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Latent heat storage
Author(s) -
Schröder J.,
Gawron K.
Publication year - 1981
Publication title -
international journal of energy research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.808
H-Index - 95
eISSN - 1099-114X
pISSN - 0363-907X
DOI - 10.1002/er.4440050202
Subject(s) - eutectic system , thermal energy storage , enthalpy of fusion , salt (chemistry) , latent heat , hydrate , materials science , energy storage , crystallization , volume (thermodynamics) , melting point , chemical engineering , thermodynamics , process engineering , chemistry , metallurgy , composite material , engineering , microstructure , organic chemistry , physics , power (physics)
The investigations of materials presumably suitable as storage media for latent heat indicate that water, some salt hydrates and eutectic mixtures of water and salt hydrates possess extreme heats of fusion. Their melting points, ranging from about ‐50° to + 130°C, fit well for storing low grade heat in residential energy systems. Detailed experimental investigations on a large number of these media show, however, that only a few of them satisfy the quality requirments for practical application in storage units. Flexible flat‐plate storage containers especially developed for selected salt hydrates which expand on melting also show satisfactory performance over long periods of operation. In the case of water and selected water‐salt hydrate eutectics the volume increases on solidification, and the expansion of solid storage material, being very inhomgeneous, breaks even flexible containers after only a few storage cycles. This ruinous local expansion can be avoided, however, by adding a small amount of special, lower melting salt hydrate eutectics which homogenize the crystallization and solidification of the storage medium.