Experimental study of the phase change and energy characteristics inside a cylindrical latent heat energy storage system: Part 1 consecutive charging and discharging

In part 1 of this paper the design of a LHESS that can operate under both consecutive and simultaneous charging and discharging modes is introduced. Dodecanoic acid is used as the PCM, as it has been shown to be safe, relatively inexpensive, and has a melting temperature in a range suitable for use with SDHW. Experimental results of consecutively charging and discharging the system are presented and the effect of the heat transfer fluid flow rate is explored. It was found that during charging a faster flow rate leads to shorter melting times; however, during discharging, the flow rate does not affect the rate of solidification.