Solar Energy 186 (2019) 335–346

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Solar Energy
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/solener

Experimental studies on the effect of using phase change material in a T

salinity-gradient solar pond under a solar simulator
⁎
Mahfoudh Inesa, , Principi Paolob, Fioretti Robertob, Safi Mohameda
a
Research Unit Mechanic-Energetic URME, National Engineering School of Tunis, University of Tunis El Manar, Tunis 1008, Tunisia
b
Department of Industrial Engineering and Mathematical Sciences, Università Politecnica Delle Marche, Via Brecce Bianche 1, Ancona, Italy

A R T I C LE I N FO A B S T R A C T

Keywords: Thermal energy storage (TES) is a technology that stocks thermal energy by heating a storage medium so that the
Thermal storage stored energy can be used at a later time for heating applications and power generation. This paper is focused on
Salinity-gradient solar pond an experimental study of the thermal behavior of a mini Salinity-Gradient Solar Pond (SGSP) exposed to a solar
Temperature simulator. Experiments were carried out in an environmental chamber. In fact, a comparison between the in-
Phase change material
tegration and the absence of Ultra Violet (UV) filter has been done using two experimental prototype solar ponds
Salt hydrate
built at the Environmental Energy Laboratory at the Marche Polytechnic University in Ancona, Italy.
Furthermore, representative results illustrating the influence of simulator spectrum on the distribution of tem-
perature on a SGSP and the effects of the thermal performance has been discussed. In the present study, we have
also focused on the assessment of Phase Change Material (PCM) properties. For this purpose, the performance of
adding salt hydrates PCMs to a small salinity-gradient solar pond has been studied. The obtained result provides
evidence that the solar pond with PCM may be used as a hot water source for domestic applications by collecting
and storing solar energy at the same point.

1. Introduction
Nowadays, taking into consideration that the problems of environ-
mental pollution and exhaustion of energy resources become critical,
wind energy, tidal energy, solar energy, and other clean energies are
gradually coming into people's horizons (Tang et al., 2018). Thermal
energy storage (TES) are technologies that store energy in a heated
medium (mostly water) to be used on demand for heating and cooling
applications and power generation (Sarbu and Sebarchievici, 2018).
TES are proved for their low CO2 and greenhouse gas emission. How-
ever, these technologies are facing barriers such as efficiency, appli-
cations, and particularly costs (Almadhoni and Khan, 2016). The sto-
rage of thermal energy is typically coming from renewable energy
sources, waste heat or surplus energy production. Solar energy is the
main renewable energy component that has been receiving increased
attention (Bhave and Thakare, 2018). The characteristics of solar en-
ergy, such as being abundantly available everywhere in the world, di-
rectly utilizable, has continuity, and environmentally friendly, make
solar energy an attractive alternative to fossil fuels (Abdulateef et al.,
2018). Hence, the intermittency and instability caused by solar energy
(Alejandro et al., 2014); decreases the efficiency of the utilization of
this system (El-dessouky and Al-juwayhel, 1997). Therefore, heat
storage has been considered to improve the reliability and the genera-
tion capacity of solar systems as well as the reduction of the electricity
consumption costs during periods of sunlight lack (Huang et al., 2019).
TES systems are characterized by their capacities storing, space,
efficiency, storage period, charge and discharge time, and cost. The
main indicator of this systems is heating. Both Sensible Heat (SH) and
Latent Heat (LH) are involved in thermal energy storage systems.
Sensible heat enhances the storage process by increasing temperature
(Tatsidjodoung et al., 2013). Indeed, the thermal energy is stored by
increasing the medium temperature via the heating phenomena. Latent
heat improves the storage of this energy through a phase change at
constant temperature (Pielichowska and Pielichowski, 2014). However,
the latent heat thermal energy storage systems suffered from a low
thermal conductivity of phase change materials, which lead to the de-
crease of energy charging and discharging rates (Sun et al., 2018). The
heat exchange in TES systems involves the three modes of heat transfer:
convection, conduction, and radiation to the medium (Pielichowska
and Pielichowski, 2014).
Currently, there are numerous techniques of solar based advances.
By the by, the worldwide utilization of sun-powered energy is still
limited compared to the potential of this source (Adeboye and
Fagbenle, 2014). Among the friendliest technique used for collecting

