selected volume
ductivity by 4.9% and 5.6%, respectively. Therefore, an increase in
fractions (4¼0%, 2%, and 4%) were studied for three selected
density, thermal conductivity, and a decrease in thermal diffusivity
dimensionless times ðSte  FoÞ4 ¼ 0.08, 0.27, and 0.48. The idea
of nano-PCM enhance natural convection heat transfer during the
behind selecting these times is to cover all melting regimes. Again,
melting process of nano-PCM when melting is dominated by
velocity vectors are selected to present the flow filed inside the
convection.
liquid nano-PCM region, while isothermal floods are used to
Variable height (or shrinking solid) melting regime appears at
describe the thermal fields inside both liquid and solid nano-PCM
ðSte  FoÞ4 ¼ 0.48 for all three selected 4s . A large amount of liquid
regions. The flow and thermal fields progression with time at a
nano-PCM, having temperature over its melting point, circulates
specific volume fraction are exhibited from left to right in the
over small amount of shrinking solid nano-PCM and transfer
graph, while the impact of the volume fraction at a specific time are
thermal energy to melt it further. Dispersing more nanoparticles
exhibited from the top to bottom of the graph in Fig. 4. The physics
has considerable impact on the melting process in this regime
behind melting process and developing different melting regimes is
which can be observed from the improvement in the liquid fraction
described elaborately in previous section and will not repeated
available in Fig. 4(c).
again while describing Fig. 4. Dimension of the enclosure is
adjusted to keep Ra4¼0% ¼ 104 at all considered 4s in Fig. 4 (see
discussion in the previous section). Due to this dimension 4.3. Heatlines

The heatline visualization technique, pioneered by Kimura and


Bejan [42], is an effective way to visualize the energy flow in many
convection heat transfer problems. Because, a complete energy
flow picture is difficult to achieve directly by observing isothermal
lines, velocity vectors, and streamlines. Although the heatline
visualization technique has been successfully applied to many
convection heat transfer problems, its use in phase change heat
transfer problems is extremely limited. Therefore, authors use
heatline visualization technique in this paper to describe and clarify
further energy flow during the melting process of nano-PCM inside
the selected enclosure under isoflux boundary condition. For the
present work, heatlines are plotted using the values of heatfunction
(H) which is obtained by solving the following equation [50]:

v2 H v2 H v vT v vT
þ ¼ r nf c p uT  k nf  r nf c p vT  k nf
vx2 vy2 vy nf
vx vx nf
vy
|fflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflffl{zfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflffl} |fflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflffl{zfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflfflffl}
¼Ex ¼Ey

(40)

where Ex and Ey represent the net energy flow in the x-direction an


y-direction, respectively [50]. Note that each energy flow compo-
nent (Ex or Ey ) in Eq. (40) is composed of two fluxes: (i) conduction
energy flux (i.e., knf vT=vx or  knf vT=vy) and (ii) convection en-
Fig. 3. Transient temperature variations at eleven equidistant locations along the left ergy flux (i.e., rnf cpnf uTor rnf cpnf vT). The following boundary con-
vertical wall of the enclosure. dition [50] is applied to solve the differential equation in Eq. (40):
146 M. Al-Jethelah et al. / Renewable Energy 126 (2018) 137e155

Fig. 4. flow and thermal fields for nano-PCM at different volume fractions (f ¼ 0%, 2%, and 4%) and Ra4¼0% ¼ 104 for ðSte  FoÞf ¼ (a) 0.08, (b) 0.27, and (c) 0.48.

ensure the continuity of energy flow at the solid-liquid interface:



ZP;b vH vH
b dsb : ¼ and ðHÞliquid nanoPCM
HP;b ¼ Href;b þ En (41) b liquid nanoPCM
vn b solid nanoPCM
vn
ref;b ¼ ðHÞsolid nanoPCM

b is the surface (42)


where dsb is the differential boundary segment, n
b b
normal, and E ¼ Ex i þ Ey j is the energy flux density vector, Heatlines are presented in Fig. 5(a)e(c) for 3 selected
respectively. The symbols b, ref , and P address a value at the ðSte  FoÞ4 (¼ 0.03, 0.16, and 0.37) and 4 (¼ 0%, 2%, and 4%) at
boundary, a reference value, and a point at the particular location at constant Ra4¼0% ¼ 106. Presented results cover all four regimes of
the boundary, respectively. Following conditions are applied to melting process of the nano-PCM inside the enclosure. Again, the
M. Al-Jethelah et al. / Renewable Energy 126 (2018) 137e155 147

