Solar Water Heating Systems using Phase Change Materials:

There are many sources available to heating the water. But the most convenient method of heating water is solar energy, because of its availability. In ordinary solar water heater works on the principle of sensible heating but our solar water heater works on the principle of latent heat storing by Phase Chang Material(P.C.M.) viz ,Paraffin Wax .Latent heat means, the phase change material can store some amount of heat, and dissipate whenever system necessary. The main application of our project is, it is used mainly where the space restriction limit larger thermal storage units in direct gain or sunspace passive solar system. Latent heat thermal energy storage is one of the most efficient ways to store thermal energy for heating water by energy received from sun. This paper summarizes the investigation and analysis of thermal energy storage incorporating with and without PCM for use in solar water heaters.

The present work has been undertaken to study the feasibility of storing solar energy using Phase Change Materials (PCMs) and utilizing this energy to heat water for domestic purposes during nighttime. This ensures that hot water is available throughout the day. The system consists of two simultaneously functioning heat-absorbing units. One of them is a

solar water heater and the other a heat storage unit consisting of PCM (paraffin). The water heater functions normally and supplies hot water during the day. The storage unit stores the heat in PCMs during the day supplies hot water during the night. The storage unit utilizes small cylinders, made of aluminum, filled with paraffin wax as the heat storage medium. It also consists of a Solar Collector to absorb solar heat. At the start of the day the storage unit is filled with water completely. This water is made to circulate between the heating panel (Solar collector) and the PCMs. The water in the storage unit receives heat form the heating panel and transfers it to the PCM. The PCM undergoes a phase change by absorbing latent heat, excess heat being stored as sensible heat. The water supply in the night is routed to the storage unit using a suitable control device. The heat is recovered from the unit by passing water at room temp through it. As water is drawn from the storage tower, fresh water enters the unit disturbing the thermal equilibrium, causing flow of heat from PCM to the water. The storage tower is completely insulated to prevent loss of heat. To store thermal energy, sensible and latent heat storage materials are widely used. Latent heat thermal energy storage (TES) systems using phase change materials (PCM) are useful because of their ability to charge and discharge a large amount of heat from a small mass at constant temperature during a phase transformation. Because high-melting-point PCMs have large energy densities, their use can reduce energy storage equipment and containment costs by decreasing the size of the storage unit. Phase change materials (PCM) are Latent heat storage materials. The thermal energy transfer occurs when a material changes from solid to liquid, or liquid to solid. This is called a change in state, or Phase. Initially, these solidliquid PCMs perform like conventional storage materials; their temperature rises as they absorb heat. Unlike conventional (sensible) storage materials, PCM absorbs and release heat at a nearly constant temperature. They store 514 times more heat per unit volume than sensible storage materials such as water, masonry, or rock. A large number of PCMs is known to melt with a heat of fusion in any required range. However, for their employment as latent heat storage materials these materials must exhibit certain desirable thermodynamic, kinetic and chemical properties.

Thermal properties: (i) Suitable phase-transition temperature. (ii) High latent heat of transition. (iii) Good heat transfer. Chemical properties: (i) Long-term chemical stability. (ii) Compatibility with materials of construction. (iii) No toxicity. (iv) No fire hazard. Physical properties: (i) Favorable phase equilibrium. (ii) High density. (iii) Small volume change. (iv) Low vapor pressure. Economics: (i) Abundant. (ii) Available. (iii) Cost effective. Thermal energy storage (TES) can take the form of sensible heat storage (SHS) or latent heat storage (LHS). To store the same amount of energy, significantly larger quantities of a storage medium are required for SHS in comparison to LHS. When LHS is used to store solar energy it can increase the thermal storage efficiency. Phase change materials (PCMs) are materials that store energy in the process of changing the aggregate state from solid to liquid. PCMs are latent heat thermal storage materials. They use chemical bonds to store and release heat. The latent heat thermal energy storage (LHTES) method that is suitable for solar heating and air conditioning has received considerable attention due to its advantages of storing a large amount of energy as a phase transition at a constant temperature. The selection of the heat storage material as a PCM in the LHTES method plays an important role from the points of view of thermal efficiency. Solar energy applications require an efficient thermal storage. The latent heat of melting is the large quantity of energy that needs to be absorbed or released when a material changes phase from a solid state to a liquid state or vice versa.