⁎
Corresponding author.
E-mail address: ines.mahfoudh@enit.utm.tn (M. Ines).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.solener.2019.05.011
Received 13 November 2018; Received in revised form 30 April 2019; Accepted 6 May 2019
Available online 15 May 2019
0038-092X/ © 2019 International Solar Energy Society. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
M. Ines, et al.
Nomenclature
m UV
Cp IR
ΔT the difference of temperature in °C
Irr average irradiance in W/m2
A area of the solar pond in m2
t time
Abbreviations
SGSP salinity gradient solar pond
TES thermal energy storage
SH sensible heat
and seasonal storing of solar radiations is a solar pond (SP) (Dehghan
et al., 2013). Solar Ponds are proved for their economical and simple
conception and their storage capacity of large amounts of solar energy
at average temperatures (50–95 °C). These ponds can be divided into
two categories: convective and non-convective (Hasnain, 1998). A salt-
gradient solar pond is a particular type of non-convective solar pond
which relies on a salt solution of increasing concentration with depth
(Tang et al., 2018).
The most used medium in SPs systems is salty water with a salinity
gradient between the different layers (Jayatissa et al., 2016). SGSP are
used for their low cost (Sakhrieh and Al-Salaymeh, 2013). There is a
sensible heat SGSP using water, and latent heat SGSP using phase
change material. In this work, a comparison between the two systems
through an analysis of temperature distribution profiles has been ela-
borated. Using a solar simulator, we carried out a series of experiments
with the close collaboration of the Italian Laboratory.
2. Salinity gradient solar ponds (SGSP)
2.1. SGSP systems
The investigation on SGSP systems started in the early 70s by the
works of Turner in 1974 (Turner, 1974) who studied a thermohaline
system at a laboratory scale. He heated a salt solution flowed on a fixed
linear flux over a heating device. He observed a mixed layer at the
bottom.
Later, Abdeljabar and Safi (2001) studied two homogenous layers
separated by a salinity gradient intermediate layer. They heated the
system from the bottom part and analyzed the behavior of the bottom
mixed layer. They made observations and they were able to bring out
several mechanisms for mixed stratified solutions.
Dah et al. reported the temperature profile of a small solar pond on
the radiation spectrum using a solar simulator (Ould Dah et al., 2004).
They observed the behavior of the temperature in function of the sali-
nity profiles, using a small size pond exposed to a 2000 W light pro-
jector. A temperature of 45 °C was reached in the storage layer making a
22 °C difference between the bottom and the surface of the pond (Ould
Dah et al., 2005). Also in 2015, (Assari et al., 2015) discussed the
performance of adding a PCM to a small SP with a salinity gradient.
Two prototypes with a surface area of 3.4 m2 and a depth of 1 m were
compared after adding cylindrical capsules filled with paraffin (PCM) to
one of them in its LCZ horizontal. It was shown that the pool with PCM
decreases the difference in temperature between night and day.
2.2. SGSP description
A Salinity Gradient Solar Pond, Fig. 1 is a water device mainly
composed of three salinity density stratified layers (Abdeljabar and Safi,
2001):
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Solar Energy 186 (2019) 335–346
LH latent heat
LCZ lower convective zone
NCZ non-convective zone
UCZ upper convective zone
PCM phase change material
SP solar pond
PMMA poly(methyl methacrylate)
UV ultraviolet
IR infra rouge
Greek symbols
η efficiency
1. Energy Storage Zone or Lower Convective Zone (LCZ), where the
heat is stored.
2. Non-Convective Zone NCZ, which acts as Thermal Insulation Zone,
and
3. Upper Convective Zone (UCZ), which protects the pond from outside
perturbation (wind, waves, dust, other debris)
The gradient layer (NCZ) is also composed of thinner layers with
different salinity densities. This layer may stop the natural convection
via the increasing density with depth. Therefore, the performance and
efficiency of SP depend on the stability of the gradient layer
(Abdeljabar and Safi, 2001).
When solar radiations reach the pond, a quantity is reflected de-
pending on the angle of incidence and the rest goes into the pond where
it is dissipated exponentially before reaching the bottom layer (Kanan
et al., 2015). Then, the water temperature of the LCZ increases to
around 80 °C (Marcoux et al., 2009). The intermediate layer, insulates
the warmed one, especially at night and during the bad time to keep it
at the highest temperature and to maintain the salt density as long as
possible. However, the efficiency of the NCZ depends on the salt gra-
dient and the thickness of the sub-layers (Choubani and Safi, 2008).
There are a number of difficulties and limitations that disturb the
performance of solar ponds and might affect the pond’s stability (Agha
et al., 2004). Among these problems we mentioned, salt diffusion from
LCZ to UCZ (Abdullah and Lindsay, 2017; Choubani et al., 2011), wind
mixing (Blottiere, 2015; Xie et al., 2005) and heat loss through eva-
poration (Ruskowitz et al., 2014). Additionally, SGSP has a drawback of
needing frequent maintenance due to salinity diffusion from the lower
layer also dust and dirt falling on the pond’s surface (Subhakar and
Murthy, 1994).
Fig. 1. Solar pond typical schematic view (Kanan et al., 2015).
M. Ines, et al. Solar Energy 186 (2019) 335–346

