On numerical model of one-dimensional time-dependent gas flows through bed of encapsulated phase change material

Abstract

Mathematical model and numerical method are proposed for investigating the one-dimensional time-dependent gas flows through a packed bed of encapsulated Phase Change Material (PCM). The model is based on the assumption of interacting interpenetrating continua and includes equations of state, continuity, momentum conservation and energy for PCM and gas. The advantage of the method is that it does not require predicting the location of phase transition zone and can define it automatically as in a usual shock-capturing method. One of the applications of the developed numerical model is the simulation of novel Adiabatic Compressed Air Energy Storage system (A-CAES) with Thermal Energy Storage subsystem (TES) based on using the encapsulated PCM in packed bed. Preliminary test calculations give hope that the method can be effectively applied in the future for modelling the charge and discharge processes in such TES with PCM.