Experimental Evaluation of Thermal Energy Storage (TES) with Phase Change Materials (PCM) for Ceiling Tile Applications

Abstract

Thermal energy storage systems (TES) are an effective technology to improve the energy efficiency while reducing the energy consumption in buildings. The integration of phase change materials (PCMs) as latent thermal energy is a popular method to incorporate them into the building envelope, reducing the energy demand and helping maintain the thermal comfort. In this experimental evaluation, the application of S23 ceiling panels to enhance the building performance is investigated. To analyse the PCM panels, a test room was artificially heated securing the melting temperature for the material; the results show that the S23 panels were able to absorb and increase the room temperature by 5 °C. During the cooling period, the PCM ceiling tiles help maintain higher room temperatures, up to +1.5 °C. The S23 panel temperature was able to drop below its melting point after 6 hours of cooling, demonstrating its capacity to complete the thermal cycle. The panel thermal conductivity range was found between 0.19–0.24 W/(m·K). It can be concluded that the addition of the S23 ceiling panels can be considered as an innovative solution for the application of passive TES in building envelopes, leading to energy savings by absorbing, storing and helping maintaining the ambient room temperature, therefore reducing the requirement for artificial heating and cooling.

Full text

1. Introduction
Worldwide energy demand has increased due to the
improvement of the living standards, this has led to a
growing interest in sustainable energy solutions that con-
tribute to a reduction in the CO2 emissions. In Europe,
the building sector represents 40% of the total energy
consumption and nearly 50% of this energy is utilized
for space heating and cooling. For this reason, improving
the building envelope is considered a suitable solution
to reduce the heating and cooling energy demand and
improve the thermal comfort (Marin et al., 2016). Ther-
mal energy storage (TES) is an effective method to reduce
the energy consumption, decreasing the on-peak load
and shifting it to off-peak periods. This technology helps
reduce the breach between the energy supply and energy
demand by storing the available energy and using it dur-
ing inaccessible periods (Kalaiselvam, Parameshwaran and
Harikrishnan, 2012; Zeinelabdein, Omer and Gan, 2018).
Thermal energy storage also known as heat and cold
storage can be stored in form of sensible heat (SHTES),
latent heat (LHTES), and thermochemical storage (TCES);
allowing the energy storage to be released when the
energy demand requires it (Mehling, 2008). The advan-
tage of this technology is that they operate at relative low
temperature range (within the human thermal comfort
temperatures), making them suitable for passive building
applications.
The main parameter for the sensible heat refers to the
specific heat capacity. This factor calculates the necessary
energy to increase 1 kg of the material to 1 °K. The sensi-
ble heat can be calculated as follows:
·

