Review of Phase Change Materials Integrated in Building Walls for Energy Saving

Thermal energy storage systems (TES), using phase change material (PCM) in building walls, has become a hot topic within the research community in recent years. As more and more articles have been published, it is essential to review previous work so as to have a good knowledge of PCM walls in energy saving. Several aspects are discussed in this review, including the PCM thermo-physical properties, PCM types, PCM incorporation methods suitable for PCM walls, and specific application methods of PCM walls. Although it is known theoretically that PCM walls have a relatively good potential for energy saving, more researches focusing on real full-scale buildings and real operation conditions should be done to prove the authenticity and reliability of current study. (C) 2015 Published by Elsevier Ltd.