Phase Change Material: A phase change material (PCM) is a substance with a high heat of fusion which, melting and solidifying at a certain temperature, is capable of storing and releasing large amounts of energy. Heat is absorbed or released when the material changes from solid to liquid and vice versa; thus, PCMs are classified as latent heat storage (LHS) units. PCMs latent heat storage can be achieved through solid-solid, solid-liquid, solid-gas and liquidgas phase change. However, the only phase change used for PCMs is the solid-liquid change. Liquid-gas phase changes are not practical for use as thermal storage due to the large volumes or high pressures required to store the materials when in their gas phase. Liquid-gas transitions do have a higher heat of transformation than solid-liquid transitions. Solid-solid phase changes are typically very slow and have a rather low heat of transformation. Initially, the solid-liquid PCMs behave like sensible heat storage (SHS) materials; their temperature rises as they absorb heat. Unlike conventional SHS, however, when PCMs reach the temperature at which they change phase (their melting temperature) they absorb large amounts of heat at an almost constant temperature. The PCM continues to absorb heat without a significant raise in temperature until all the material is transformed to the liquid phase. When the ambient temperature around a liquid material falls, the PCM solidifies, releasing its stored latent heat. A large number of PCMs are available in any required temperature range from -5 up to 190oC .Within the human comfort range of 20 to 30C, some PCMs are very effective. They store 5 to 14 times more heat per unit volume than conventional storage materials such as water, masonry, or rock Paraffin wax: (or simply "paraffin", but see alternative name for kerosene, above) is mostly found as a white, odorless, tasteless, waxy solid, with a typical melting point between about 47 C to 64 C ( 116.6F to 147.2F), and having a density of around 0.9 g/cm3. It is insoluble in water, but soluble in ether, benzene, and certain esters. Paraffin is unaffected by most common chemical reagents, but burns readily.Pure paraffin wax is an excellent electrical insulator, with an electrical resistivity of between 1013 and 1017 ohm meter. This is better than nearly all other materials except some plastics (Notably Teflon). It is an effective neutron moderator and was used in James Chadwick's 1932 experiments to identify the neutron

Experiment trial: During the charging process the HTF is circulated through the TES tank and the solar collector unit continuously. The HTF absorbs solar energy sensibly, and exchanges this heat with the PCM in the PCM storage tank, which is initially at room temperature. The PCM slowly gets heated, sensibly at first, until it reaches its melting point temperature. As the charging proceeds, energy storage as Latent heat is achieved as the Paraffin wax melts at constant temperature (592C). After complete melting is achieved, further heat addition from the HTF causes the PCM to superheat, thereby again storing heat sensibly. The charging process continues till the PCM and the HTF attain thermal equilibrium. Temperatures of the PCM and HTF at the different locations are recorded at intervals of 10 minutes. The PCM is charged through the day, whenever hot water is not demanded by the user. The discharging process used is termed as batch wise process. In this method, a certain quantity of hot water is withdrawn from the TES tank and mixed with cold water to obtain a nominal temperature of 45 0.5C for direct use and the tank is refilled with cold water to maintain a constant amount of water in tank. This is then repeated for intervals of 10 minutes, in which time transfer of energy from the PCM would have occurred. This procedure is continued till PCM reaches a temperature of 45C.
Thermal Energy Storage

Storage of thermal energy in the form of sensible and latent heat has become an important aspect of energy management with the emphasis on efficient use and conservation of the waste heat and solar energy in industry and buildings. Energy storage of all types plays an important role in energy conservation. In processes that are wasteful of energy, energy storage will result in saving premium fuels. Energy may be stored in many ways, e.g., mechanical energy, kinetic energy, and chemical energy, but because in so much of our economy it is produced and transferred as heat, the potential for storage of thermal energy warrants study in detail. TES deals with the storing of energy by cooling, heating, melting, solidifying, or vaporizing a material; the energy becomes available as heat when the process is reversed.

