| Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 647921 | Applied Thermal Engineering | 2011 | 8 Pages |
Air-conditioning forms a large proportion of annual peak electrical demand, requiring expansion of power plants to meet the peak demand, which goes unused most of the time. Use of well-designed cool thermal storage can offset the peak demand to a large extent. In this study, an air-conditioning system with naturally stratified storage tank was designed, constructed and tested. A new type of diffuser was designed and used in this study. Factors that influenced the performance of chilled-water storage tanks were investigated. The results indicated that stratified storage tank consistently stratified well without any physical barrier. Investigation also showed that storage efficiency decreased with increasing flow rate due to increased mixing of warm and chilled water. Diffuser design and layout primarily affected the mixing near the inlet diffuser and the extent of this mixing had primary influence on the shape of the thermocline. The heat conduction through tank walls and through the thermocline caused widening of mixed volume. Thermal efficiency of stratified storage tanks was as high as 90%, which indicates that stratified tanks can effectively be used as a load management technique.
► Experimental study on naturally stratified thermal storage tank. ► A new type of octagonal diffuser was designed and studied. ► The results indicated that stratified storage tank consistently stratified well without any physical barrier. ► Thermal efficiency of stratified storage tanks was as high as 90%. ► Diffuser design and layout primarily affect the efficiency of thermal storage.
