Numerical study of shell and tube latent thermal energy storage partially filled with metal foam and corrugated internal tube with external heat losses

In the present work, a vertical shell and tube Latent Heat Thermal Energy Storage System is analyzed. The cylinder is filled with phase change material and parts of metal foam. The inner face of the cylinder is corrugated, and it is assumed a constant temperature over the melting temperature of the paraffin wax to simulate the heat transfer. The external surface loses heat to the outside and the top and bottom surfaces are adiabatic. Paraffin wax is used as phase change material that melts over a range of temperatures and has a high latent heat of fusion. The thermal conductivity of the phase change material is low and due to this, it is enhanced with metal foam. In this numerical simulation, it is used the aluminum foam. Enthalpy-porosity theory is used to simulate the phase transition process, and the Local Thermal Equilibrium and Darcy-Forchheimer models are used to examine heat transport between the paraffin and the metal foam. Using the commercial code Ansys-Fluent, the governing equations’ solutions are calculated. In the paper, it is considered different conductivity variations on the external wall and the distinct filling ratio of metal foam. The melting time, enthalpy stored, and energy loss from the numerical simulations of the LHTESS charging phase are provided as a function of time and evaluated.