Phase Change Materials as Smart Nanomaterials for Thermal Energy Storage in Buildings

Abstract

Nowadays, energy production and consumption in buildings play an important role in the economic development of countries. For instance, buildings are central to the EU's energy efficiency policy, as nearly 40% of final energy consumption and 36% of greenhouse gas emissions are attributable to houses, offices, shops, and other buildings. For achievement of highly energy-efficient buildings, significant paradigm shifts are necessary, particularly in the production requirements for cost-effective, durable, energy-efficient building envelopes. The application of phase change materials (PCMs) for thermal energy storage (TES) in building envelopes can assist the reduction of energy demands associated to the heating/ cooling necessary to ensure adequate inner thermal comfort. PCMs are defined as a group of materials that can store/release relevant quantities of thermal energy upon a change in their physical phase (latent heat). In many applications, such storage of energy leads to energy conservation within the system (i.e. the building), thus resulting in improved energy efficiency. Heat is absorbed or released when

Experimental investigation of heat transfer in a cavity filled with (50% CuO-50% Al2O3)/Water with hybrid nanofluid attached to a vertically heated wall partially integrated with PCM

“…Academics' interest in thermal energy storage and associated technologies has therefore recently increased. There is a large amount of information about the application of PCM in thermal engineering may be found in [12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19].…”