Environmental Assessment of Latent Heat Storage Technology

Abstract

The potential for the use of renewable energy sources in heating or cooling systems increases with the possibility to store heat or cold when they are available. Latent heat storage (LHS) technology using phase change materials (PCMs) has significantly higher storage density compared to sensible heat storage. The solid-liquid phase change of PCMs with appropriate phase change temperature is preferred for building applications. In practice, there is often a lack of credible information about properties of LHS materials and their environmental impacts. Most of the common methods for evaluation of environmental impacts are based on Life-Cycle Assessment (LCA) principles. LCA is developed for several decades already. It can be used for evaluation of any product system. In this paper it is used for evaluation of environmental aspects of LHS technology, specifically selected heat storage materials.