Improving energy storage by PCM using hybrid nanofluid [(SWCNTs-CuO)/H2O] and a helical (spiral) coil: Hybrid passive techniques
Aliakbar Hosseinpour, Mohsen Pourfallah, M. Gholinia
Abstract
The aim of this study is the numerical analysis of the melting process of the phase change material (PCM) in a spiral coil. The space between the inner tube and outer shell is filled with RT-50 as PCM. Moreover, the hybrid nanofluid (with a carbon component) flows through the inner tube. The novelty of this work is to use different configurations of fin and different percentage of hybrid nanoparticles (SWCNTs-CuO) on the PCM melting process. In the numerical model created by ANSYS-Fluent, the effect of various inlet temperatures is investigated. The results indicate that the extended surface created by extra fin has a dominant effect on melting time, so by adding the third fin, the melting time is reduced by 39.24%. The next most influential factor in PCM melting is the inlet temperature of the working fluid, so that 10°C increment of temperature result in the PCM melting time decreased by 35.41%.