Ti
Tf
Q m Cp dT
=ò
where:
– m= mass (kg)
– Ti= initial temperature (K)
– Tf= final temperature (K)
– Cp= specific heat capacity (J·kg K)
The latent heat considers the heat stored or released dur-
ing the phase change of the material. Throughout this
period, the temperature remains constant and at this
stage the material can absorb considerable energy quan-
tities. The total amount of energy is determined by the
enthalpy value and is measured during the material phase
transition as shown in the following equation:
Velasco-Carrasco, M, et al. 2020. Experimental Evaluation of Thermal Energy
Storage (TES) with Phase Change Materials (PCM) for Ceiling Tile Applications.
Future Cities and Environment,
6(1): 11, 1–11. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5334/fce.101
Department of Architecture and Built Environment, Faculty of
Engineering, University of Nottingham, UK
Corresponding author: Mariana Velasco-Carrasco
(mariana.velascocarrasco@nottingham.ac.uk)
TECHNICAL ARTICLE
Experimental Evaluation of Thermal Energy Storage
(TES) with Phase Change Materials (PCM) for Ceiling
Tile Applications
Mariana Velasco-Carrasco, Ziwei Chen, Jorge Luis Aguilar-Santana and Saa Riat
Thermal energy storage systems (TES) are an eective technology to improve the energy eciency while
reducing the energy consumption in buildings. The integration of phase change materials (PCMs) as latent
thermal energy is a popular method to incorporate them into the building envelope, reducing the energy
demand and helping maintain the thermal comfort. In this experimental evaluation, the application of S23
ceiling panels to enhance the building performance is investigated. To analyse the PCM panels, a test
room was articially heated securing the melting temperature for the material; the results show that the
S23 panels were able to absorb and increase the room temperature by 5 °C. During the cooling period,
the PCM ceiling tiles help maintain higher room temperatures, up to +1.5 °C. The S23 panel temperature
was able to drop below its melting point after 6 hours of cooling, demonstrating its capacity to complete
the thermal cycle. The panel thermal conductivity range was found between 0.19–0.24 W/(m·K). It can be
concluded that the addition of the S23 ceiling panels can be considered as an innovative solution for the
application of passive TES in building envelopes, leading to energy savings by absorbing, storing and help-
ing maintaining the ambient room temperature, therefore reducing the requirement for articial heating
and cooling.
Keywords: building application; energy storage; phase change materials; thermal energy performance
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Velasco-Carrasco et al: Experimental Evaluation of Thermal Energy Storage (TES) with Phase Change
Materials (PCM) for Ceiling Tile Applications
Art. 11, page 2 of 11
·
Qm h
D= D
where:
– m= mass (kg)
– Δh= enthalpy change (J · kg)
The utilization of phase change materials (PCMs) as latent
thermal energy are ideal for thermal management and
storage, due to their capacity to absorb, store and release
latent heat during the phase transition (Yang et al., 2020).
PCMs offer considerable advantages, such as high thermal
density and relatively constant phase transition tempera-
ture during the melting and solidification process. Never-
theless, the major factor affecting the PCM performance
correspond to the low thermal conductivity (Elmaazouzi et
al., 2020). The thermal conductivity (λ) refers to the capac-
ity of a given material to transfer heat while the material
remains static. In general, a material in solid state presents
higher thermal conductivity in comparison to the liquid
state due to the molecular interaction to transport heat
(Mehling, 2008).
The definition of λ (W/mK) is determined by Fourier’s
law, which is for 1-dimensional steady state heat conduc-
tion and is described as follows:
··
dT
QA dx
l=
PCMs can be classified as organics, inorganics and eutec-
tics. Some of the most popular inorganic PCMs are salt
hydrates, consisting of a mixture of salt and water in a dis-
crete mixing ratio. Generally, these water molecules are
paired with the salt molecules creating a crystal structure
(Mehling, 2008). Salt hydrates are characterized by their
high storage density with respect to the mass and volume.
The thermal conductivity of salts can be considered as
high and in general they are chemically stable. The major
drawback of salt hydrates is phase segregation, due to
their chemical composition consisting on of different
substances with variable densities.
The building envelope regulates the heat exchange
between outdoor and indoor environment, affecting the
energy requirements and human thermal comfort (Marin
et al., 2016). The incorporation of PCMs in buildings is
mainly achieve through the addition of the material into
structural components such as walls, windows, roofs or
ceilings and commonly they are applied as passive sys-
tems. Auxiliary components such as HVAC systems and
solar heating units can be coupled with PCMs. Adding
thermal mass into building elements helps to control any
abrupt temperature fluctuations, particularly in light-
weight structures; decreasing the overheating in summer
and preventing heat loss during winter (Skovajsa, Koláček
and Zálešák, 2016). Another advantage for the PCMs inte-
gration in the building structure is having a large surface
area directly in contact with the indoor environment,
therefore allowing an effective heat transfer.
PCM-TES has been extensively investigated prior 1980,
the implementation of PCM for energy conservation in
the building structure was first mentioned in 1975 by
Barkmann and Wessling (Barkmann and Wessling, 1975);
since then a considerable amount of research has been
developed (Iten, Liu and Shukla, 2016). Examples of
such technologies are PCM panels, PCM-enhanced walls,
nano-PCM, PCM windows, among others. Piselli et al.
investigated the performance of PCM for passive cool-
ing applications, finding that by integrating PCM into
the building envelope significant cooling savings were
achieved, generating a reduction up to 300 kWh/year for
mild climates in Italy (Piselli et al., 2020). Similarly, Kishore
et al. investigated the addition of PCM into the build-
ing walls, the results exhibited a reduction in the annual
heat gain and heat losses of 47.2% and 8.3%, respectively
(Kishore et al., 2020).
Alawadhi utilized PCM in the windows shutters to
reduce the building heat gain. The investigation aimed to
employ the PCM latent heat to avoid the heat entering
the building. The experiment tested n-Octadecane with a
melting temperature of 27 °C, n-Eicosane with a melting
temperature of 37 °C and P116 with a melting tempera-
ture of 47 °C, the results concluded that the PCM with
the highest melting temperature (47 °C) presented the
best thermal performance, obtaining heat gain reductions
up to 23.29% (Alawadhi, 2012). Sayyar et al. used experi-
mental and numerical approaches to evaluate the thermal
performance of a nano-PCM integrated in gypsum wall-
boards. The nano-PCM consisted of a fatty-acid PCM cou-
pled with graphite nano-sheets. The results show that the
control cell presented a temperature range from 13 °C to
32 °C. In contrast, the nano-PCM wall had a temperature
range from 18.5 °C to 26.5 °C; demonstrating the ability
of the PCM to reduce the indoor temperature fluctuations
(Sayyar et al., 2014). Voelker et al. studied the impact on
the room temperature of gypsum plaster and a salt mix-
ture; the study concluded that the utilization of phase
change materials in buildings increased the thermal mass
and contributed to an enhancement of the thermal pro-
tection during summer. Nevertheless, it was found that
the system could get oversaturated if the PCM was not
properly discharged after a few consecutive days. To coun-
teract such effect, the authors proposed the application of
a night ventilation system to facilitate the PCM full cycle
(Voelker, Kornadt and Ostry, 2008). Another study by
Saxena et al. analysed the performance of PCM embeded
bricks, finding a heat transfer reduction between 40 to
60% during daytime and a temperature reduction of 4.5
°C to 9.5 °C in comparison to conventional bricks (Saxena,
Rakshit and Kaushik, 2020).
Maleki et al. proposed the application of nano-capsules
containing PCM in the walls and roof plaster to boost
the thermal comfort. The results indicate that the PCM
system could reduce the indoor air temperature fluctua-
tions and help maintain indoor thermal comfort for most
of the year (Maleki et al., 2020). Qunli et al. developed a
cooling ceiling composed of an insulation layer, a mor-
tar embedded with the capillary pipes and a PCM layer.
The mathematical model concluded that the energy stor-
age ratio of the phase change energy storage system was
higher in comparison of a concrete ceiling (Qunli et al.,
2017). Ceiling tiles are a practical method to integrate
the PCMs into building structure, increasing thermal
mass, reducing temperature fluctuations, and assisting

