J Ther Eng, Vol. 9, No. 1, pp.

247–256, January 2023

Journal of Thermal Engineering

Web page info: https://jten.yildiz.edu.tr
DOI: 10.14744/jten.2023.0000

Review Article

Review on latent thermal energy storage using phase change material

Sattar ALJABAIR1,* , Israa ALESBE1 , Sahira Hasan IBRAHIM1
1
Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Technology, Baghdad, 10066, Iraq

ARTICLE INFO
ABSTRACT
Article history
Received: 20 February 2021 One of the appealing technologies that contributes to raising the energy storage density is
Accepted: 19 March 2021 latent heat thermal energy storage. The heat of fusion is isothermally stored at a temperature
representing the temperature at which a phase-change material transitions between phases.
Keywords: The current research provides a review of how phase transition materials are used in melting
Phase Change Material; and solidification. Generally, the range of working temperature extends from -20 °C to 200
Solidification; Melting; Thermal °C for solidification and melting applications. The first range (-20 to 5 °C) is employed for
Storage commercial and domestic refrigeration. The second range (5 to 40 °C) is utilized to lower the
energy requirements for air-conditioning applications. The applications includes in third
range (40 to 82 °C) are solar collector and heating of water. Applications of absorption
cooling, waste electricity generations, and heat recovery are operated at high temperature
range (82 to180 °C). There are various types of PCMs for all the above temperature ranges.
The present review paper will discuss the application fi eld, Ge ometry, PCM ty pe, he at
transfer augmentation technique and their effects on the performance. The conclusions are
mentioned to give more insight about the PCM behavior in various applications.

Cite this article as: Aljabair S, Alesbe I, Ibrahim SH. Review on latent thermal energy
storage using phase change material. J Ther Eng 2023;9(1):247–256.

INTRODUCTION
Any thermal system’s thermal performance can be and viscosity are less significant features but still need to
increased by using thermal energy storage. Because they be taken into account [2]. The latent heat of fusion and the
have a large capacity to charge and discharge at a fixed tem- temperature of phase shift are also among the most crucial
perature, high-efficiency materials are utilized to store the ones. Phase transition materials come in a variety of forms,
energy. Phase Change Materials, denoted by PCM [1], are some of which are naturally occurring and others which
materials that may change their physical state during the are created. Though typically they can be divided into three
phase change process in a constrained temperature range. groups as organic (O), inorganic (IO), and eutectic (E) mate-
Different physical, chemical, and thermal characteristics rials for the solid to liquid phase transformation. Figure 1
apply to these materials. The density, thermal conductivity, provides a more detailed classification of these materials

*Corresponding author.
*E-mail address: [email protected]
This paper was recommended for publication in revised form by Regional Editor
Jovana Radulovic

Published by Yıldız Technical University Press, İstanbul, Turkey

Copyright 2021, Yıldız Technical University. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/).
248 J Ther Eng, Vol. 9, No. 1, pp. 247–256, January 2023

