Testing of PCM Heat Storage Modules with Solar Collectors as Heat Source

AbstractA latent heat storage based on the phase change material Sodium Acetate Trihydrate (SAT) has been tested as part of a demonstration system. The full heat storage consisted of 4 individual modules each containing about 200kg of sodium acetate trihydrate with different additives. The aim was to actively utilize the ability of the material to supercool to obtain long storage periods. The modules were charged with solar heat supplied by 22.4 m2 evacuated tubular collectors. The investigation showed that it was possible to fully charge one module within a period of 270minutes with clear skies. In long periods with high level of irradiance several modules were charged in parallel due to the limited heat exchange capacity of the integrated heat exchanger of the modules. After the modules were heated to more than 80° C they were set to passively cool down. Modules reached 30°C in a period of parallel cool down without the sodium acetate trihydrate solidified in 3 of the 4 modules. Further tests showed that stable supercooling at ambient temperature is possible

Laboratory Testing of Solar Combi System with Compact Long Term PCM Heat Storage

AbstractTo enable the transition from fossil fuels as a primary heat source for domestic hot water preparation and space heating solar thermal energy has great potential. The heat from the sun has the disadvantage that it is not always available when there is a demand. To solve this mismatch a thermal seasonal storage can be used to store excess heat from the summer to the winter when the demand is higher than the supply. Installing a long term thermal storage in a one family house it needs to be compact and sensible heat storages are not suitable. A latent heat storage with a phase change material (PCM) can provide a more compact way of storing heat. Sodium acetate trihydrate (SAT) is a good candidate material as it has a relatively high heat of fusion and in addition it has the ability to supercool to room temperature without solidifying. In this paper results from the test of a solar combi system with a latent heat storage with SAT is presented. The SAT heat storage modules were heated to 80°C by the solar collectors 53 times in the test period from June to November 2015 and this enabled the modules to supercool. Supercooling was achieved for 39 days for a SAT module after which 11 kWh of heat were discharged