Using the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) method for selection of phase change materials for solar energy storage applications

Abstract

Selection of a suitable phase change material (PCM) for thermal energy storage systems is important. There are an enormous number of available PCM and hence choosing a particular PCM for a certain application is difficult. Many researchers rely on their expertise or the material available to use PCM for a specific application. The purpose of the selection of a certain PCM is to choose the best material from the commercially available PCM for a given application. An effective evaluation approach is essential to enhance the quality of the decisions. The issue of choosing a material for different applications can be managed as a multi-criteria decision-making issue. In this paper, the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) method is used to select between five PCM for solar heating systems considering both the technical specification and the criteria of the materials. The selected materials have a melting temperature in the required working temperature range. Seven criteria are used in this study and these include the latent heat of fusion, thermal conductivity of the material, specific heat, density, thermal stability, cost, and corrosion. The results show that the paraffin is the best material from the selected PCM using the AHP method for this solar heating system using all known thermo-physical properties and the weights of these criteria to achieve the objective.