as a discussed in [3]. Phase change materials applications heat transfer process. Additionally, when the inlet tempera-
includes: casting, melting, freezing, cryosurgery ablation, ture and mass flow rate increased, the total melting time
and soldering. Conduction heat transfer throughout phase decreased by 30%.
change process is described by a moving interface which Mete and Yusuf [7], focused on the physics of ther-
separates the two phases. These problems are considered mal variations concerned with charging and discharging
as “moving boundary problems”. They vary with time dur- of Paraffin as a PCM in (ESS) of the horizontal shell-and-
ing interface movement. The motion of interface with its tube heat exchanger. The distilled water was used as the
location are changing with time. So, it should be regarded HTF flowing in the inner tube. The findings demonstrate
as an essential part of the general solution. Changing the that changing the HTF inlet temperature either increased
material properties leads to transform the phase from state or decreased the rate of melting or solidification inside the
to another. Moreover, temperature gradient is discontinu- PCM. Rathod and Banerjee [8], used shell and tube heat
ous at the interface. Result in, temperature function for exchanger as ESS with paraffin wax as PCM, for both pro-
each phase must be assigned. Additionally, changing the cesses. It has been noted that the total melting time of the
density leads to increasing the motion of the liquid phase. PCM decreases with increase in the inlet temperature and
a convective term should be included in the heat equation mass flow rate of HTF. Jesumathy et al. [9], investigated the
of the liquid phase if the influence of motion is effective. PCM processes of paraffin wax in horizontal double pipe
However, this effect in most problems can be neglected [4]. HSU. They studied different parameters as a temperature
Applications, physical characteristics, and techniques used distribution along the axial direction of PCM, heat trans-
to improve TES performance were all briefly examined in fer coefficient, and flow rate. It was noticed that, during
the literature. The best performance comes from selecting melting process the heat flow rate increased by 25% with
PCMs with the right qualities for a certain application. increase or decrease in the inlet HTF temperature by 2 °C.
The experimental and numerical literatures are reviewed While, the increasing of heat transfer during solidification
in this work, and combined experimental and theoretical process was 11%. Moreover, the melting time decreased
investigations that utilized PCM materials in different cases about 31% with increase inlet fluid temperature from 70 °C
especially in the field of mechanical engineering. to 74 °C, Mustafa Yusuf et al. [10], studied the eccentric-
The literatures are divided into three parts: experimen- ity effect of a horizontal tube on solidification of a PCM
tal; theoretical; combined experimental -theoretical parts in shell storage unit. Results show that the total solidifica-
including the geometry type of PCM, type of heat trans- tion time increases as the position of the HTF tube deviates
fer fluid. The primary goal of this investigation is to cover from the center of annulus towards the top or bottom of the
uncommitted studies in this field with the headlines of outer shell.
researches during last years. Yifei Wang et al. [11], presented the thermal action of
PCM process of erythritol and air as (HTF) on a vertical
shell and tube latent heat thermal storage unit (LHTSU).
EXPERIMENTAL INVESTIGATIONS
It was obvious that increase inlet fluid temperature dur-
In a vertical tube concentric annular energy storage ing melting obviously leads to increase in the heat transfer
unit, stearic acid solidification processes were examined by enhancement and decrease in the charging time. While,
Zhongliang Liu et al. [5]. A copper fin was attached to the there was a slight effect for increasing the pressure of the
hot rod to increase the stearic acid’s thermal conductivity HTF at the same mass flow rate on the thermal behavior of
by 250%. The PCM’s two mechanisms of heat transport are the PCM. Ashish and Sarviya [12], studied the effectiveness
250% better with this improvement. For the purposes of by latent heat storage (LHS) for drying of food product. The
melting and solidifying paraffin as PCM, Mithat et al. [6] shell and tube type of (LHS) was used for solar dryer with
devised and built a thermal storage vertical unit (shell and paraffin wax as a PCM. It was noticed that the LHS is con-
tube heat exchanger system SATHES). Water worked as the venient for equipping the heated air to dry the food product
fluid media (HTF) flowing inside the inner tube while the during low intensity of solar energy (no sunshine hours).
paraffin was maintained in the gap. It has been shown that During discharging of LHS, the temperature of air increases
tilting the outer shell surface at an angle of 5o improves the in the range of 17 °C to 5 °C for nearly 10 hours duration.

Figure 1. Phase Chang Materials (PCM) categories.