Fig. 5. Heatlines and thermal fields for nano-PCM for different times at Ra4¼0% ¼ 106 for three values of volume fractions (0%, 2%, and 4%) and ðSte  FoÞf¼0% ¼ 0.03, 0.16, and 0.37.

selections of ðSte  FoÞ4 , 4, and Ra4¼0% are arbitrary. At the begin- period of the melting process. Suspending metallic nanoparticles
ning of the melting process of the nano-PCM (i.e., into the PCM has small impact on the heatline pattern in the con-
ðSte  FoÞ4 ¼ 0.03), the heatlines are originated from the left ver- duction regime, as observed from Fig. 5(a). The appearance of the
tical wall and remain as parallel horizontal lines pattern as convection regimes for all the studied volume fractions are
observed from Fig. 5(a) for all 3 4s , crossed the solid-liquid inter- observed from the appearance of both the non-horizontal and
face, and finally terminated in the solid nano-PCM region which closed loop the heatlines in Fig. 5(b) where heatlines are plotted at
acts as a sink in this case. Conduction energy fluxes significantly ðSte  FoÞ4 ¼ 0.16. Note that heatlines can be termed as ‘free’ if they
dominate over the convection energy fluxes at ðSte  FoÞ4 ¼ 0.03 are originated from a source and terminated in a sink, while it can
and, because of the three insulated walls other than the left vertical be termed as ‘trapped’ it thy form a closed lopped pattern inside
wall, knf vT=vx [  knf vT=vy. Therefore, the horizontal straight one or multiple regions. At ðSte  FoÞ4 ¼ 0.16, dominance of con-
line patterns of heatline appear which reveal again that the con- vection energy fluxes is comparable to conduction fluxes inside
duction is the dominant mode of the heat transfer at the initial some parts of the enclosure and, in cases, this dominance can be
148 M. Al-Jethelah et al. / Renewable Energy 126 (2018) 137e155

significant. All free heatlines are originated from the left vertical
wall, curved upward direction inside or near the region where
boundary layer formation is distinct and vertical convection heat
flux (i.e., rnf cpnf vT) is dominant, passed horizontally through a
narrow corridor at the top of the liquid nano-PCM under the strong
influence of the horizontal convection flux (i.e.rnf cpnf uT), and
penetrated through the liquid-solid interface. From the interface,
the free heatlines further pass thorough the solid nano-PCM unit
they are terminated. Beyond the boundary layer regions inside the
liquid nano-PCM region, trapped heatlines are observed where
both conduction and convection energy fluxes are comparable.
Similar, pattern is observed also for ðSte  FoÞ4 ¼ 0.37 where
melting process is inside its variable height (or shrinking solid)
regimes with a larger liquid nano-PCM region compared to the
solid nano-PCM region. The only characteristic difference at this
stage in comparison with the convection regime is the size of the
trapped heatlines which is much larger.

