Evaluation of the application of Phase Change Materials (PCM) on the envelope of a typical dwelling in the Mediterranean region

In this work the application of macroencapsulated Phase Change Materials (PCM) on the envelope of a typical dwelling in the Mediterranean region is evaluated. This is the first time PCMs are evaluated for application under the specific climatic conditions of Cyprus. The simulation process is carried out using Transient Systems Simulation software (TRNSYS). Two types of simulations have been carried out: the energy rate control test and the temperature level control test. The energy savings achieved by the addition of the PCM layer on the envelope of the test cubicle compared to the base case (no insulation) ranged between 21.7 and 28.6%. The optimum PCM case was also combined with a common thermal insulation topology in Cyprus. The results showed that the maximum energy savings per year was achieved by the combined case (66.2%). In the temperature level control test the constructions containing PCM performed better during summer. The results of the optimum PCM case and the combined case were economically evaluated using Life Cycle Cost (LCC). The results of this analysis showed that the PCM case has a very long payback period (14 ½ years) while this is changing when it is combined with insulation where the payback period is reduced to 7 ½ years.

[1]  Kamal Abdel Radi Ismail,et al.  PCM THERMAL INSULATION IN BUILDINGS , 1997 .

[2]  M. Babich,et al.  DSC studies of new energy storage materials , 1993 .

[3]  Andreas K. Athienitis,et al.  Investigation of the Thermal Performance of a Passive Solar Test-Room with Wall Latent Heat Storage , 1997 .

[4]  D. Feldman,et al.  Thermal storage in drywall using organic phase-change material , 1987 .

[5]  Gregoris Panayiotou,et al.  Thermal performance of dwellings in Cyprus and approaches for energy conservation , 2014 .

[6]  Luisa F. Cabeza,et al.  Materials used as PCM in thermal energy storage in buildings: A review , 2011 .

[7]  Luisa F. Cabeza,et al.  Review on thermal energy storage with phase change: materials, heat transfer analysis and applications , 2003 .

[8]  Esam M. Alawadhi,et al.  Thermal analysis of a building brick containing phase change material , 2008 .

[9]  Richard P. Chartoff,et al.  Advanced phase-change materials for passive solar storage applications: Final report. [C-16 to C-24 alkyl hydrocarbons] , 1986 .

[10]  Luisa F. Cabeza,et al.  An approach to the simulation of PCMs in building applications using TRNSYS , 2005 .

[11]  Luisa F. Cabeza,et al.  Use of microencapsulated PCM in concrete walls for energy savings , 2007 .

[12]  Luisa F. Cabeza,et al.  Experimental study of using PCM in brick constructive solutions for passive cooling , 2010 .

[13]  Cai Zhe,et al.  Experimental research on the use of phase change materials in perforated brick rooms for cooling storage , 2013 .

[14]  Olatz Irulegi,et al.  Energy Performance of Buildings , 2016 .

[15]  Luisa F. Cabeza,et al.  Improvement of the thermal inertia of building materials incorporating PCM. Evaluation in the macroscale , 2013 .

[16]  Mohammed M. Farid,et al.  A Review on Energy Conservation in Building Applications with Thermal Storage by Latent Heat Using Phase Change Materials , 2021, Thermal Energy Storage with Phase Change Materials.

[17]  V. V. Tyagi,et al.  PCM thermal storage in buildings: A state of art , 2007 .

[18]  Luisa F. Cabeza,et al.  Use of microencapsulated PCM in buildings and the effect of adding awnings , 2012 .

[19]  Arild Gustavsen,et al.  Phase Change Materials for Building Applications: A State-of-the-Art Review , 2010 .

[20]  Dan Zhou,et al.  Review on thermal energy storage with phase change materials (PCMs) in building applications , 2012 .

[21]  Soteris A. Kalogirou,et al.  Generation of typical meteorological year (TMY-2) for Nicosia, Cyprus , 2003 .

[22]  Ramazan Benrashid,et al.  DSC studies of new energy storage materials. Part 3. Thermal and flammability studies , 1994 .