J Ther Eng, Vol. 9, No. 1, pp. 247–256, January 2023 249

Ramalinga and Marimuthu [13], studied the charging and The shell was filled with (RT35) while the tube carrying
discharging of paraffin wax in a double tube PCM storage water as (HTF). It is observed that a shorter time of the
in solar collector. The fusion occurred radially towards tube phenomena was obtained as the number of inner tubes
wall. It was observed that melting of wax was ineffective in increased. Result in decreasing the surface-averaged
bottom region of tube because of temperature gradients. Nusselt number was obtained. Table 1. shows a summary
Gang Shen et al. [14], utilized RT60 as a PCM in a vertical of above literatures.
multi-tube thermal ESS as application of household ther- In a solar absorption refrigeration system, PCM was
mal energy storage. Five HTF tubes were selected to modify applied. In a high temperature range, it both stores and
the heat transfer phenomena in the system. It was shown releases thermal energy. An absorption chiller can be
that arranging the HTF tubes had a significant influence on operated for a long time using this energy as a continual
the thermal characteristics during melting and solidifica- source of intake heat. Consequently, the efficiency will be
tion processes. Additionally, natural convection was domi- enhanced. In order to enhance the thermal performance
nated during the melting process, During the early stages of of a thermal storage system, Francis et al. [17] employed
discharge, PCM solidification was quicker in the lower liq- a concentric annulus filled with erythritol (melting point
uid PCM space; however, after that, conduction took over equal 117.7 °C) as a PCM and provided it with longitudinal
as the primary mechanism of heat transmission. fins on the shell side. The amount of store energy during
Digant et al. [15], studied the influences of orienta- solidification was 70.9% of the maximum energy charged
tion (0o, 45o, 90o) on thermal behavior of stearic acid PCM and it used to run an absorption cooling system. Gil et al.
(melting point 55.7 to 56.6 °C) in a shell and tube type [18] designed and built pilot thermal energy storage with
(LHSU). Where water used as a fluid media. It is shown an operating temperature extended from 150 to 200 °C.
that the lowest melting time occurs at angle 45o. Kousha Hydroquinone (melting temperature=166 °C and 173 °C)
et al. [16], used different arrangements of inner tubes in a was applied as a PCM and utilized on refrigeration systems
multitube heat exchanger for different fluid temperatures. by solar cooling. It was discovered that the hydroquinone

Table 1. Summary of experimental investigations

Researcher PCM Type Geometry HTF Remarks

Zhongliang Liu [5] Stearic acid Vertical annulus Water The electrical heating rod was fitted with
a new copper fin.
Mithat et al. [6] Paraffin wax melting Vertical SATHES Water Outer surface of the container was tilting
point (58-60) oC to heat transfer Enhancement
Mete and Yusuf [7] Paraffin wax of P56-58 Horizontal Distilled Using several flow rates and inlet
SATHES water temperatures
Rathod and Banerjee [8] Paraffin wax SATHES Water Using different mass flow rates
Jesumathy et al. [9] Paraffin wax Double-pipe Water Using several flow rates and inlet
horizontal latent temperatures
heat storage unit
Mustafa Yusuf et al. [10] Paraffin of P 56-E 58 Horizontal Eccentricity effect of inner tube was
SATHES studied.
Yifei Wang et al. [11] Erythritol Vertical Shell- Air There was a slight effect for increasing
Tube LHTSU the pressure of the fluid on the thermal
performance of the PCM.
Ashish and Sarviya [12] Paraffin wax Shell-Tube LHS for Air During times of darkness or when solar
solar dryer energy is of very low intensity, hot air is
used to dry food products.
Ramalinga and Paraffin wax Concentric Water Melting of wax was ineffective in bottom
Marimuthu [13] annulus region of tube
Gang Shen et al. [14] Paraffin wax RT60 Vertical multi-tube Water Heat transmission is performed using
five HTF tubes.
Digant et al. [15] Stearic acid (Melting Shell-and-tube Water The influence of annulus orientation (0o,
point=56 oC) (LHSU) 45o, 90o) on thermal behavior of PCM
Kousha et al. [16] paraffin (RT35 Multitube HE Water In a multitube heat exchanger, various
inner tube configurations were used.
250 J Ther Eng, Vol. 9, No. 1, pp. 247–256, January 2023

