Numerical analysis of polyethylene based nano-enhanced phase change material in cylindrical storage system

Abstract

Environmental sustainability encompasses various dimensions like waste management, energy conservation, and environmental impact. The use of waste plastic; Linear Low-density polyethylene (LLDPE) as a phase change material (PCM) offers a sustainable solution for energy and the environment. This study investigates LLDPE/ functionalize graphene composites for latent heat storage using a shell and helical coil for effective energy conversion. The simulation is carried out for constant flux and constant temperature heat supply to understand the influence of nano additives and geometrical parameters such as spiral coil diameter (D<inf>c</inf>), pitch (P<inf>c</inf>), and orientation of storage unit (θ). The result reveals that nano additive influence effectively and reduces the charging time approximately from 20 to 40% for 1–5% of nano-addition. Simulation results reveals that the spiral coil diameter is crucial for melting and heat transmission. The overall melting time is decreased by up to 56% by increasing the spiral coil diameter from 21 to 49 mm for LLDPE while the effect of pitch length variation is found not significant. The constant temperature heating at 160, 250 and 340°C gives effective results for charging time improvement. The geometrical orientations from 0 to 90 degrees report that the horizontal position is the best orientation for energy storage. © 2024 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.