ET4PCM

Latent thermal energy storage (LTES) with phase change materials (PCMs) is becoming a key enabling technology for low-carbon heating/cooling driven by renewable energy. However, smart control of LTES systems require monitoring of the liquid fraction, which determines the total stored energy. The ET4PCM aims to develop a first-of-a-kind, smart, non-invasive, versatile impedance sensor to evaluate in real-time the liquid fraction evolution of PCMs in LTES. The ET4PCM sensor will provide detailed information regarding phase distribution evolution during freezing/melting of PCMs in macrocapsules (spherical or cylindrical shells). The research approach involves experimental, numerical, and theoretical research activities. ET4PCM is funded as part of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions for postdoctoral fellowships. The hosting institution is University of Padua (UNIPD). Additionally, the project contemplates a secondment at the start-up COWA to deploy the ET4PCM in a real-world LTES system and a non-academic placement at SUNSERVICE (SUN) srl (IT) to develop “in silico” smart control tools for LTES.