could operate a pilot installation for combined influence thermal storage unit comprising RT60 and paraffin wax
absorption. produced a greater rate and required less time for storage.
Seyed Soheil et al. [24], examined the impact of channel
geometries like a circular, elliptical, rectangular, square,
THEORETICAL INVESTIGATION
and diamond as on melting process in a cylindrica storage.
Wei-Wei Wang et al. [19], analyzed the influences of The charching time was found to be 75% of PCM is nearly
the flow rate at the inlet on thermal efficiency of melting to same as for all geometries. Then, the main differences
and solidification processes. It was shown that these pro- occur depending on the PCM geometry and the buoyant
cesses had three levels for changing the temperature in force intensity.
PCM processing time. Seddegh et al. [20], studied the Latifa Begum et al. [25], modeled numerically the
thermal efficiency of a vertical shell-tube latent heat (ESS). (SLE) in the heat exchanger with horizontal double pipe
The findings revealed that the conduction heat flow was and arbitrary-shaped cross section area. It is observed that
more importance in the solidification cases. Additionally, the temperature change of the fluid is more distinguish on
the dominating mode of thermal process in the PCM in the (SLE) discussed to changing of the flow rate. Moreover,
the melting cases was natural convection, while conduc- the oblate geometry of inner tube produced higher stor-
tion was the dominating thermal mode in the solidification age energy than the other geometries. Esapour et al. [26],
cases. Esapour et al. [21], examined the influencing factor discussed melting and solidification phenomena of RT-35
of inner tubes numbers filled with water inside a multi tube PCM mixed with porous foam from metallic in a multitube
in the heat exchanger (MTHX) as a geometrical parame- heat exchanger. PCM was used in middle shell, while water
ter during charging process of RT35 as PCM as shown in (HTF) flowed across tubes diameters. It was shown that the
Figure 2. It is noted that increasing inner tubes numbers increase of internal tubes numbers with adding of metal-
from one to four in the MTHX leads to increase the rate of lic foam increased significantly charge and discharge rates.
melting and decrease time period by 29%. when metallic foam exist with porosities equal 0.7 to 0.9
Saeid Seddegh et al. [22], analysed the position effect led to decreasing the melting time to 55% and 14%, respec-
of shell and tube ESS using PCMs process. It is noticed tively. Mustafa et al. [27], compared between the RT-50
that, the horizontal position has an excellent thermal per- PCM distributed in the annular space of horizontal double
formance during part load energy charging because of pipe configuration of latent heat thermal energy storage
strong convective heat transfer in the upper part of the device (case A) and the inner tube (case B) to determine
solid PCM. However, convection heat transfer in the verti- each case gives the best thermal performance. The find-
cal position has the same intensity in the charging time. ings indicate that case B had a 50% faster melting time than
In the opposite process, there is no difference between case A. Additionally, case A solidification time is 43.4%
positions. The thermo-convective features between a water faster than case B. Hadi et al. [28], the influence of melt-
(HTF) and paraffin wax (PCM) result in conduction and ing, solidification, configurations of multi-layers of RT-65
forced convection in ESS was studied by Abderrahmane et PCMs. It was obvious that the inner cylinder is more over-
al. [23]. Enthalpy evaluation was employed to investigate sensitive than the outer cylinder to the change fluid tem-
the thermal characteristics during phase change processes. perature. Moreover, the inlet saving energy was 23.28% of
It was shown that, the tube and shell dimensions had more inlet energy in the case of one-layer of RT-65. While, this
impact on the time of storage system. Additionally, com- percentage increased to 41.67% in the case of three-layers
pared to the first unit that included paraffin wax only, the of PCM.

Figure 2. Geometrical configurations for four cases of inner tubes.

J Ther Eng, Vol. 9, No. 1, pp. 247–256, January 2023 251

Mohammad and Jun [29], investigated the conjugate method used to model the numerical solution, the study
heat transfer of (PCMs) metal foam bounded between parameters were the PCM thickness and atmospheric tem-
double annuli. A pulse heat power used at the inner annu- perature. The results show that, can be used PCM in the
lus wall, while the external wall was cooled by cold fluid. It solar system instead of electric batteries high efficiency and
was concluded that the heat sink packed with metal foam low cost. Christiano et al. [32], investigated the melting of
caused heat transfer rate increasing along the hot wall, ice inside a cavity using numerical code. The goals of this
particularly at Biot number is less than 0.2 (low cooling study were to verify the effect of the heating during melting
power). Mahmoud et al. [30], studied ice melting contain- case and the sub-cooling effect. This issue was solved using
ing Cu nanoparticle with metallic porous matrix in inclined the enthalpy-porosity approach, where the convective effects
elliptical annulus. Results show that there is no effect of have an action on the melting profiles, performance and
inclination of the elliptical annulus on the liquid fraction. melting rates. Table 2 shows a summary of above literatures.
Furthermore, For rest and inclined configurations, the Ben Zohra [33] improved the hot fluid production
porous matrix was suggested. generated by solar heater used in the thermal storage sys-
Ahmed [31], investigated the ability of PCM as a ther- tem (TSS). It was concluded that, inclination angle had
mal performance of refrigerator by photovoltaic. Enthalpy an important impact on the on the phase change system