2.3. Latent heat and phase change material thermal energy storage have gained research popularity (Liu et al.,
2018). The chemical form of these salts is MnH2O, where M is an in-
Most of heat storing systems are based on SH. Consequently, the organic compound. They are the result of an anhydrous salt forming a
announced volume is very large. While Sensible Heat is identified by solid crystalline structure in the presence of water in specific molar
the temperature increase, Latent Heat is the heat needed for phase ratios. Salt hydrates melt when the solid crystal structure releases its
change at a constant temperature; also, called a transition phase water and forms an aqueous solution (Hirschey et al., 2018).
(Sharma et al., 2009). Fig. 2 shows the diagrams describing the beha- Salt hydrates are good heat storage materials for their high volu-
vior of Sensible and Latent heats. The PCM is a material able to absorb metric storage density (Abhat, 1983), relatively high thermal con-
and liberates great amounts of energy upon solidification and melting ductivity around 0.5 W/m °C and sharp melting points (Farid et al.,
due to its superior latent heat storage capability (Abu-Hamdeh and 2004). Some are corrosive to some metals, compatible with plastics,
Alnefaie, 2019). The storage capacity of the PCM is equivalent to the inexpensive and easily available (Bhave and Thakare, 2018).
phase change enthalpy at the phase change temperature + sensible However, these salts are slightly toxic and have poor nucleating
heat stored (Almadhoni and Khan, 2016). During the transition phase properties resulting in supercooling and phase segregation (Farid et al.,
between the solid and the liquid state, the PCM continues to accumulate 2004). Hydrated salts do not solidify immediately upon cooling below
energy without a significant rise in temperature until all the material is the melting temperature. Their crystallization starts after a temperature
transformed into the liquid phase. And vice versa, when the ambient below the melting temperature. In the case of non-nucleation,
temperature falls, it releases its stored latent heat and solidifies (Fioretti LH is not released and energy is then stored only by the SH (Oró
and Principi, 2011). et al., 2012). The adopted method to tackle this problem is to mix the
Latent heat TES systems have recently attracted the attention of salt hydrate with some nucleation and thickening agents (Abhat, 1983).
researchers because these systems are characterized by a high energy Using the appropriate mixture, those salts crystallize at a temperature
storage density at a constant temperature corresponding to the transi- ranging from 30 °C to 50 °C. Benefiting from the above advantages of
tion temperature of the phase change material (Dorigato et al., 2017). form-stable hydrate salt PCMs, it becomes suitable for many solar en-
They proved for storing more energy in building applications (Liu et al., ergy heating applications (Farid et al., 2004).
2018; Zhoua et al., 2015), space and water heating (Verdier-Gorcias,
2016; Xu et al., 2015), power generation, cooling, and air-conditioning.
3. Experimental equipment and operator mode
LH based systems storage is carried through the three-phase change
phenomena: solid-liquid, solid-gas, liquid-gas or the reverse. Therefore,
3.1. Experiment equipment
latent heat systems depend on the thermo-physical properties of the
used PCM (Tatsidjodoung et al., 2013).
The experiments presented in this paper were conducted in a test-
Since the later 90s, LH based SGSP systems have become commonly
room (Photo 1) at the Environmental Energy Laboratory belonging to
used regarding the less affection of the environmental disturbance and
the Department of Industrial Engineering and Mathematical Science at
the stability of the temperature level (Ismail and Gonçalves, 1999).
the Marche Polytechnic University, Italy. The test room was a large one
PCM could be able to upsurge the energy density of small-sized water
with a length of 4.37 m, a width of 3.39 m and a height of 2.7 m
storage tanks, reducing or increasing the solar fraction for a given
(Principi et al., 2014). The dimensions of the chamber allowed the in-
available volume (Medrano et al., 2009).
stallation of all experimental equipment. Also, it's possible for the in-
Typical data of some relevant properties of heat storage materials
vestigators to be in the chamber during the experiments and check
used in thermal store are given in Table 1. When comparing the mass
theirs in progress experiments. Conditioned air is supplied from an air
and the volume, we can see that in the case of latent heat a much
treatment unit to the inlet air diffuser. All thermal comfort parameters
smaller weight and volume of material is required to store a certain
are controlled by this unit. Since we cannot use direct solar radiations,
amount of energy of the storage unit, and hence the advantage of the
we used a solar simulator (Photo 2).
latent heat over the sensible heat is clear.
The solar simulator was designed to be easily oriented in both di-
Thereby, the possibility of using PCM in solar system applications is
rections (in height and along its sliding surface) thanks to a tubular
worth investigating. Indeed, salt hydrates can be joined into hot water
guide and four wheels that allow it to move along the floor support. The
tanks to reinforce stratification. Besides Salt hydrate, PCM put off the
lamp holders are housed on the vertical plane of the wooden panel and
time of reaching a thermal balance between the top layer with higher
able to rotate around their own axis even if, for experimentation in
temperature and foot layer with moo temperature (Xie et al., 2017). A
progress, this was not necessary. The emission of a lamp (Fig. 4) pre-
large number of PCMs are available for variable temperatures ranging
sents a slight difference from the solar one in high mountain areas. The
from 5 °C to near 190 °C useful for numerous diverse applications in
spectral distribution of this lamp is stronger than the sun in the UV
buildings and space heating /cooling applications (Hiroyuki et al.,
2009). Fig. 3 illustrates a typical classification of PCM systems based on
their compositions.
Basically, three PCM types are used: Organic, Inorganic, and
Eutectic. PCM for TES are selected regarding their high LH and high
thermal conductivity. Their melting/freezing temperatures must fit
with the practical range of operations. They must melt/freeze con-
gruently within minimum sub-cooling and should be chemically stable
(Abdulateef et al., 2018). PCMs are, further, chosen for their low cost,
nontoxic, and non-corrosive properties (Farid et al., 2004).
Unfortunately, these bodies have some disadvantages. In most of
TES applications, PCMs like paraffin are normally encapsulated (Assari
et al., 2015), (Balakrishnan et al., 2015); and the problem of compat-
ibility of PCM and capsule material is the first requirement. In addition,
some PCM do not offer economic saving for thermal storage at low
temperatures (50–100 °C), due to their high cost which is about the
double of the cost of hot water systems.
On the other hand, the inorganic hydrate salts PCMs used for Fig. 2. Sensible and latent heat storage modified from (Skovajsa et al., 2017).