4.4. Nusselt number and liquid fraction

The dimensionless Nusselt number Nu can be used to calculate


the heat transfer from the left wall as defined in Eq. (16). Fig. 6
shows the impact of adding nanoparticles on Nu at Ra4¼0% ¼ 105
and 107 for four different volume fractions (4 ¼ 0%, 2%, 4%, and 5%).
The beginning of the melting process, where conduction domi-
nates, is characterized by high Nu values due to the high temper-
ature gradient between the hot wall and the cold nano-PCM. As the
conduction regime thickness increases with ongoing heating, Nu
sharply drops due to decreasing in temperature difference between
the hot wall and the adjacent nano-PCM. As melting progress in the
mixed conduction and convection regime, Nu profile is dominated
by two competing asymptotes: (i) an increasing profile in the upper
convection dominated region which is proportional to
ðSte  FoÞ4 Ra and (ii) a decreasing profile in the lower conduction
dominated region which is proportional to ðSte  FoÞ1 . The
appearance of the convection in the upper region is a result of the
wide liquid region in its upper part comparing to the lower part of
the liquid region. In the wider liquid region, the buoyancy forced
dominates more over the viscose force thus establishing a motion
in the liquid nano-PCM. Therefore, in a narrow region of time, Nu
shows a concave profile with a minimum (Numin ). In the convection
regime of melting, Nu maintains a constant value which is inde-
pendent of time. Finally, in the shrinking solid regime, Nu gradually
drops to a minimum where the melting process is entire completed.
An increasing 4 improves the value of Nu and, alternatively, higher
values of the convection heat transfer coefficients (h) as h ¼
Nu ðknf =LÞ.
Fig. 7 shows the impact of adding nanoparticles on liquid frac-
tion at Ra4¼0% ¼ 105 and 107 for four different volume fractions (4 ¼
0%, 2%, 4%, and 5%). As discussed in the introduction part of Section
Fig. 6. The impact of f on Nu at (a) Ra4¼0% ¼ 105 and (b) Ra4¼0% ¼ 105.
4.1, liquid fraction is very small or zero until the temperature at the
hot wall reaches toTm þ DTm . Beyond this point, liquid fraction in-
creases monotonously as time advances and the profiles are similar similar to that when changing the volume fraction except at
for all volume fractions considered. Note that the size of the Ra4¼0% ¼ 108. After the reduction Nu in the conduction regime, an
enclosure is larger (i.e., more nano-PCM) at higher volume fractions increment of Nu is observed. This increment represents the mixed
to keep Rayleigh number same (discussed in the introduction part conduction-convection regime where the impact of convection
of Section 4.1). Therefore, it requires slightly longer in real time to starts, as predicated by Eq. (27).
complete the melting process for the case of higher volume Observing the trend of variation of Nu with ðSte  FoÞand using
fractions. the method described in Jany and Bejan [41], a general correlation
The impact of Ra4¼0% on Nu is shown in Fig. 8(a). Six values of of Nusselt number can be established using the scaling results
Ra4¼0% (103, 104, 105, 106, 107, and 108) were studied at 4 ¼ 2%. By available in Table 2 for first 3 regimes of melting. This general
correlation is shown below:
increasing Ra, the effect of convection increases due to the increase
in the buoyancy force, as a result Nu increases. The behavior of Nu is
M. Al-Jethelah et al. / Renewable Energy 126 (2018) 137e155 149

Fig. 8. The impact of Ra4¼0% at f¼ 2% on (a) Nu and (b) liquid fraction.

Fig. 7. The impact of f on liquid fraction at (a) Ra4¼0% ¼ 105 and (b) Ra4¼0% ¼ 105. For the limiting cases of ðSte  FoÞ, the proposed correlation can be
reduced to forms already available in Table 2. For example, in the
upper limit, i.e., ðSte  FoÞ/∞, Eq. (43) approaches to the scaling
relationship obtained for the third melting regime, i.e.,
knf knf h 1
Nu ¼ ðc0 Ste  FoÞ1 þ c1 Ra54
kf kf
" ( )n #1n
i knf 1
1 4
 ða Ste  FoÞ 1 þ c2 Ra4 ð Ste  FoÞ
5
knf 1
kf Nu ¼ c1 Ra54 (44)
kf
(43)
The constant c1 can be obtained by fitting Nuasymptotes in the
where c0 , c1 , c2 , and n are the correlation coefficients and can be convection regime with Ra4 . Similarly, in the lower limit, i.e., ðSte 
identified by curve fitting. It should be noted that the exponent n FoÞ/0, Eq. (43) approaches to the scaling relationship obtained for
should be a negative number as discussed in Jany and Bejan [41]. the first melting regime, i.e.,
150 M. Al-Jethelah et al. / Renewable Energy 126 (2018) 137e155

