Heat and cold storage using phase change materials in domestic refrigeration systems: The state-of-the-art review

•Critical literature review of phase change materials in domestic refrigerators.•Analysis of evaporator and condenser side PCM applications.•Presentation of modeling approaches to study PCMs in domestic refrigerators.

Domestic refrigerators are among the most widely used household appliances and a great portion of energy is used by these systems. Reduction of temperature fluctuation and enhancement of system performance is the main reason of using phase change materials (PCMs) in refrigeration systems. Different approaches have been used to improve the thermal performance of these systems by integration of PCM. A number of studies have focused on the application of PCM at evaporator for cold storage. On the other hand, not much has been done on the condenser side. Despite large number of studies, a comprehensive literature review specifically focusing on the application of PCM in domestic refrigerators is missing. This paper presents a review of the experimental efforts as well as modeling approaches to study the application of PCMs in domestic refrigerators. Moreover, advantages and disadvantages of each type of storage are presented and, the future and potential promising applications of PCMs in domestic refrigerators are discussed.