Storage by causing a material to raise or lower in temperature is called SHS; its effectiveness depends on the specific heat of the material and, if volume is important, on the density of the storage material. Passive solar space heating systems commonly use dense materials, such as brick, concrete, and adobe, as thermal storage materials. Heat storage materials absorb heat through standard heat transfer mechanisms, e.g., radiation, conduction, and convection. Solar Heat Storage Systems: Solar energy is energy from the sun. It is a renewable energy source that can generate electricity, provide hot water, heat and cool a house, and provide lighting for buildings. The sun has produced energy for billions of years. Solar energy is the solar radiation that reaches the earth. There are a variety of different technologies used in order to take advantage of solar energy. Solar hot water heaters use the sun to heat either water or a heat transfer fluid in collectors. An active system uses a solar collector that works with a pump, a heat exchanger and a number of large storage tanks. This type provides a highly efficient energy sources for large nonresidential buildings. These different types are (1) photovoltaic systems, (2) concentrated solar systems, (3) passive solar heating, (4) solar hot water, and (5) solar heating and cooling. Solar thermal technologies on the market now are efficient and highly reliable, providing solar energy for a wide range of applicationsfrom domestic hot water and space heating in residential and commercial buildings to swimming pool heating, solar-assisted cooling, industrial process heat, and the desalination of drinking water (Ayhan and Kaygusuz,1998). Solar energy applications require a large energies storage capacity in order to cover a minimum of 12 days of demand. This is commonly achieved by sensible heat storage in large water tanks. An alternative is offered by latent heat storage systems, in which thermal energy is stored as latent heat in substances undergoing a phase transition, e.g., the heat of fusion in the solidliquid transition (Hamdan and Elwerr, 1996). Conclusion: Energy storage in PCM has a lot of advantages over sensible systems because of the lower mass and volume of the system and the energy is stored at a relatively constant temperature and energy losses to the surroundings are lower than with conventional systems. Paraffin waxes are cheap and have moderate TES density but low thermal conductivity and, hence, require a large surface area. Hydrated salts have a larger energy storage density and a higher thermal conductivity. In response to increasing electrical energy costs and the desire for

better lad management, thermal storage technology has recently been developed. The storage of thermal energy in the form of sensible and latent heat has become an important aspect of energy management with the emphasis on efficient use and conservation of the waste heat and solar energy in industry and buildings. Application: PCM can be used in solar water heater, to increase its efficiency based on the following principle. During day time, the raised hot water which absorbs the energy from the Sun will be stored in a tank. When the tank is partially filled by PCM, the PCM will start to melt by absorbing the energy (heat) from the hot water. The PCM can also be wrapped over the tank by using a PCM jacket. Thus the PCM can be charged during the day time. In the evening / night, in the absence of solar energy, the temperature of the Hot water reduces by loss of heat to the environment. When the temperature goes below 580C, HS 58 will start to freeze. During its freezing, it will give up the heat to the water, and maintain the waters temperature at not less than 580C. This increases the efficiency of the solar water heater by allowing availability of hot water at nights also. PCM in Balls for Solar Water Heater: Balls filled with PCM are used for heating and cooling applications. Ball design provides more contact area by allowing the fluid to pass through their free volume between them. For High temperature applications balls made with PP is used. Approx. 15 ml free space is given in the filled balls. Such balls are filled with save HS 58 and kept inside the Solar water heater collector. The calculation below shows that how the efficiency of the PCM can be increased if the PCM is used inside the Solar water heater (with the condition of hot water should be circulated to charge the PCM)

Organic phase change materials: Organic materials are further described as paraffin and non paraffin. Organic materials include congruent melting means melt and freeze repeatedly without phase segregation and consequent degradation of their latent heat of fusion, self nucleation means they crystallize with little or no super cooling and usually non-corrosiveness.

AVES HUSAINY