knf
Nu ¼ ðc Ste  FoÞ1 (45) ZL
kf 0 vTð0; y; tÞ
Q_ ðtÞ ¼ knf dy (47)
vx
The constant c0 can be obtained by fitting Nuasymptotes in the 0
conduction regime with ðSte  FoÞ. Finally, in the limit of ðSte 
1=5 In Fig. 9, a Rayleigh number of 106 is selected, while both defi-
FoÞ/ðSte  FoÞ1  Ra4 , Eq. (43) approaches to the Numin scaling nitions of Rayleigh numbers (i.e., based on thermophysical prop-
relationship obtained in Eq. (28). The remaining task is to deter- erties of base PCM and nano-PCM, Ra4¼0% and Ra4 ) are used for
mine two unknown coefficients c2 and n from curve fitting.
further discussion. For the considered base Rayleigh number (i.e.,
Fig. 8(b) shows the liquid fraction as a function of time at 4 ¼ 2%
Ra4¼0% ¼ 106 ), transient variation in the stored energy is tested for
for six different values of Ra4¼0% (103, 104, 105, 106, 107, and 108).
three volume fractions (i.e., 4 ¼ 0, 3, and 5%). As discussed earlier,
Liquid fraction profiles at all Ra4¼0% s show a linear increase with
the size of the enclosure will remain the same with change in 4 as
time until the end of the melting process where some non-linearity
the Rayleigh number is defined based on the base properties. It is
appears. As expected, the magnitude of the liquid fraction is higher
observed from Fig. 9 that the amount of stored energy increases as
at higher values of Ra4¼0% due to the stronger convection effect
time advances during the melting process. As mentioned earlier,
except at Ra4¼0% ¼ 103, where melting is mostly dominated by
the boundary condition applied to the left vertical wall is an isoflux
conduction. boundary condition, while the remaining walls are insulated.
Therefore, the temperature of this wall will increase gradually from
4.5. Energy stored its initial value after the introduction of the constant heat flux at
t ¼ 0 s. As a result, a small amount of energy is stored at the very
The rate of energy stored per unit depth of the enclosure is beginning of melting. This can be observed clearly from the
calculated and presented in Fig. 9 for three different values of the magnified view of E  t plot posted at the upper left corner of Fig. 9.
volume fractions of the nanoparticles. The energy stored, E, could Beyond this point, a gradual increase of energy storing rate is
be calculated as observed. The rate of energy stored is initially high in the con-
duction dominated melting zone which can be confirmed from the
Zt high slope of the profile at this stage. A slight change in the slope of
E¼ Q_ ðtÞdt (46) the E  t curves is an indication of the transition (i.e., the
0 conduction þ convection) melting zone. Beyond this point, E  t
curves exhibit an approximately linearly increasing trend as time
where Q_ ðtÞ could be found from advances further through subsequent regimes of melting (i.e.,

Fig. 9. Energy stored rate per unit depth of the enclosure at different values of the nanoparticles volume fractions at Ra4¼0% ¼ 106 and Ra4¼0% ¼ 106 .
M. Al-Jethelah et al. / Renewable Energy 126 (2018) 137e155 151

transition regime and convection with shrinking solid regime).