Velasco-Carrasco et al: Experimental Evaluation of Thermal Energy Storage (TES) with Phase Change
Materials (PCM) for Ceiling Tile Applications
Art. 11, page 3 of 11
in energy performance by regulating the indoor tempera-
ture (Velasco-Carrasco et al., 2020). Memon et al. investi-
gated the thermal performance of lightweight aggregate
concrete (LWAC) containing macro encapsulated paraffin
in Hong Kong. The results of the indoor test revealed that
the macro encapsulated paraffin–LWAC panel was able
to decrease the interior indoor temperature by 2.9 °C,
flattening the temperature fluctuation. The outdoor test
found that the room temperature was optimized when
there was a considerable temperature difference between
day and night (Memon, Cui, Zhang, & Xing, 2015).
In this paper, the effects of integrating PCM ceiling tiles
to enhance the indoor thermal performance has been
experimentally investigated. The technology proposed
is based on a commercial PCM panel developed by PCM
Products Ltd© .The selected PCM was S23, which has a
melting point of 23 °C and possess a phase change range
compatible with the human thermal comfort tempera-
tures (22 to 26 °C in moderate climates), this allows the
use of the latent heat to improve the thermal inertia while
decreasing the energy consumption. The fundamental dif-
ference between standard solutions and the proposed
technology focuses on the encapsulation design, specifi-
cally tailored to promote the heat exchange between the
PCM and the ambient temperature. Numerous studies
of ceiling cooling systems with PCM have been studied.
Nonetheless, most of the research focuses on numerical
simulations, lacking real-scale testing.
2. Methodology
2.1 Experimental setup
The experiment was conducted in a testing room at The
University of Nottingham. The test room is allocated in a
Georgian period house part of the Architecture and Built
Environment Department. The testing room surface is 8.3
m2, with a height of 3.31 m; the room contains two win-
dows covering a surface area of 2.99 m2. The room has
brick walls with gypsum and paint finishing, with a total
thickness of 15 cm; the ceiling is formed out of concrete
with a thickness of 15 cm and the windows are single
glazed. For experimental purposes, the panels were placed
in the top section of a shelving system to represent the
ceiling hight as shown in Figure 1.
2.2 Materials
PlusICE S23 is a salt hydrate developed by PCM Products
Ltd© with a melting temperature of 23 °C, the thermal
properties are described in Table 1. The capsule material
depicted in Figure 2 consists of a rectangular plastic con-
tainer measuring 24 cm × 49 cm, the design contemplates
circular rings on the top and bottom in order to facilitate
the panel stacking when required. Each panel has a total
weight of 3.5 kg and for the experimental purposes a set
of 20 panels were manufactured, having a net PCM weight
of 52 kg that represents 28% of the ceiling area.
2.3 Thermal conductivity analysis
The thermal conductivity was measured using the HFM-
100 Heat Flow Meter method, in which two flux sensors
were utilized to measure the thermal conductivity and
thermal resistance. The equipment sensors have a thermal
conductive range between 0.005 to 0.5 W/(m·K) and the
temperature range of –20 °C to 70 °C. To validate the accu-
Figure 1: a) Testing room with PCM panels b) House layout, testing room in red (The University of Nottingham, 2020).
Table 1: PCM properties (PCM Products Ltd, 2020).
S23 properties Units
Phase change temperature 23 (°C)
Density 1,530 (kg/m3)
Latent Heat Capacity 200 (kJ/kg)
Specific Heat Capacity 2.20 (kJ/kgK)
Thermal Conductivity 0.54 (W/(m·K))

