Fluids, Vol. 10, Pages 181: Enhancing Thermal Comfort in Buildings: A Computational Fluid Dynamics Study of Multi-Layer Encapsulated Phase Change Materials–Integrated Bricks for Energy Management

Fluids doi: 10.3390/fluids10070181

Authors:
Farzad Ghafoorian
Mehdi Mehrpooya
Seyed Reza Mirmotahari
Mahmood Shafiee

Thermal energy storage plays a vital role in enhancing the efficiency of energy systems, particularly in building applications. Phase change materials (PCMs) have gained significant attention as a passive solution for energy management within building envelopes. This study examines the thermal performance of encapsulated PCMs integrated into bricks as a passive cooling method, taking into account the outdoor climate conditions to enhance indoor thermal comfort throughout summer and winter seasons. A computational fluid dynamics (CFDs) analysis is performed to compare three configurations: a conventional brick, a brick with a single PCM layer, and a brick with three PCM layers. Results indicate that the three-layer PCM configuration provides the most effective thermal regulation, reducing peak indoor temperature fluctuations by up to 4 °C in summer and stabilizing indoor temperature during winter. Also, the second and third PCM layers exhibit minimal latent heat absorption, with their liquid fractions indicating that melting does not occur. As a result, these layers primarily serve as thermal insulation—limiting heat ingress in summer and reducing heat loss in winter. During summer, the absence of the first PCM layer in the single-layer configuration leads to faster thermal penetration, causing the brick to reach peak temperatures approximately two hours earlier in the afternoon and increasing the temperature by about 5 °C.

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Farzad Ghafoorian www.mdpi.com