Solar energy is an intermittent supply source of energy. To efficiently utilize this free renewable energy source some form of thermal energy storage devices are necessary. Phase change materials (PCMs), because of their high energy density storage capacity and near isothermal phase change characteristics, have proven to be promising candidates for latent heat thermal energy storage (LHTES) devices. Among the various LHTES devices for low temperature residential heating and cooling applications, the shell-and-tube type heat exchanging devices are the most simple to operate and can be easily fabricated. This work numerically investigates the buoyancy driven heat transfer process during melting (charging) of a commercial paraffin wax as PCM filling the annulus of a horizontal double pipe heat exchanger. The heated working fluid (water) is passing through the central tube of the annulus at a sufficiently high flow-rate and thereby maintaining an almost isothermal wall temperature at the inner pipe which is higher than the melting temperature of the PCM. The transient, two-dimensional coupled laminar momentum and energy equations for the model are suitably non-dimensionalized and are solved numerically using the enthalpy-porosity approach. Time-wise evolutions of the flow patterns and temperature distributions are presented through velocity vector fields and isotherm plots. In this study, two types of PCM filled annuli, a plain annulus and a strategically placed longitudinal finned annulus, are studied. The total energy stored, the total liquid fraction and the energy efficiency at different melting times are evaluated for three different operating conditions and the results are compared between the plain and finned annuli. The present study will provide guidelines for system thermal performance and design optimization of the shell-and-tube LHTES devices.
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