Velasco-Carrasco et al: Experimental Evaluation of Thermal Energy Storage (TES) with Phase Change
Materials (PCM) for Ceiling Tile Applications
Art. 11, page 4 of 11
racy of the measurement an expanded polystyrene board
was tested as a calibration material; furthermore, each test
was repeated three times to corroborate the results. As the
original panel exceeds the equipment dimensions a small-
scale sample was provided by the same manufacturer as
shown in Figure 3.
2.4 Room measurement equipment
The aim of this measurements was to determine the
change in the ambient temperature during the charging
and discharging process. The panels were charged using
radiators with a heat capacity of 2 kW and the room tem-
perature loss was monitored after ensuring the complete
charging of the PCM. The temperature measurements
were made using Type K thermocouples and all readings
were collected by the data logger (DT85), with a standard
deviation of ±0.3 °C. The sensors were placed in the four
walls, ceiling, floor, windows, radiators and inside the PCM
panel as shown in Figure 4, a total of 16 thermocouples
where placed inside the room and the average tempera-
ture was noted for the results analysis. In addition, 10 THD
sensors (EL-USB-2) were placed in the testing room, hav-
ing a standard temperature deviation of ±0.55 °C, 2.25%
for the relative humidity and 1.7 °C for the dew point.
Figure 2: PlusICE S23 panel (PCM Products Ltd, 2020).
Figure3: Thermal conductivity S23 sample panel.