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M. Ines, et al. Solar Energy 186 (2019) 335–346

Table 1
Comparison of various heat storage media (Tatsidjodoung et al., 2013).
Heat storage material

Sensible heat Latent heat

Property Rock Water Organic PCM (Paraffin wax) Inorganic PCM (CaCl2; 6H2O)

Density (kg/m3) at 24 °C 2240 1000 1802 795

* *
Specific Heat capacity, (kJ/Kg K) 0.9 4.18
* *
Latent Heat of fusion (kJ/kg) 174.4 266
Storage volume for 1Gj (m3) 9.9 4.8 3.2 4.7
Relative storage volume** 3.1 1.5 1.0 1.5

* Latent heat of fusion is not of interest for sensible heat storage.

** For relative storage volume, reference is taken Paraffin.

radiating the surface uniformly (Principi et al., 2014). In fact, the total
radiation intensity of the natural sun and the sky at noon has an average
value on the surface of the earth approximately 1 kW m2. An arrange-
ment of 16 Osram Ultra Vitalux lamps over an area of 1 m2 with a
distance of 50 cm between lamp crown and irradiation object represents
a similar radiation intensity as shown in Fig. 5.
This simulator can produce up to 750 W/m2 on a spectral surface of
0.6 m × 0.6 m, with about 5% uniformity level (Principi et al., 2014).
An HD 9221 Foto-radiometer was used to measure the radiation’s flux.
with a precision of ± 0.15% of the output reading ± 1 digit. An ac-
quisition system consisting of the following elements was used for the
acquisition of temperature values:

