Salt impregnated desiccant matrices for 'open' thermochemical energy storage-Hygrothermal cyclic behaviour and energetic analysis by physical experimentation

Zeolite provided the highest temperature lift of all candidates due to the high amount of vapour adsorption and its fast reaction kinetics however, after the initial period (1-2 h), the moisture adsorption rate and thus heat generation decrease sharply. Zeolite also showed a sharp drop in performance over the four cycles as it requires a higher regeneration temperature (>180 °C) than that used (100 °C) for this research. SIM-3a (Vermiculite-CaCl2) was found to be the most promising candidate for open TES systems due to its high heat generated and rapid mass uptake at higher relative humidity levels.