Velasco-Carrasco et al: Experimental Evaluation of Thermal Energy Storage (TES) with Phase Change
Materials (PCM) for Ceiling Tile Applications
Art. 11, page 5 of 11
2.5 Measurement procedure
Figure 5 displays the shelving system with the PCM panels in
the testing room. The heating devices were switched on for
a minimum duration of 6 hours, thus heating up the room
and consequently the PCM panels. The heating temperature
exceed the enthalpy phase of the PCM, additionally the PCM
panels were visually inspected to verify the complete phase
transition to a full liquid state. After the heating phase, the
regeneration period was monitored, using the natural heat
loss to the ambient. The average room temperature without
PCM for the heating period was 27.6 °C.
The average temperature variation between the two
sensors was of –0.11 °C. The temperature comparison is
shown in Figure 6. The testing results present the average
temperature of both sensors.
3. Results and Discussion
3.1 Thermal conductivity analysis
The operational parameters of the thermal conductive
analysis are described in Table 2 and correspond to three
different mean temperatures, comparing the effect of
the phase transition (solid, transitioning, liquid). When
Figure 4: Testing room section with components.
Figure 5: Panels in shelving system.

Velasco-Carrasco et al: Experimental Evaluation of Thermal Energy Storage (TES) with Phase Change
Materials (PCM) for Ceiling Tile Applications
Art. 11, page 6 of 11
the test was performed at a solid state (mean tempera-
ture –10 °C), the thermal conductivity was found to be
0.19 W/(m·K), the lowest value recorded during the exper-
iment. In the second evaluation the mean temperature
was considered at 20 °C, in this temperature range the
panel had already started the phase transition and the
thermal conductivity was found at 0.23 W/(m·K). The
highest thermal performance was presented at a mean
temperature of 40 °C, at this stage the panel was fully
transition to a liquid state, having a thermal conductivity
of 0.24 W/(m·K).
According to the manufacturer data the thermal con-
ductivity of the S23 is 0.54 W/(m·K), this value is higher
than the obtained results and it is due to the encapsula-
tion material. In the case of the salt hydrates, their cor-
rosiveness reduce the encapsulation options, thus plastic
materials are an appealing solution (Velasco-Carrasco et
al., 2020). The importance of the container material is piv-
otal for the PCM to perform adequately in indoor environ-
ments and in this case, it is expected a slight reduction
from the plastic capsule in comparison to the natural ther-
mal conductivity of the PCM. Table 3 shows the thermal
conductivity of PCMs with similar melting temperatures
found on the literature for comparison purposes.
The thermal conductivity observed across the six sam-
ples exemplify the performance of the S23 in compari-
son to commercially available PCMs with similar melting
points. In this case, the S23 panel presents competitive
performance in comparison to pure PCM samples. These
results validate the application of the plastic capsule
container as an advantageous method for building
integration.
3.2 Room testing
Figure 7 represents a typical data recorded during the
heating and cooling period. The room was heated for a
duration of 6.8 hours, while the cooling period of had a
duration of 17 hours. The average room temperature dur-
ing the heating period was 26.3 °C and after the cooling
period was 16.3 °C with a final temperature of 15.2 °C.
Figure 8 shows the extended heating and cooling
period, having an average temperature of 27.6 °C and
19.5 °C respectively. It is seen that the room temperature
increased constantly during the heating period reaching
Figure 6: Room temperature heating comparison.
Table 2: S23 thermal conductive results.
PCM Mean Temperature
(°C)
Upper Plate
Temperature (°C)
Lower Plate
Temperature (°C)
TC (W/(m·K)) Thickness
(mm)
Weight
(kg)
S23 –10 –20 0 0.19 30.8 0.388
S23 20 10 30 0.23 30.8 0.388
S23 40 30 50 0.24 30.8 0.388