Table 2. Summary of theoretical investigations

Researcher PCM Type Geometry HTF Remarks

Wei-Wei Wang n-octadecane SATHES Water There are three levels in the PCM operations
et al. [17] where the temperature changes over time.
Seddegh et al. Paraffin wax Vertical SATHES Water Conduction heat transfer has a larger role in
[18] the discharging process.
Esapour et al. RT35 Multi-tube heat Water Using multi-tube heat exchanger
[19] exchanger
Saeid Seddegh et Paraffin wax SATHES Water Using two positions, vertical and horizontal
al. [20]
Abderrahmane Paraffin wax Thermal energy Water Using combined Paraffin wax and RT60 to
et al. [21] storage (TES) unit decrease the time of storage.
Seyed Soheil et N-eisocane Cylindrical storage Constant wall Several cross-section channels as a circular,
al. [22] temperature rectangular, elliptical, square, and diamond-
56 oC like.
Latifa Begum et Gallium Heat exchanger with Air Using outer hexagonal shell.
al. [23] arbitrary-shaped
cross-section
Mehdi Esapour RT-35 embedded Three dimensional Water 1. Multi-tube H. E.
et al. [24] in metallic porous multitube heat 2. Non-equilibrium thermal boundary
foam exchanger conditions
Mustafa et al. Paraffin type Double pipe Water Two cases were considered:
[25] RT-50 solar thermal power 1. PCM Inside inner tube
systems 2. PCM outside inner tube
Hadi et al. [26] RT65 Coaxial cylinders Constant wall Each section’s number of layers and thickness
temperature were examined.
Mohammad and Metal foam Annulus The inner Conjugate flow and heat transfer were
Jun [27] cylinder received considered.
a pulse heat load.
Mahmoud et al. Ice as PCM + Cu Inclined elliptical Water Nanoparticles were inserting in the oblate
[28] + metallic porous annulus annulus to enhance the liquid fraction.
matrix
Ahmed [29] Photovoltaic panels Solar system + PCM Air PCM bater than electric batteries in solar
storage Technique system according to efficiency and cost.
Christiano et al. Ice melting rectangular cavity Water The convective effects have an effect on the
[30] melting profiles, thermal efficiency.
252 J Ther Eng, Vol. 9, No. 1, pp. 247–256, January 2023

