Experimental investigation on heat transfer characteristics of a new radiant floor system with phase change material

In order to improve the heat transfer characteristics of the traditional phase change material(PCM) floor, a new double-layer radiant floor system with PCM is proposed, which can store thermal or cold energy in the off-peak period and use them in the peak period. An experimental setup was developed to study the heat transfer characteristics of the new system under both cooling and heating modes. The experimental results show that the double-layer radiant floor system with PCM can meet both the cold and thermal requirements of users. Moreover, with the same duration of the thermal energy storage process, the increase of water temperature supplied to the system can improve the heat transfer characteristics of the system but lead to the discomfort of users. On the other hand, if the air temperature at the end of the thermal energy storage process is the same under different conditions, the increase of supplied water temperature will decrease the thermal energy storage time and ensure the comfort of users. © 2015, Editorial Department of Journal of Southeast University. All right reserved.