Numerical simulation analysis on the thermal performance of a building walls incorporating Phase Change Material (PCM) for thermal management

Phase Change Material (PCM) plays an essential role in a thermal energy storage device, mainly, by utilizing its relatively high storage density, and latent heat property. PCM is potentially applicable as buildings material as it is possible to incorporate in the building envelope for energy conservation. Energy Plus is the chosen software to simulate phase change material in the building envelope. This paper will discuss in detail the numerical analysis of building thermal characteristics using PCM materials on the walls for climatic conditions of Banda Aceh City. The PCM used is beeswax. The weather data used in the simulation was customized for the year 2015 from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) website. Some separate parametric studies, i.e., a variation of PCM thermal conductivity, and temperature range, and results are presented. It was discovered that a PCM with a melting point from 21 to 23 °C led to maximum energy savings and greater peak load time shift, and is more suitable than other PCM temperature ranges for lightweight building construction. (paper)