Velasco-Carrasco et al: Experimental Evaluation of Thermal Energy Storage (TES) with Phase Change
Materials (PCM) for Ceiling Tile Applications
Art. 11, page 7 of 11
a maximum temperature of 30.0 °C, after the radiator is
swich off the temperature starts to decrease and the PCM
panels are not able to retain the room heat, reaching 16.6
°C after 35 hours. This can be attributed to the tempera-
ture difference between the indoor and outdoor environ-
ment during the test day, having an ambient temperature
range between 4 °C to 6 °C.
3.2.1 Melting process
The PCM effect over the room temperature can be
observed in Figure 9. The heating period shows the
progress of the increasing temperature, both with and
without PCM panels. This graph represents four different
testing days, one without PCM and the remnant having
the S23 panels allocated in the room. The graph presents
the radiator temperature and room average temperature.
It is possible to see that for a day without PCM the radiator
temperature corresponding to the top line achieve higher
temperatures in comparison to the PCM testing days; in
contrast the average room temperature presented the
lowest ambient temperature. When the PCM panels are
present, the radiator temperature tends to decrease after
2.5 hours, meaning that the panels are being charged and
therefore reducing the heating temperature; this factor is
proved by the average room temperature increment. The
maximum room temperature of the testing room without
PCM was 24.4 °C and 30.7 °C for the room with the S23
material.
Table 4 presents the numerical results of the heating
experiment. The results show the average temperature
representing each of the values presented in Figure 9. It
can be noticed that the addition of the PCM decrease the
heating temperature, creating a minimum temperature
difference of 4.8 °C. Consequently, the is a rise in the aver-
age room temperature with the PCM, having a minimum
temperature difference of 1.9 °C. These results lead to the
Table 3: PCM thermal conductivity comparison.
PCM Melting
Temperature (°C)
Liquid [W/(m·K)] Solid [W/(m·K)] Reference
Paraffin C13–C24 22–24 0.21 – (Cabeza et al., 2011)
RT22 22 0.20 0.20 (Rubitherm GmbH, 2020)
RT24 24 0.20 0.20 (Rubitherm GmbH, 2020)
RT 25 25 0.17 ± 0.01 0.19 ±0.01 (Weinläder, Beck and Fricke, 2005)
S27 27 0.48 ±0.04 0.79 ± 0.03 (Weinläder, Beck and Fricke, 2005)
L30 30 0.56 ± 0.03 1.02 ± 0.05 (Weinläder, Beck and Fricke, 2005)
Figure 7: Room temperature monitoring.

Velasco-Carrasco et al: Experimental Evaluation of Thermal Energy Storage (TES) with Phase Change
Materials (PCM) for Ceiling Tile Applications
Art. 11, page 8 of 11
Figure 9: Room temperature heating comparison.
Figure 8: Room temperature monitoring heating and cooling.
Table 4: Average temperature comparison results.
A) without PCM B) with PCM C) with PCM D) with PCM
Radiator
(°C)
Room
(°C)
Radiator
(°C)
Room
(°C)
Radiator
(°C)
Room
(°C)
Radiator
(°C)
Room
(°C)
65.0 22.9 58.0 24.8 60.2 28.2 56.3 28.3
ΔT –6.9 +1.9 –4.8 +5.3 –8.7 +5.3

