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Modeling and Simulation of Phase Change Material Based Thermal Energy Accumulators in Small-Scale Solar Thermal Dryers

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Modeling and Simulation in Chemical Engineering

Part of the book series: Heat and Mass Transfer ((HMT))

Abstract

Solar thermal energy is of intermittent and dynamic character and the necessity to use this energy during non-sunshine periods has led to the development of thermal energy accumulators. The need of compact solutions have prompted researchers towards using latent heat storage. Phase change materials as thermal energy storage are attractive because of their high storage density and characteristics to release thermal energy at constant temperature corresponding to the phase transition temperature. The chapter overviews the recent state-of-the-art small-scale solar thermal dryers integrated with phase change material as an energy accumulator. This is an intensive field of investigation for more than 30 years with importance for the agriculture and the food industry especially in hot climate. A variety of commercial small-scale solar dryers are offered as a low-cost, zero-energy solution for small farmers. And yet, there are no commercial systems using latent thermal storage because at the present level of development this unit will increase unacceptably the price of the system. The solution needs very simple design, accessible materials, and optimal conditions for operation.

The aim of the present work is to make an overview of the methods for theoretical evaluation and prediction, which are used to design and assess this devices and to point out the most appropriate of them for this new solution. The models enable to distinguish the most cost- and energy-effective solar dryer systems with thermal storage among the great number of designs, devices, and materials. The resulting conclusions from the collected and compared information will serve as a base for a novel solution of a cost-effective thermal energy storage for a small-scale solar dryer, which will lead to improved efficiency of the drying process, due to controlled temperature and longer operational time. This information might serve also in the development of the wider field of thermal energy storage, which is an important part of the technologies of renewable and waste energy conversion.

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Abbreviations

A :

Area, m2

c p :

Specific heat, J/(kg K)

c p,SAH :

Average specific heat of air between TSAH,i and TSAH,o, J/(kg K)

c PCM,s :

Average specific heat of solid PCM J/(kg K)

c PCM,l :

Average specific heat of liquid PCM, J/(kg K)

E :

Energy, J

Ex :

Exergy, J

\( \dot{E}x \) :

Exergy flow rate, W

g :

Gravitational acceleration vector, m/s2

h :

Sensible enthalpy, J/kg

h fg :

Latent heat of vaporization, J/kg

H :

Enthalpy, J/kg

I :

Solar intensity, W/m2

k :

Thermal conductivity, W/(mK)

L :

Heat of fusion per unit mass, J/kg

m :

Mass, kg

ṁ :

Mass flow rate, kg/s

p :

Static pressure, Pa

\( \overline{P} \) :

Time-averaged pressure, Pa

P fan :

Power consumption of fan, W

Pr:

Prandtl number

R :

Gas constant, J/(kgK)

Q :

Thermal energy, J

\( \dot{Q} \) :

Heat flow rate, W

t :

Time, s

T :

Temperature, K

\( \overline{T} \) :

Time-averaged temperature, K

\( {\overline{T}}^{\prime } \) :

Temperature fluctuation, K

\( \overline{u_i} \) :

Time-averaged velocity component, m/s

\( \overline{u_i^{\hbox{'}}} \) :

Velocity fluctuation, m/s

x i :

Coordinate axis, m

v :

Velocity vector, m/s

α :

Convective heat transfer coefficient, W/(m2K)

α’ :

Absorptivity

η :

Thermal efficiency

β :

Liquid volume fraction

γ :

Thermal expansion coefficient, 1/K

Δ:

Difference

μ :

Dynamic viscosity, Pa.s

ρ :

Density, kg/m3

τ :

Stress tensor, Pa

τ’ :

Transmissivity

a :

Air

abs :

Absorber

ch :

Charging

d :

Dryer

dis :

Discharging

des :

Destruction

e :

Evaporated moisture

es :

Energy storage

f :

Fluid

f ch :

Final in charging

f dis :

Final in discharging

F :

Fusion

i :

Inlet

i ch :

Initial in charging

i dis :

Initial in discharging

in :

Input

l :

Liquid

o :

Outlet

out :

Output

PCM :

Phase change material

r :

Reference

re :

Received

s :

Solid

sys :

Drying system

SA :

Solar accumulator

SAH :

Solar air heater

w :

Wax

BC:

Boundary conditions

CFD:

Computational fluid dynamics

DC:

Drying chamber

ETC:

Evacuated tube collector

FLT:

First law of thermodynamics

FPC:

Flat plate collector

HDPC:

High density polyethylene containers

HE:

Heat exchanger

HTF:

Heat transfer fluid

LHS:

Latent heat storage

PCM:

Phase change material

SAH:

Solar air heater

SLT:

Second law of thermodynamics

TES:

Thermal energy storage

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Acknowledgments

This work is supported by the National Science Fund, Bulgaria, Contract No KP-06-INDIA/11/02.09.2019 and the Department of Science and Technology, India (DST/INT/P-04/2019).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. CSIR-Central Salt & Marine Chemicals Research Institute, Bhavnagar, Gujarat, India

    J. Patel, J. Andharia & S. Maiti

  2. Institute of Chemical Engineering at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Sofia, Bulgaria

    A. Georgiev, D. Dzhonova, T. Petrova, K. Stefanova, I. Trayanov & S. Panyovska

  3. Department of Mechanics, Technical University of Sofia, Plovdiv Branch, Plovdiv, Bulgaria

    A. Georgiev

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  1. J. Patel
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Correspondence to D. Dzhonova .

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  1. Institute of Chemical Engineering, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Sofia, Bulgaria

    Christo Boyadjiev

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Patel, J. et al. (2022). Modeling and Simulation of Phase Change Material Based Thermal Energy Accumulators in Small-Scale Solar Thermal Dryers. In: Boyadjiev, C. (eds) Modeling and Simulation in Chemical Engineering. Heat and Mass Transfer. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-87660-9_8

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