Influence of Phase Change Materials (PCMs) on the thermal performance of building envelopes

Abstract

To understand the influence of PCM wall configurations on the thermal performance of building envelopes, an explicit finite element model of heat transfer from indoor to outdoor (or vice versa) is developed. The accuracy of this model is first validated against the electrical circuit analogy model, and then compared with the experimental data measured in a Hot-Box device. A good agreement between the simulation results and experimental results is obtained. The results of this study show that the PCM configuration layer sequence significantly will affect the thermal performance of building envelopes and that the FEM model developed is a promising tool, which after some more development may be used for optimising PCM wall configurations.