because of more accelerating of the melting and increasing was decreased to 37% as the inlet temperature increases to
the melting rate. Sevilla and Radulovic [34] tested numeri- 80 °C. Martin et al. [41], selected shell and tubes HE as a
cally four different fluid encapsulated materials placed in latent thermal storage unit (LTESU) filled by paraffin RT35
four design types to state their effectiveness as a small scale, using in Concentrated Solar Power systems. It was con-
low temperature thermal energy storage (TES). The fluid cluded that, an upper injection for charging process and a
media was water and PCMs were water, glycerol, MDM lower one for discharging process were advised. Hosseini et
and MD3M. It was concluded that the PCM with the high- al. [42], presented the thermal case of RT-50 during PCM
est relevant properties could not charge the tank the fast- processes in a shell and tube HE. It was shown that, increas-
est. Aditionally, the system heating dynamics was affected ing inlet fluid temperature by 5 °C and 10 °C led to increas-
greatly by the design of the inlet. ing the efficiency in melting process from 81.10% to 88.40%
Korty [35] analyzed the heat storage filled with PCMs and solidification process from 79.70% to 81.40%.
to conserve available heat and improve its utilization. Water Kibria et al. [43], investigated the PCM processes domi-
was used as fluid media through the inner tube. The find- nated by heat conduction in a shell and tube storage unit
ings indicate that, acceleration in a melting process was (TSU) by a paraffin wax filling the shell and water used
caused by an increase in the number of pass, mass quantity inside the tube. Results indicate that, heat rate and melting
of PCM, and flow rate of fluid. and solidification times are significantly influenced by inlet
For higher temperature, Fan et al. [36] presented the temperature. Moreover, tube diameter has a more impact
combined influence of solar absorption system and a latent than tube thickness for enhancing the thermal features
storage system. Hydroquinone was applied as a phase between the fluid and PCM. Agus et al. [44], used three
change media. Two models of these two systems were cou- models of (TESU): nozzle, tube, and inner cylinder located
pled with each other. The outcomes indicate that, cooling concentrically inside shell to study the charging process
workload of 100 kW able to fulfilled with a hydroquinone and find temperature profile, mean surface Nusselt number,
volume of 12.5 m3 without any additional supplied exter- and liquid solid interface. The objective of this investiga-
nal energy. Three wayes for electricity generation from low tion was finding the melting temperature distribution. The
temperature heat recovery were predicated by Johansson results show that the first model (nozzle-shell) produced
and Soderstrom [37]. These technologies included ther- best charging process.
moelectric generator, organic Rankine cycle, and PCM Kousha et al. [45], investigated thermal performance
engine. The findings demonstrate that the PCM system can of an inclined shell and tube HE with Paraffin RT35 filling
function effectively for all temperature values taken into the shell as (PCM). It was noticed that the inclination angle
account, and that its size may be appropriately controlled to didn’t influence the heat rate and the temperature variation
benefit heat recovery sources below 55°C. in discharging case at which the conduction was the domi-
Nomura et al [38] studied the lost heat recovery for the nating mode in this process. Additionally, the heat transfer
latent heat transportation system (LHTS) by NaOH (PCM) rate at horizontal position during charging, was more than
at high temperatures grater than 300 °C in steel works. that at vertical position, and vice versa for the solidification
The recovery heat was supplied to a distillation tower of process. Saeid Seddegh et al. [46], studied the development
Benzene, Toluene, and Xylene (BTX). According to the of the solid/liquid interface of a PCM in vertical cylindri-
findings, the greatest amount of heat that could be stored cal LHTES. It was observed that, during the liquid melting
in a (LHTS) was 2.75 times greater than the amount of heat process moved towards top region of the system and the
that could be kept in a sensible HTS.. melting front moved towards bottom region. While, in the
solidification process, the solidification front moves longi-
tudinally and radially. Idris et al. [47], used three inclination
COMBINED EXPERIMENTAL AND THEORETICAL
positions of a PCM cylindrical thermal storage system to
INVESTIGATIONS
study the discharge characteristics performance of Paraffin
Jian-you [39], used three concentric cylinders (ESU). wax. It was noticed that, the PCM cylindrical thermal stor-
The middle cylinder contained PCM. The outer cylin- age orientation angle had an importance effect on the PCM
der contained the flowing hot fluid for melting process. period time and temperature distribution. Moreover, the
While, the inner cylinder contains the flowing cold fluid inclination angle near to 45° will produce shortest melting
for solidification process. On the thermal energy storage, time compared with 0° and 90° positions. Yue et al. [48],
the effects of inlet temperature and heat rate were investi- developed a PCM solar air HE built-in ventilated window
gated. Hosseini et al. [40], studied the action of increasing to enlarge stored/released latent heat to preheat the venti-
inlet flow temperature during the charging process of PCM lated air. It was shown that, the maximum PCM plate depth
in a shell and tube HE. The experimental study presented was 90mm and maximum air space thickness was 6mm for
the melting happened at various times near to the flow in a solar charging period of 6-hours. Wanchun et al. [49],
the tube and getting outwards towards the shell. While, the improved the overall thermal study of ventilation system
numerical results presented that the average time period integrated with the inorganic PCM panels by modifying air
J Ther Eng, Vol. 9, No. 1, pp. 247–256, January 2023 253

