Testing of microencapsulated phase-change heat storage in experimental model houses under winter weather conditions

A paraffin phase-change material (PCM) was entrapped by poly(methyl methacrylate) microcapsules that were loaded into plaster panels at high concentrations; these were used to build a model house. The PCM-plaster-lined and reference model houses were equipped with measuring instruments and heated during the daytime, to test their heat storage abilities in the studied wintertime conditions. A meteorological station collected the irradiation and outer temperature data; meanwhile, the external wall, internal wall, air, ceiling, and floor temperatures were measured using thermoelements. Electric energy consumption during heating was also recorded. Both houses were regulated by a controlled indoor temperature during daytime, followed by night-time free cooling. This regulation facilitated the complex evaluation of the heat-storage capabilities and their effects on the dynamic thermal behaviour and energy consumption of the PCM-plaster-lined and reference model houses. The PCMplaster-lined model house exhibited a significantly lower temperature fluctuation; however, its energy demand exceeded that of the reference house, because its average internal temperature level was substantially higher during the test period. The global heat loss coefficient was estimated in a quasi-equilibrium state for the entire house. The heat loss was -6.8% higher in the PCM-plaster-lined house, owing to the higher inner temperatures during the day. However, the heat loss coefficient in the PCM-plaster-lined house was -7.8% lower, suggesting that latent heat storage can be economically used to maintain a constant inner temperature.

Automated summary

The experiment compared the PCM-plaster-lined model house and a regular reference model house, finding that the former had less temperature fluctuation but higher energy consumption due to significantly higher average internal temperatures during the test period. However, in the overall house, the PCM-plaster-lined house had a higher heat loss coefficient but a lower heat loss coefficient, indicating that latent heat storage can be economically utilized to maintain a constant internal temperature.