Initially, rate of energy storage inside the large amount of solid
nano-PCM depends on its specific heat capacity, i.e., ðrcp Þns . For the
considered range of 4, any change in ðrcp Þns with the change in 4 is
very small (e.g., a change in 4 from 0% to 5% results in a 0.06% in-
crease in ðrcp Þns . Therefore, a very small variation in the E  t
profiles is observed with changing 4 in the conduction regime of
melting. In the transition and convection with shrinking solid re-
gimes, energy storage rate depends on the relative magnitudes of
the specific heat capacities (both ðr cp Þns and ðrcp Þnf increase with
4) and latent heat capacity (rhfnf decreases with 4) of nano-PCM.
Overall, increasing 4 slightly decreases total energy stored inside
the enclosure given that the size of the enclosure is unchanged (i.e.,
Fig. 11. The experimental set up for the visualization (1- laptop, 2- camera, 3- DAC, 4-
Rayleigh number is defined at base properties). enclosure, 5- insulation, 6- variable transformer, and 7- frame).
As discussed earlier, the size of the enclosure is adjusted with
changing 4 in order to keep Rayleigh number constant when it is
defined based on the properties of nano-PCM. Fig. 9 shows two made of acrylic with dimensions of 7.2 cm  6.2 cm  5 cm. One
additional E  t profiles at Ra4¼3% and Ra4¼5% . The enclosure at side of the enclosure was covered with an aluminum lid to fix a
Ra4¼3% and Ra4¼5% can store more energy than enclosure at Ra4¼0% heater on it. A 2.54 cm  2.54 cm electrical heater (Omega LUX-
because of the larger size of the enclosure. SRFG-202/10-P), of resistance of 341.7 U was used to supply a
The effect of Rayleigh number on E  t profiles is shown in constant heat flux. A variable transformer is used to control the
Fig. 10 for a given 4. More energy can be stored at higher Rayleigh supplied electric power to the heater. The heater was fixed on one
numbers which is expected as the size of the enclosure is higher at of the enclosure vertical surfaces. Three J-type thermocouples were
larger Rayleigh number. The stored energy keeps increasing with fixed inside the aluminum lid. Two of them were 0.266 cm from the
time which is more pronounced at the highest Rayleigh number as left and bottom edges of the lid, each was 0.01 cm from the inner
the temperature of the wall keeps increasing due to the constant and outer surfaces of the lid, respectively, and 0.043 cm apart. The
heat flux boundary condition. The difference in energy stored with third J-type thermocouple was fixed 0.266 cm from the right edge
Rayleigh number is less during the beginning of the melting; as of the lid and 0.01 cm from the inner surface of the lid.
melting reaches in the convection dominated regime, a larger dif- For the visualization experiment, 1 gm of CuO nanoparticles
ference is observed due to increased melting with Rayleigh number were dispersed in 250 ml of liquid coconut oil at 30  C. Selected
in convection regime. combination of CuO and coconut oil resulted in 0.4338 wt % and
4 ¼ 0.0615%, respectively. This selection is completely arbitrary as
5. Experimental work the major intention of this experiment is to observe the melting
process of PCM and nano-PCM at different wall heat flux conditions
An experiment investigation was conducted to visualize the and also to avoid any sedimentation. A magnetic stirrer (Thermo
melting process of a base PCM (coconut oil) and a nano-PCM (CuO Fisher Scientific, Model No: SP88854100) was used for 8 h contin-
nanoparticles dispersed in coconut oil PCM). The thermophysical uously to disperse the CuO nanoparticles in the liquid coconut oil.
properties of the coconut oil and CuO are listed in Table 1. The The temperature was fixed at 30  C to maintain the coconut oil
experimental rig is shown in Fig. 11. A rectangular enclosure was liquid during mixing. The accuracy of the thermocouples is ±2.2  C,
and the relative uncertainty of the temperature measurement is
±4.0% and for the variable transformer is ±5%. For more details see
Appendix A.
Note that, the experimental set up has provisions to handle the
expanding nano-PCM while melting. This is accomplished by three
vents installed at the top of the enclosure. Besides, nano-PCM was
poured inside the enclosure layer by layer while allowing each layer
to solidify first before pouring another layer. Additionally, precau-
tionary measure was taken during the preparation of the nano-PCM
to remove trapped air by vacuum degasification. Nevertheless,
sometimes small air bubbles (or small void at the top) were
observed which was unavoidable. However, authors repeated
selected experiments and the discrepancies between these exper-
iments with identical conditions were identified small.
Fig. 12 shows experimental comparison of the melting processes
between the base-PCM and the nano-PCM (0.4338 wt %,
00
f ¼ 0.0615%) at three different applied heat fluxes (i.e., q_ ¼ 1020,
2
1814, and 2835 W/m ). Five different times (i.e., 0, 20, 30, 40, and
52 min) were selected to cover the different stages of the melting
process. A comparison between the experimental and numerical
results is shown in Fig. 12. The numerical results are based on the
same boundary and initial conditions. The images represent the
experimental results, while the dotted lines represent the numer-
ical results. A fair agreement was observed. It is observed from
Fig. 10. Energy stored rate per unit depth of the enclosure at three different values of
Ra4¼5% (¼105 , 106 , and 107 ) at f ¼ 5%. Fig. 12 that increasing the applied heat flux increases the melting
152 M. Al-Jethelah et al. / Renewable Energy 126 (2018) 137e155

00
Fig. 12. Experimental and numerical results comparison of melting process between base-PCM and nano-PCM (0.4338 wt %, f ¼ 0.0615%) for q_ ¼ 1020 W/m2
(Raf¼0:0615% ¼3.59  108), 1814 W/m2 (Raf¼0:0615% ¼ 6.38  108), and 2835 W/m2 (Raf¼0:0615% ¼9.97  108). The images show the experimental results, while the dotted lines
represent the numerical results.

rate for both base-PCM and nano-PCM. For each case of applied melting rate is faster than the base-PCM fro an applied heat flux. An
heat flux, melting process of nano-PCM is faster than the base-PCM increase in the applied heat flux improves the melting rate further.
which qualitatively matches our findings in scale analysis and nu- The observed results confirm the positive impact of the nano-
merical simulation. The corresponding liquid fractions for both particles on improving the melting process. The melting process
base-PCM and nano-PCM are plotted in Fig. 13. The liquid fraction accelerates by enhancing the PCM with nanoparticles.
was calculated using a subsequent image analysis from the exper- Fig. 14 shows the temperature of the base-PCM and nano-PCM
imentally obtained images. The uncertainty of the liquid fraction inside the enclosure on the surface of the lid. Three different heat
calculation due to this process is ±0.5%. 00
flux rates were applied (q_ ¼ 1020, 1814, and 2835 W/m2). For
Results presented in Fig. 13 also confirm that for the nano-PCM 00
q_ ¼ 1020 and 1814 W/m2, the temperature of the PCM is higher
M. Al-Jethelah et al. / Renewable Energy 126 (2018) 137e155 153

during the melting process of nano-PCM. To represent the energy


storage geometry, a rectangular enclosure is selected with one
isoflux wall and three insulated walls. To form a nano-PCM, CuO
nanoparticles are added to coconut oil. The following conclusions
could be stated.