• HP 34970 A Data Acquisition – Switch Unit. The accuracy of mea-

Fig. 3. Classification of PCM (Sharma et al., 2009).
region of the spectrum (Weber and Schulmeister, 2003).
The sun-like radiation is produced by a high-pressure mercury dis-
charge vessel of quartz glass (UV-radiation) and a tungsram filament
(light and heat radiation) which are incorporated in a mushroom-
shaped bulb of special hard glass with interior aluminium reflector
which transmits only that part of the spectral radiation which is similar
to the radiation of the sun (Osram, 1984).
Due to its sun-like radiation spectrum, the Osram Ultra-Vitalux
300 W E27 is particularly well suited to simulating the sun in industrial
material testing.
The number of lamps was chosen to simulate a solar flux capable of
surements is better than ± 0.35 °C.
• HP BENCHLINK Data Logger software for the treatment of the
analog-to-digital conversion.
• PC with Pentium 800 MHz
• Thermocouple Type T
This software captures and stores the temperatures in a database
during test operations (Principi et al., 2014). All the experimental data
were acquired with “LabView Signal Express” (National Instruments)
software sets to one reading every 5 min. Recorded data was then ex-
ported to an Excel file (Photo 3).
The temperature was measured with an accuracy of ± 0.2 °C. Eight
thermocouples were introduced through a vertical plastic tube at var-
ious locations to measure the temperature of each zone. The thermo-
couples were placed from the bottom as follows: two thermocouples

Fig. 4. Spectral distribution of an Ultra-Vitalux OSRAM lamp (Stefan, 2016).

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M. Ines, et al. Solar Energy 186 (2019) 335–346

Fig. 5. Test field with 16 ULTRA-VITALUX® lamps (Stefan, 2016).

were placed in the bottom and the end of the LCZ (storage zone) re- one tank and PCM for the other. Fig. 6 show that two thermocouples on
spectively at 2 cm and 6.5 cm, five thermocouples in the NCZ at 8.5 cm, the top and bottom of the storage tank were fitted in the axial direction
10.8 cm, 13.1 cm, 15.4 cm, 17.7 cm, and one thermocouple in UCZ at and were used to measure the temperatures of the PCM melting.
20.7 cm (Fig. 6) A separate T-type thermocouple was placed inside the For our experiment, we used Glauber’s Salt (Na2SO4, 10H2O) as it
climatic chamber to check the room temperature. was cheap but has good heat capacity storage. It is composed of 44% of
Two series of experiments were conducted: Na2SO4 and 56% H2O. Table 2 summarized the physical properties of
this hydrate salt.
3.2. Experiments Preparation of hydrated salt phase change material is the major key
step to ensure the performance of PCM in thermal storage application.
3.2.1. Series 1 The PCM was heated from to 60 °C (this temperature is quite higher
A schematic sketch of the entire apparatus is depicted by Fig. 7. than its melting point to avoid anhydrous sodium sulfate formation)
Experiments were performed using a rectangular Plexiglas tank with (Abhat, 1983). Here, also, the LCZ was of 7.5 cm thickness was filled
67.8 cm in height and 32.8 cm in width. Outer sides of the tank were with the prepared solution. We waited until the temperature fell to
insulated with 10 cm of Styrofoam or extracted polystyrene foam. The 26 °C to be sure that the solution was sufficiently solidified. The tem-
density of this material is equal to 32 kg/m3 and its thermal con- perature of the PCM was measured with T-type thermocouples at 8
ductivity is 0.03 W/mK. The base of the tank was painted by a black locations in the middle of the PCM block. Then, we followed the same
layer to stimulate radiation absorption. To fill the layers of the pond, a procedure of filling the tank used in the first experiment. The NCZ was
diffuser has been constructed. It was composed of two flat circular 11.5 cm thick and has a salinity gradient of 13% per meter.
plastic plates with 8 cm of diameter and a thickness of 2 cm each. The After filling, conditioned air was blown in the space between the
two plates are coplanar with a distance of 0.5 mm. One of them is solar simulator frame and the SGSP surface in order to cool the warmed
connected to a plastic pipe in its center allowing water to flow hor- air, due to Ultra Violet (UV) and Infrared radiations (IR), to reach the
izontally in the mass level of the solution. The circular form of the ambient temperature. The data recording for t(temperature) were
diffuser guarantees the homogeneous distribution of the salinity density
in each layer. Therefore, the gradient is formed.
A 26% NaCl solution was introduced until reaching the level of
13.25 cm. Then, through a diffuser initially placed at a height of 7.5 cm,
fresh water was injected. The brine layer covering the diffuser was di-
luted progressively creating layers with different salinity densities. This
Linear Salinity Distribution was obtained by raising the diffuser in in-
crement steps of 2 cm as the water level rise with 1 cm. Water feeding
was stopped when the whole level reached 19 cm. Finally, freshwater
was added to the surface of the solar pond up to 22 cm.
As a result, three zones were obtained with thicknesses of 7.5 cm,
11.5 cm, and 3 cm respectively for LCZ, NCZ, and UCZ. The salinities
were: 26% for LCZ, 1% for UCZ and a linear gradient for the NCZ. The
initial temperature profile was expected to be nearly uniform and close
to room temperature.

