Numerical analysis of the paraffin wax-air spiral thermal energy storage unit

J. Banaszek, R. Domañski, M. Rebow, F. El-Sagier

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

35 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

A two-dimensional computer simulation is presented for conjugate heat transfer and solid-liquid phase change, concurrently occurring within a domain of the paraffin wax-air spiral thermal energy storage unit during its charging and discharging. The numerical model is based on local energy balances in a set of curvilinear control-volumes (the domain of the unit is divided into), and on the enthalpy approach to account for the latent heat effect. The results obtained are compared with the experimental data, reported in the authors' earlier paper, to find out that the proposed numerical model is a reliable and sufficiently accurate calculation tool, although some incongruity between calculated and measured temperature of the paraffin wax exists. The reasons for this discrepancy are thoroughly analyzed and discussed in the paper.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)323-354
Number of pages32
JournalApplied Thermal Engineering
Volume20
Issue number4
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Mar 2000
Externally publishedYes

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Numerical analysis of the paraffin wax-air spiral thermal energy storage unit'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this