Session: 05-01-02 Applied CFD

Paper Number: 87279

87279 - Numerical Investigation of Flow and Thermal Behavior in Channels With PCM-Filled Thermal Energy Storage Columns for Potential Application in Photobioreactors 

Microalgae has been identified as a potential source in the production of biofuel. Photobioreactors are used for microalgae production. Photobioreactors normally experience temperature variations over the diurnal cycle due to changes in the ambient conditions. Such temperature variations affect microalgae growth since microalgae are sensitive to the temperature variations. Hence, an improvement of the photobioreactor design to minimize temperature variations will result in higher yield of microalgae. The present research is aimed to investigate an innovative approach to thermally regulate photobioreactors by introducing passive thermal energy storage using phase change materials (PCM) where phase change can provide the necessary heat source or sink to regulate system temperature. The present research uses a numerical approach to study the flow and thermal behaviors in a channel with a set of wall-confined, alternating thermal storage columns. The research aims to investigate the melting behavior and transient thermal response of the channel flow and the PCM inside these obstacles, subjected to a gradual increase in the inlet fluid temperature.

Open source CFD software, OpenFOAM, is used to numerically simulate flow in a rectangular channel containing offset PCM columns. The model is validated against an experimental data. A parametric analysis is performed to investigate the impact of various operating and geometric properties on the heat transfer to the PCM columns, with the aim to optimize the channel geometry to maximize the heat exchange between the PCM columns and the channel fluid. Detailed results will be presented and discussed in the paper.

Presenting Author: Sameed Akber University of Western Ontario