3.2.2. Series 2
These experiments were conducted to make the comparison be-
tween SH based system and LH based system using the same shape and
under the same conditions. In this case, we used two plastic cylindrical
tanks, to avoid corrosion problem, with 22 cm in height and an inner
diameter of 15 cm (Fig. 8). A 3 cm thick glass wool insulation
(k = 0.04 W/mK) was wrapped around the cylindrical tanks to decrease
heat loss and to make the surface adiabatic.
Both tanks are composed of three layers, UCZ with fresh water, NCZ
formed by a salinity gradient and LCZ which contains a salt solution for Fig. 6. Thermocouples arrangement.

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M. Ines, et al. Solar Energy 186 (2019) 335–346

1. Solar simulator
2. Air CondiƟoning system
3. Air diīuser
4. SGSP prototype
5. Plexiglas plater

a) b)
Fig. 7. (a) Flow Sheet of experiment 1, (b) Photo of the experiment equipment.

achieved by a data logger and a computer. Table 2

Glauber’s salt Thermophysical properties.
4. Results and discussion Melting The heat of Density Kg/ Specific Heat Thermal
Point °C fusion kJ/kg m3 (solid) kJ/kg·K conductivity W/mK
4.1. Experimental results
32.4 254 1485 1.93 0.554

4.1.1. Effect of solar simulator spectrum on the temperature’s profile

Results from solar radiation measurements showed that the average
simulator. In real cases, the temperature of the upper layer is close to
global radiation for the period of experimentation was 520 W/m2. The
the ambient temperature.
air temperature separating the SGSP surface to the solar simulator was
Moreover, the high temperature in the gradient zone and the upper
equal to 25.7 °C. The tank was exposed to the solar simulator for 26 h.
layer is owing to the absorption of a great portion of the simulator lights
Measured temperature profiles during and after the exposure are illu-
in the surface and gradient zone (we used UV lamps) which provoke the
strated in Fig. 9.
quick temperature rise, specifically of the UCZ. It is worth noting, that
We noted that the temperature in the LCZ increased by 5 °C every
only a small part of the simulator radiation reached the LCZ so that the
3 h. At the end of the exposure, this temperature reached 57.87 °C at the
temperature rise of the LCZ occurs slowly. Consequently, the heat is
storage layer. The temperature of the upper layer was about 52 °C. At
transferred by conduction to the rest of the basin differently from what
t = 26 h, the heating was stopped and we found out that the tempera-
happens in a real solar pond where solar radiation penetrates until the
ture decreased in the lower and upper layer up to 46.6 °C and 34.39 °C
storage area. The temperature gradient in the non-convective zone in-
respectively. The heat losses were mainly due to evaporation of water at
creases as the temperature of the bottom mixed layer increases. These
the surface, heat losses from side walls, despite the insulation, and heat
transfers, given the translation of the profiles, are explained by the
losses from the bottom which were expected, since the bottom of the
preponderance of the conductive mode.
pond was not insulated. On the other hand, the high temperature
An hour after stopping heating at t = 27 h, we note that firstly
measured at the upper layer is due to the proximity to the solar

Solar simulator
Air CondiƟoning system
Air diīuser
SGSP prototype ǁitŚ PCD
SGSP prototype ǁitŚout PCD
Plexiglas plater

a) b)

Fig. 8. (a) Flow Sheet of experiment 2, (b) Photo of the experiment equipment.

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M. Ines, et al. Solar Energy 186 (2019) 335–346

Fig. 9. Temperature profiles with (line) and without (point) heating.