The liquid-solid interface shape signifies the stage of the melting


process. The conduction limit is indicated by a vertical flat
interface. The mixed conduction-convection regime is indicated
by the deformation in the upper part of the interface, while the
remaining part of the interface is vertical flat. The convection
regime is indicated by the entire deformation of the interface.
The value of Ra plays a key role to decide the melting stage at a
specific time. At low Ra4¼0% ¼ 104 conduction dominants. At
higher Ra4¼0% values, the buoyancy force strengths which cau-
ses the domination of natural convection.
Scale analysis successfully predicated the numerical and
experimental results. This is can be observed by both the melted
area thickness behavior throughout the melting process and the
trend of Nu for the studied volume fractions and Ra.
In the conduction limit, the heatlines are free, straight lines,
Fig. 13. Experimental liquid fraction of base and nano-PCM with respect of time for
00 because all the supplied thermal energy melts the solid nano-
different heat fluxes (q_ ¼ 1020 W/m2 (Raf¼0:0615% ¼3.59  108), 1814 W/m2
(Raf¼0:0615% ¼ 6.38  108), and 2835 W/m2 (Raf¼0:0615% ¼9.97  108)). PCM. After the melting occurs and liquid nano-PCM appears,
portion of the supplied energy melts the remaining solid nano-
PCM, and other portion heats the liquid nano-PCM. The heat-
lines are free in the first region and trapped in the second region.
The trend of Nu reflects the stages of the melting process. At the
conduction limit, Nu decreases. At the mixed regime, Nu reaches
its lowest value. At the convection regime, Nu gains a plateau
behavior.
The experimental results matched the predicated behavior of
the PCM using the scale analysis and the numerical calculations.
Also, the experimental results show the improvement of the
melting process of nano-PCM in comparison with base PCM.

Nomenclature

b height of the convection dominated liquid region (m)


cp specific heat at constant pressure (J/kg K)
D melting interface position from the left wall (m)
Fo Fourier number, Fo ¼ knf t=ðrcp Þnf L2
E energy flux density vector (W/m2)
E energy stored per unit depth of the enclosure (J/m)
g gravitational acceleration (m/s2)
H Heatfunction defined in Eq. (6)
Fig. 14. Temperature (experimental result) on the surface of the lid inside the enclo-
h convection heat transfer (W/m2 K)
sure throughout the melting of PCM and nano-PCM for different heat fluxes:
00
q_ ¼ 1020 W/m2 (Raf¼0:0615% ¼3.59  108), 1814 W/m2 (Raf¼0:0615% ¼ 6.38  108), and hf latent heat of fusion (J/kg)
2835 W/m2 (Raf¼0:0615% ¼9.97  108). k thermal conductivity (W/(m K))
L enclosure height (m)
LF Liquid fraction
than that for nano-PCM starting from the beginning of the melting l height of the remaining solid nano-PCM (m)
00
process to some time during melting. For q_ ¼ 2835 W/m2, the Nu average Nusselt number
temperatures of both PCM and nano-PCM are close. For all studied p pressure (Pa)
heat fluxes at some time during the melting process, the nano-PCM Pr Prandtl number, Pr ¼ mnf cpnf =knf
becomes warmer than hat for PCM. Increasing the thermal con-
Q_ total heat transfer rate per unit length (W/m)
ductivity of the PCM by adding nanoparticles enhances the heat 00
q_ rate of heat transfer flux (W/m2)
transfer rate which increases the temperature of the thermal
storage, as shown in Fig. 14. Ra* Rayleigh number based onL, Ra* ¼
00
gðrbÞ L4 Q_ =k m a
nf nf nf nf
6. Conclusion Ra*b Rayleigh number based on b, Ra*b ¼ ðb=LÞ4 Ra*
00

Thermal performance of active wall thermal energy storage Ste* Stefan number, Ste* ¼ Q_ cpnf L=knf hfnf
(AW-TES) system is investigated. Scale analysis and heatlines T temperature ( C)
techniques are performed to inspect different melting regimes DTm temperature transition in the mushy zone ( C)
154 M. Al-Jethelah et al. / Renewable Energy 126 (2018) 137e155

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