Numerical investigation of wall geometry effects on thermal performance of CuO-enhanced phase change materials for latent heat storage

IF 5.4 3区工程技术 Q2 ENERGY & FUELS

Thermal Science and Engineering Progress Pub Date : 2025-09-22 DOI:10.1016/j.tsep.2025.104138

Naresh Kumar Goud Ranga , S.K. Gugulothu , P. Gandhi , Raju Muthyala , G. Sailaja

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

The need for compact, fast-charging thermal energy storage (TES) systems is critical for applications such as solar collectors, battery cooling, and electronic thermal regulation. However, conventional phase change materials (PCMs) suffer from low thermal conductivity and non-uniform melting, which limit their efficiency and response time. To address these limitations, this study numerically investigates the synergistic effect of wall geometry modification and nanoparticle enhancement on the melting performance of RT42 paraffin PCM embedded with 4 wt% CuO nanoparticles. A two-dimensional rectangular enclosure (50 mm × 100 mm) with constant cross-sectional area (5000 mm²) is subjected to lateral heat flux (1000 W/m²) across five optimized wall profiles and a reference geometry. Using the enthalpy-porosity method, the melting dynamics and thermal energy storage performance are evaluated. CuO addition enhances thermal conductivity from 0.15 to 0.45 W/m·K. Model validation shows <2 % deviation in liquid fraction, confirming accuracy. Among all designs, Cases IV and V (inclined and extended walls) demonstrate superior performance: 98–100 % liquid fraction at 7000 s, 25 % higher energy storage (25 kJ), and average temperature elevation to 305.1 K compared to 303.8 K in the reference case. The novelty of this work lies in the integrated evaluation of thermal boundary design and nanoparticle-enhanced PCM under identical heat flux and volume constraints—a rarely explored combination in literature. This study motivates the adoption of dual enhancement strategies to overcome PCM limitations and informs the development of next-generation TES modules with improved efficiency, thermal uniformity, and melting rate.

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壁面几何形状对cuo增强相变材料潜热储热性能影响的数值研究

对紧凑、快速充电的热能存储（TES）系统的需求对于太阳能集热器、电池冷却和电子热调节等应用至关重要。然而，传统的相变材料（PCMs）存在导热系数低和熔化不均匀的问题，这限制了它们的效率和响应时间。为了解决这些局限性，本研究通过数值模拟研究了壁面几何形状改变和纳米颗粒增强对嵌入4 wt% CuO纳米颗粒的RT42石蜡PCM熔化性能的协同效应。一个二维矩形外壳（50 mm × 100 mm）具有恒定的横截面积（5000 mm2），通过五个优化的墙壁轮廓和参考几何形状承受横向热流（1000 W/m2）。采用焓孔法对其熔炼动力学和蓄热性能进行了评价。添加CuO使导热系数从0.15提高到0.45 W/m·K。模型验证显示液体分数偏差为2%，证实了模型的准确性。在所有设计中，case IV和case V（倾斜和扩展壁）表现出卓越的性能：在7000秒时液体分数为98 - 100%，能量储存（25 kJ）提高25%，平均温度升高至305.1 K，而参考案例为303.8 K。这项工作的新颖之处在于在相同的热流密度和体积约束下对热边界设计和纳米颗粒增强的PCM进行了综合评估，这是文献中很少探索的组合。这项研究激发了采用双增强策略来克服PCM限制，并为下一代TES模块的开发提供了信息，这些模块具有更高的效率、热均匀性和熔化速度。

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来源期刊

Thermal Science and Engineering Progress Chemical Engineering-Fluid Flow and Transfer Processes

CiteScore

7.20

自引率

10.40%

发文量

327

审稿时长

41 days

期刊介绍： Thermal Science and Engineering Progress (TSEP) publishes original, high-quality research articles that span activities ranging from fundamental scientific research and discussion of the more controversial thermodynamic theories, to developments in thermal engineering that are in many instances examples of the way scientists and engineers are addressing the challenges facing a growing population – smart cities and global warming – maximising thermodynamic efficiencies and minimising all heat losses. It is intended that these will be of current relevance and interest to industry, academia and other practitioners. It is evident that many specialised journals in thermal and, to some extent, in fluid disciplines tend to focus on topics that can be classified as fundamental in nature, or are ‘applied’ and near-market. Thermal Science and Engineering Progress will bridge the gap between these two areas, allowing authors to make an easy choice, should they or a journal editor feel that their papers are ‘out of scope’ when considering other journals. The range of topics covered by Thermal Science and Engineering Progress addresses the rapid rate of development being made in thermal transfer processes as they affect traditional fields, and important growth in the topical research areas of aerospace, thermal biological and medical systems, electronics and nano-technologies, renewable energy systems, food production (including agriculture), and the need to minimise man-made thermal impacts on climate change. Review articles on appropriate topics for TSEP are encouraged, although until TSEP is fully established, these will be limited in number. Before submitting such articles, please contact one of the Editors, or a member of the Editorial Advisory Board with an outline of your proposal and your expertise in the area of your review.