profiles revert parabolic and curved to the left-hand side with a max-
imum located in the lower convective zone and the minimum tem-
perature is located in the upper surface (Fig. 9- dashed line). This later
drop by 10 °C is equal to the temperature rise recorded in the same layer
after one hour of heating. Thus, everything happens as if the heating
and cooling mechanism is repeated but of opposite sign, this confirms
the transfer by conduction.
To avoid the heating up of the solution and limit the effect of UV, a
panel of Plexiglass was integrated between the pond and the simulator
to reduce the emission of Ultraviolet and prevent radiation from
heating up the solution, then this panel plays the role of a filter. The UV
filter Plexiglas (PMMA: Polymethyl methacrylate) used transmits up to
92% of visible light (Highly transparent) and gives a reflection of about
4% from each of its surfaces due to its refractive index. It filters UV light
at wavelengths below about 300 nm. PMMA passes infrared light of up
Fig. 10. Comparison between Spectral distribution of the solar spectrum and
to 2800 nm and blocks IR of longer wavelengths up to 25,000 nm. The
OSRAM Ultra-Vitalux Lamp before and after using the filter.
PMMA thermos-physical properties are shown in Table 3.
Fig. 10, which compares solar spectrum at earth surface with Osram
Ultra Vitalux lamps before and after adding Plexiglass Panel also shows decreases in the NCZ to reach a temperature close to the ambient one in
that later has blocked the Ultraviolet Rays. the UCZ. The filter helped to reproduce the real temperature profile of
After the integration of Plexiglas between the tank and the lamps the exposed solar pond to the sun. The temperature at the heat storage
the solar energy flux, measured just under the Plexiglas plater, decrease zone of the pond started increasing considerably for example from 38 °C
to 408 W/m2. With this new initial condition, we have repeated the at t = 1 h to 41.9 °C after 3 h, it was observed that there was also a
experiment. As seen in Fig. 11, the effects of adding UV Filter are ap- temperature variation in the gradient zone of the pond and the surface
parent compared with the last experiment are apparent. layer. Subsequent perceptions revealed that the pond started accumu-
The graph shows that during the experimental time period, 20 h, lating heat gradually. It was observed that the average temperature in
three zones were distinguished from these vertical temperature profiles: the heat storage zone increased steadily from 41.9 °C to a maximum
average value of 58 °C on 16 h of the experiment and that the tem-
▪ A lower zone with a quasi-uniform temperature. perature gradient in the pond remained relatively stable. Fig. 11 depict
▪ A gradient zone where the temperature is unstably stratified. a slight variation of temperature in the UCZ after 19.5 h of experi-
▪ An upper zone with a quasi-uniform temperature. mentation, due to the evaporation from the ponds’ surfaces. Conse-
quently, fresh water is continuously introduced to flush the surface and
Using the filter, the behavior of the temperature in the solar pond to compensate for evaporation.
has changed slightly as the time of exposure increases. In fact, radia- Temperature variation of the three zones of the experimental pond
tions are absorbed by the LCZ where the temperature is significant and over the entire time of study have been represented in Fig. 12. From this

Table 3
Some properties of Plexiglas Poly (methyl methacrylate).
Melting point Transmission, visible (%) Refractive index Thermal conductivity at 23 °C (Wm−1 K−1) Resistance to UV Coefficient of thermal expansion (10-6 K−1)

160 °C 80–93% 1.49 0.17–0.19 GOOD 70–77

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Fig. 11. Temperature Profiles after the use of the UV filter.

figure, the temperature of the upper convective layer appears to be
fairly uniform, reaching a maximum of 34 °C at t = 16 h but generally
between 30 and 34 °C throughout the time of the experiment. The
highest temperature reached in the LCZ was about 50 °C and the lowest
was at the UCZ at about 30 °C, after 20 h of heating.
Moreover, Fig. 12 shows that the temperature in the upper con-
vective layer was in relation to the ambient temperature. It is observed
that the temperature development in both cases follow a similar pattern
Effect of the filter
Using a Plexiglas filter showed a significant difference in the pond
behavior. The results presented in the below Fig. 13a display the va-
luable contribution of the filter in stabilizing the layers. Without using
the filter, the UCZ was heated fast over 45 °C and LCZ slowly followed it
in a quasi-constant slope until they crossed at 50 °C after almost 16 h of
heating which leads to an unstable pound as the ambient temperature
was 15 °C lower than the two layers. Adding the Plexiglas filter Fig. 13b
showed a completely different behavior from the first few minutes. The
UCZ presented a decrease in temperature by a decrease in UV absor-
bance which helped not only to prevent the UCZ from heating up but
also keep its temperature close to ambient. The LCZ, in this case,
reached 45 °C three hours faster than the experiment without the filter.
Results clearly demonstrate that the use of the Plexiglas filter blocks
UV rays caused by the simulator resulting in the regulation of UCZ
temperature and consequently more stable and more efficient solar
pond.
Considering the temperature measurement, we can calculate the

Fig. 12. Temperature variation in the three zones.

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Fig. 13. Temperature Variation in the UCZ and LCZ: (a) Without filter (b) With filter.

