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Enhancement of Thermal Performance of a Solar Chimney Power Plant Using Phase Change Material: A Numerical Study

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Abstract:

This study investigates the effect of incorporating Phase Change Material (PCM) into the collector of a Solar Chimney Power Plant (SCPP). Numerical simulations were conducted using a 2D axisymmetric geometry, considering transient, turbulent, and radiative heat transfer. The results show that the PCM-enhanced system maintains higher temperatures at the collector outlet, with an average increase of approximately 6%. This thermal regulation enhances buoyancy-driven airflow, raising the chimney base velocity from 2.5 m/s in the conventional system to 3 m/s in the PCM configuration, with a corresponding increase in mass flow rate of 0.013 kg/s. Furthermore, the collector efficiency improves significantly, reaching 23% with PCM compared to 11% without. These findings demonstrate that integrating PCM into the collector effectively boosts thermal energy retention and system performance.

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Periodical:

Defect and Diffusion Forum (Volume 453)

Pages:

227-239

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.4028/p-i52MbB

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Online since:

July 2026

Authors:

Hidayet Meroua Sefiani*, Faycal Bouzit, Mohamed Bouzit

Keywords:

Absorber, Phase Change Materials (PCMs), Solar Chimney Power Plant, Thermal Enhancement, Turbulent

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© 2026 Trans Tech Publications Ltd. All Rights Reserved

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