Heat transfer study of metal foam with partial filling method to strengthen phase change material

The advancement of ice-ball thermal energy storage systems is limited by the poor thermal conductivity of phase change materials(PCM). This paper presents a numerical investigation into enhancing heat transfer in ice balls by partially filling them with metal foam. Dynamic temperature changes, solid phase fraction, and cold storage capacity are analyzed for various filling radius ratios (2/13, 4/13, 6/13, 8/13, and 13/13). We quantitatively assess the specific impact of metal foam filling on heat transfer by calculating changes in the comprehensive thermal conductivity coefficient. Our findings reveal that the comprehensive thermal conductivity coefficient increases nonlinearly with the growing metal foam filling radius ratio, indicating that full filling may not the most optimal configuration. Furthermore, the energy storage capacity per unit time, per unit weight and per unit cost of the ice ball filled with metal foam under different radius ratios was evaluated by comprehensive evaluation criteria, and the optimal filling radius ratio was determined to be 6/13. Contrary to prior findings, this research highlights the efficacy of partial filling strategies, offering valuable insights for optimizing ice ball performance in thermal energy storage applications.