Thermal energy storage performance of a three-PCM cascade tank in a high-temperature packed bed system

A high-temperature, sensible heat thermal energy storage (TES) system is designed for use in a central receiver concentrating solar power plant. Air is used as the heat transfer fluid and solid bricks made out of a high storage density material are used for storage. Experiments were performed using a laboratory-scale TES prototype system, and the results are presented. The air inlet temperature was varied between 300 °C to 600 °C, and the flow rate was varied from 50 cubic feet per minute (CFM) to 90 CFM. It was found that the charging time decreases with increase in mass flow rate. A 1D packed-bed model was used to simulate the thermal performance of the system and was validated with the experimental results. Unsteady 1D energy conservation equations were formulated for combined convection and conduction heat transfer and solved numerically for charging/discharging cycles. Appropriate heat transfer and pressure drop correlations from prior literature were identified. A parametric study was done by varying the bed dimensions, fluid flow rate, particle diameter, and porosity to evaluate the charging/discharging characteristics, overall thermal efficiency, and capacity ratio of the system.

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Coatings utilization to modify the effective properties of high temperature packed bed thermal energy storage

Applied Thermal Engineering ◽

10.1016/j.applthermaleng.2020.116414 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 185 ◽

pp. 116414

Author(s):

Silvia Trevisan ◽

Wujun Wang ◽

Björn Laumert

Keyword(s):

High Temperature ◽

Energy Storage ◽

Thermal Energy ◽

Thermal Energy Storage ◽

Effective Properties ◽

Packed Bed

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Heat Transfer in a High-Temperature Packed Bed Thermal Energy Storage System—Roles of Radiation and Intraparticle Conduction

Journal of Energy Resources Technology ◽

10.1115/1.2792693 ◽

1996 ◽

Vol 118 (1) ◽

pp. 50-57 ◽

Cited By ~ 22

Author(s):

A. A. Jalalzadeh-Azar ◽

W. G. Steele ◽

G. A. Adebiyi

Keyword(s):

Heat Transfer ◽

High Temperature ◽

Energy Storage ◽

Thermal Energy ◽

Thermal Energy Storage ◽

Storage System ◽

Packed Bed ◽

Energy Storage System ◽

Operating Conditions ◽

Thermal Energy Storage System

A model is developed and experimentally verified to study the heat transfer in a high-temperature packed bed thermal energy storage system utilizing zirconium oxide pellets. The packed bed receives flue gas at elevated temperatures varying with time during the storage process and utilizes air for the recovery process. Both convection and radiation are included in the model of the total heat transfer between the gas and the pellets. It is found that thermal radiation and intraparticle conduction do not play a major role in the overall heat transfer in the packed bed under the specified operating conditions. An uncertainty analysis is performed to investigate the propagation of the uncertainties in the variables to the overall uncertainty in the model predictions and the experimental results.

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