Heat pipe-assisted melting of a phase change material

• Published in: International journal of heat and mass transfer Vol. 55; no. 13-14; pp. 3458 - 3469
• Main Authors: Sharifi, Nourouddin, Wang, Shimin, Bergman, Theodore L., Faghri, Amir
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Kidlington Elsevier Ltd 01.06.2012; Elsevier
• Subjects: Applied sciences; Enclosure; Energy; Energy. Thermal use of fuels; Exact sciences and technology; Heat pipe; Heat pipes; Heating; Mass transfer; Melting; Phase change materials; Simulation; Thermal energy storage; Transport and storage of energy; Tubes; Heat pipe; Thermal energy storage; Melting; Temperature distribution; Numerical simulation; PCM material; Modeling; Heat transfer

Heat pipe-assisted melting of a phase change material (PCM) housed within a vertical cylindrical enclosure is simulated and is compared to melting induced by heating from an isothermal surface, or with a solid rod or a hollow tube. A parametric study reveals that the heat pipe-assisted melting rates...