Analysis of Solidification and Melting of a Phase Change Material: Experimental and Simulation Study

The aim of this study is to experimentally investigate the solidification and melting process of a commercially available phase change material, SP25E2, which is highly suitable for passive buildings in various climates. The data gathered has been utilized to validate the proposed numerical two-dimensional model solved in the Ansys Fluent software. The temperature changes for the tests were measured using temperature sensors and a thermographic camera. The temperature plots and the liquid fraction contours numerically generated were observed to be consistent with the experimental data collected. The results therefore demonstrate the capacity of the proposed numerical model to accurately predict the behavior of phase change materials when subjected to different thermal conditions. Since phase change materials have great potential in increasing the thermal mass of buildings and in reducing the temperature fluctuations across a day/night cycle, understanding the thermal behavior of such materials is essential for their optimal use in building envelopes. Also, considering that phase change materials have proven applications in several other industries such as food, textile, medical, and automotive, engineers can significantly save both time and money by performing simulation studies to determine the most appropriate phase change material as well as their optimal incorporation designs prior to constructing physical prototypes.