Velasco-Carrasco et al: Experimental Evaluation of Thermal Energy Storage (TES) with Phase Change
Materials (PCM) for Ceiling Tile Applications
Art. 11, page 9 of 11
conclusion the 20 PCM ceiling tiles were able to increase
the room temperature level by 5 °C.
3.2.2 Solidication process
The cooling mode measurements show the freezing
progress of the PCM panels. It is possible to observe the
effect of the room temperature when compared to the
room without PCM. The heating devices were active for a
24-hour period, thus heating up the room. After this time-
lapse, the radiator was swich off and the monitoring period
started for 24 hours as seen in Figure 10. The graph pre-
sents higher room temperatures when the PCM panels are
allocated in the room, this factor is clearly marked for the
first 20 hours. After this period both temperatures appear
to reach similar values, however the room temperature
with the PCM ceiling tiles remains higher throughout the
test. The starting temperature for the room without PCM
was 34.3 °C and the end temperature 17.2 °C. In contrast,
the S23 room temperature started at 36.7 °C and the pre-
sented an end temperature of 17.4 °C.
The numerical results obtained from the analysis of
Figure 10 are displayed in Table 5. For the PCM room
it can be observed that the room temperature dropped
to 14.6 °C during the first 6 hours, reaching a room
temperature of 22.1 °C which is below the PCM melting
point. These results show the ability of the PCM to start
the regeneration process after 6 hours, allowing the ther-
mal cycle process to be completed over a 24-hour period.
Conclusions
This study aims to support the application of PCM tech-
nologies as a passive alternative to generate energy saving,
hence improving the building energy performance. The
experiment has been used to explore the effect of adding
insulation to the building envelope, its operating prin-
ciple is based on storing the available heat through the
melting process of the PCM and discharge it into the room
space. The tested system has demonstrated the potential
to provide energy savings, by reducing the peak indoor
temperatures and therefore reducing the energy opera-
tion requirements for heating and cooling.
In this case, the S23 panel performance presents favour-
able results for building incorporation, as the panel is suit-
able to securely contain the PCM and at the same time
promote the heat exchange interaction with the thermal
environment. Due to the corrosive nature of the S23, a
plastic encapsulation was adopted as a feasible solution.
The main findings of this paper are as follows:
Figure 10: Room temperature cooling comparison.
Table 5: Results average temperature comparison.
(Time-lapse) Start 6 (hr) 12 (hr) 18 (hr) 25 (hr)
A) Without PCM (°C) 34.3 20.5 18.5 17.9 16.9
B) With PCM (°C) 36.7 22.1 19.6 18.3 17.1
ΔT –2.4 –1.5 –1.1 –0.4 –0.2

Velasco-Carrasco et al: Experimental Evaluation of Thermal Energy Storage (TES) with Phase Change
Materials (PCM) for Ceiling Tile Applications
Art. 11, page 10 of 11
1. The thermal conductivity was found 0.19–0.24
W/(m·K), the S23 panel presents competitive per-
formance in comparison to “pure” PCM materials,
this confirms the application of the plastic capsule
container as an advantageous method for building
integration.
2. Adding the S23 panels decrease the heating tem-
perature and as a result the average ambient tem-
perature increased. This leads to the conclusion that
having 20 PCM ceiling panels created an impact in
the room temperature of 5 °C.
3. For cooling purposes, the S23 maintained higher
room temperatures in comparison to the room with-
out PCM. After a 6-hour period, the PCM panels tem-
perature drop below its melting point; indicating
the ability of the panel to cool down favouring the
completion of the thermal cycle.
4. Phase segregation was observed during the melting
period, a reduction in the panel dimensions would
be advisable to counteract this drawback.
5. It is pivotal to ensure that the adequate climate
conditions are provided for the specific PCM melt-
ing temperature, to ensure the completition of the
thermal cycle.
From the above results, it can be concluded that the addi-
tion of the S23 ceiling panels can be considered as an
innovative solution, having the potential to be considered
as passive TES, leading to energy savings by reducing the
energy demand thought storing the available energy and
releasing the heat to the environment at inaccessible peri-
ods.
Acknowledgements
This work was supported in part by the Science and Tech-
nology Council of Mexico (Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y
Tecnología, CONACYT).
Competing Interests
The co-author Saffa Riffat is the Editor in Chief of this
journal and was removed from all editorial duties involv-
ing the review and processing of this submission.
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How to cite this article: Velasco-Carrasco, M, Chen, Z, Aguilar-Santana, JL and Riat, S. 2020. Experimental Evaluation of Thermal
Energy Storage (TES) with Phase Change Materials (PCM) for Ceiling Tile Applications.
Future Cities and Environment,
6(1): 11, 1–11
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5334/fce.101
Submitted: 17 August 2020 Accepted: 20 November 2020 Published: 15 December 2020
Copyright: © 2020 The Author(s). This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons
Attribution 4.0 International License (CC-BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium,
provided the original author and source are credited. See http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
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