Table 3. Summary of combined experimental and theoretical investigations

Researcher PCM Type Geometry HTF Remarks

Long Jian [31] n-Hexacosane Three concentric Water 1. The middle cylinder contains PCM.
cylinders. 2. The outer cylinder contains the flowing
hot fluid for melting process.
3. The inner cylinder contains the flowing
cold fluid for solidification process.
Hosseini et al. commercial paraffin RT50 Horizontal SATHES Water the melting happened at different times at
[40] (Rubitherm GmbH) positions near to the HTF tube (melting only)
Martin et al. A paraffin RT35 with a Vertical SATHES Water Studied the impact of HTF injection side on
[41] melting temperature of 35 oC the system.
Hosseini et al. Paraffin RT50 Horizontal SATHES Water Using of single and two PCMs system in
[42] melting and melting process
solidification
Kibria et al. Paraffin wax Horizontal SATHES Water Tube radius has a greater effect than thickness
[43] for enhancing the heat transfer rate between
fluid and PCM
Agus et al. [44] Paraffin wax Melting process Three models were Water The first model (nozzle-shell) produced best
used: (Nozzle, tube, charging process.
reducer) and Shell H.
E. Models (vertical
position)
Kousha et al. A paraffin RT35 Inclined shell and Water No effect for inclination angles on solidification
[45] tube HE 0o, 30o, 60o, process and the horizontal position gives better
90o results for charging process
Saeid et al. RT-60 paraffin wax Vertical cylindrical Water Experimental Visualization Numerical study
[46] shell and tube for melting and solidification process.
systems
Idris et al. [47] A paraffin wax RT35 A single copper Water 45o gives faster melting of PCM than 0o & 90o
tube is encased in
an acrylic shell to
display the PCM
melting profile.
Yue et al. [48] 50% paraffin wax Solar air heat Air Using different PCM plate depth and air space
impregnated fiberboard. exchanger thickness to prove the thermal performance.
Wanchun Sun Inorganic PCM panels Plexiglass used to Air Using panels to modify the overall
et al. [49] process the shell performance in ventilation system
and channels of
the rectangular
ventilation system.

inlet temperature and PCM thermal properties. The results out in solidification and melting cases need to be carefully
show that, the outlet temperature fluctuation decreases understand. To comprehend heat transfer better, the pres-
with decrease inlet flow rate or increase panels thickness. ent paper reviews the experimental and theoretical studies
concerned this phenomenon for different types and geome-
tries of latent energy storage systems (LESS) and PCM. The
CONCLUSIONS
most important conclusions educed from these studies can
Latent thermal energy storage (TES) units (or sys- be written as follows:
tems) are used widely in concentrated solar power sys- 1. The charging and discharging operations are unaf-
tems. Moreover, the enhanced storage density allows for fected by an increase in volume flow rate.
designing more effective heat exchanger. The most favor- 2. Arrangement of inner tubes of multitube heat
able technology used here is the shell and tube HE due to exchanger has no influence on melting time, mixed
its availability and price. However, PCM process carrying metal foam rate, and PCM.
254 J Ther Eng, Vol. 9, No. 1, pp. 247–256, January 2023

3. The melting process quickens and the time needed to change material. Intern J Res Advent Technol
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[CrossRef]
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conduction and vanished of heat convection. Also, [6] Akgun M, Aydın O, Kaygusuz K. Experimental study
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AUTHORSHIP CONTRIBUTIONS Jegadheeswaran S. An experimental study on heat
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Authors equally contributed to this work.
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findings of this study are available within the article. Raw
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the corresponding author, upon reasonable request.
study on the melting and solidification behav-
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CONFLICT OF INTEREST heat thermal storage unit. Int J Heat Mass Transf
The author declared no potential conflicts of interest 2016;99:770–781. [CrossRef]
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There are no ethical issues with the publication of this cation of paraffin wax in a concentric tube pcm
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