Numerical simulation of building wall incorporating phase change material for cooling load reduction

Phase change material (PCM) placed in the building wall changes the temperature profile within the wall and thus influences the heat transport to indoor environment. The effectiveness of these building walls depends on PCM location within the wall, PCM melting temperature, and PCM layer thickness. Considering these parameters, the numerical simulation has been conducted for a typical building wall and the obtained results are reported in terms of melt fraction of PCM and heat flux at the inner surface of the wall. From these results it is found that for the minimum heat transport to the indoor environment, the PCM layer should be embedded in between the fiberglass insulation layers, melting temperature of PCM should be in the range of indoor air temperature and PCM thickness should be higher. The numerical simulation has also been conducted considering actual weather conditions into account for three consecutive days with four different PCM (RT-26, RT-25, n-octadecane and RT-28). For three consecutive days, the percentage reduction of heat transport to the indoor environment is obtained 33.18%, 33.94%, 34.40% and 37.13% by using RT-26, RT-25, n-octadecane and RT-28 PCM, respectively.