Table 4 used. For the first solar pond (without PCM) the circulation of fluid in
Thermal storage efficiency of the two ponds. the LCZ, due to convective motion, made the temperature distribution
Experiment t (h) ΔT Irr Efficiency (%)
more uniform, higher than the other two layers and reach a maximum
of 41.5 °C at t = 40 h of heating. However, it decreased quickly to 39 °C
Without Filter 19.5 3 520 2.6 one hour after stop heating at t = 41 h (dashed line) and drop to 30 °C
With Filter 19.5 20 408 22.1 10 h later. The gap between the LCZ and the UCZ was only 7.5 °C.
However, for the second tank with integration of Glauber’s salt, the
obtained data shows that during the transition process, the material
thermal efficiency of the solar pond. Therefore, we can make a judg-
absorbs energy as it goes from a solid to a liquid state and the tem-
ment of the thermal storage which depends on time:
perature still constant at 32 °C, melting temperature, and then continue
m ·Cp·ΔT increasing to a maximum of 34.2 °C. After stop heating at t = 40 h, the
η= ,
Irr ·A·t (1) PCM releases an amount of energy into the surrounding environment to
return to its solid state. As a result, the temperature continued to in-
As shown in Table 4, the relatively low efficiency of the first pond
crease and reach 37 °C at the NCZ. Nevertheless, the temperature in-
renders it uncompetitive comparing to the high thermal efficiency of
creased slightly and slowly in the LCZ due to the melting front migra-
the second pond for the same duration.
tion phenomena which will be discussed in the next section. Finally,
after 10 h without heating the temperature of the LCZ reached 35.3 °C
4.1.2. SGSP with PCM more than that of the first tank of around 5 °C. In this SGSP, the tem-
In this part, the results of the second experiment were discussed. It is perature gap between the LCZ and UCZ was 10 °C.
worth noting, that initially, the entire block of the PCM would have had We conclude that the integration of PCM in the LCZ has allowed
approximately the uniform temperature. Figs. 14 and 15 illustrate the having hot-water longer even without exterior energy supply.
temperature behavior inside the two SGSP respectively with and In Fig. 16, the temperature profile in each layer was compared with
without PCM. It is noted that in this experiment, the UV filter has been

Fig. 14. Temperature Variations inside the SGSP without PCM.

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Fig. 15. Temperature Variations inside the SGSP with PCM.

Fig. 16. Temperature variations of SGSP without and with PCM during time experiment.

Photo 1. Test Room.

Photo 2. Solar Simulator.

the ambient temperature. These results showed that the temperature

point (Liu et al., 2006). The flat section represents the melting process
variation during the storage operation for UCZ (20.7 cm) follows the air
where the temperature remained constant during the phase change.
temperature variation. This temperature is higher in the pond with PCM
During the melting process, the phase change interface moves away to
due to the amount of energy absorbed by this zone. For the PCM layer
the bottom until the melt of all the PCM. Finally, the temperature
(2 cm and 6.5 cm), the initial period represents the sensible heating of
continued to increase announcing the sensible heating of the PCM as a
the PCM as a solid, in this stage, the temperature gradually increased
liquid.
with time. This is the initial period of heating in which PCM absorbs
In fact, Natural convection is significantly reduced with adding solid
and stores the energy heat used to raise his temperature to its melting

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Photo 3. The equipment for data acquisition and processing.
PCM and as a result, the melting front propagates slowly. Once the
temperature of the first centimeters of PCM rose to the melting point,
the PCM started to change its state from solid to liquid with the con-
sequent absorption of latent heat. As a result, the melting process is
one-dimensional and a melting front is a Horizontal plane. As the
process continued, the liquid fraction of PCM increased and, conse-
quently, the thermal conductivity associated, until all the heat transfer
was aimed to increase the temperature of the PCM located at the
bottom of the tank.
5. Conclusion
To sum up, this work has demonstrated valuable results. First of all,
we’ve learned that the simulator specter’s effect on the temperature
distribution, in different layers of the pond, constitutes a rational ap-
proach to diffuse salt from the storage zone to the surface layer.
Additionally, this study investigated the effect of PCMs on the thermal
stratification in a common water tank. An experimental result of the
solar pond with and without PCM has indicated that the maximum
average temperature was higher in the second case. It’s also worth
mentioning that the decrease in the maximum temperature of the pond
with PCM has reduced the temperature difference while the minimum
temperature was approximately equal in both ponds. In brief, there is
no doubt that the above study provides new directions for future re-
searches when it comes to store thermal energy using change phase
materials.
Author contributions
Safi Mohamed, Principi Paolo, and Mahfoudh Ines conceived and
planned the experiments. Mahfoudh Ines, Principi Paolo, and Fioretti
Roberto carried out the experiment, processed and analyzed the data.
Mahfoudh Ines and Safi Mohamed wrote the paper with input from all
authors.
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