Numerical and experimental study on the solidification of PCM around a vertical axially finned isothermal cylinder

This paper presents the results of a numerical and experimental investigation realized on finned tubes with the objective of using them in thermal storage systems. The model is based upon the pure conduction mechanism of heat transfer, the enthalpy formulation approach and the control volume method. The finite difference approximation and the alternating direction scheme are used to discretize the basic equations and the associated boundary and initial conditions. The model was validated by comparison with available results and additional experimental measurements realized by the authors. The number of fins, fin length, fin thickness, the degree of super heat and the aspect ratio of the annular spacing are found to influence the time for complete solidification, solidified mass fraction and the total stored energy. The results confirm the importance of the fins in delaying the undesirable effects of natural convection during the phase change processes. Also, this study indicates the strong influence of the annular space size, the radial length of the fin and the number of fins on the solidified mass fraction and the time for complete phase change. Based upon experimental observations and the tendencies of the numerical results, a metallic tube fitted with four-five fins of constant thickness equal to the tube wall thickness and of radial length around twice the tube diameter should be a compromise solution between efficiency, increase in the heat flow rate and the loss of available storage capacity. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.