Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
8114137 | Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews | 2016 | 15 Pages |
Abstract
A systematic review of latent heat storage in building elements was conducted to establish the current knowledge base and reveal key design and performance factors that could be used to define technologies available for immediate implementation and for specific applications. All relevant literature published by April 2014 was critically evaluated and a data extraction procedure was used to organise, analyse and report design and performance parameters of Phase Change Material (PCM) elements. The review of a total of 120 papers revealed that published information on these aspects is diverse and in many cases insufficient. The diversity of test conditions and variety of reported values indicate that physical properties and performance data concerning materials and complete PCM elements are not directly comparable. Therefore matching technologies and applications for specific climates and building typologies is not possible solely through published information. However evidence was collected which shows that, with appropriate design, PCM elements can contribute to reducing loads and achieving energy savings in buildings, while securing a comfortable indoor environment. Key design factors to this end were found to be the climate and target season, the design of appropriate controls for active and passive systems used in combination with the PCM elements and cost-related factors. The review also mapped the research foci to date, revealing the range of variations previously examined and potential research gaps worth pursuing in the future.
Keywords
Related Topics
Physical Sciences and Engineering
Energy
Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment
Authors
A. Mavrigiannaki, E. Ampatzi,