The use of phase change materials in domestic heat pump and air-conditioning systems for short term storage: A review

Abstract

Heat pumps for space heating and cooling are a mature and highly efficient technology that can take advantage of renewable energies. They can also provide energy savings by load shifting when they operate together with thermal energy storage (TES). This paper presents a literature review of TES systems using phase change materials (PCM) potentially applicable to domestic heat pumps used in residential and administrative buildings. The paper describes the systems proposed by the different authors and presents the main conclusions of the studies. The TES systems presented are not only used as energy storage to shift the load demand but also for other applications such as heat recovery or defrosting in air-conditioners. The PCM have the suitable melting temperature to work together with standard heat pumps in each application. Moreover, some systems where the heat pump is coupled to latent heat thermal energy storage (LHTES) units and other energy sources or where the TES system is incorporated in a radiant floor or air distribution system have also been included.

This work was partially funded by the Spanish government (ENE2011-22722, ENE2011-28269-C03-01, and ULLE10-4E-1305). The authors would like to thank the Catalan Government for the quality accreditation given to their research group GREA (2009 SGR 534).