Numerical Investigation of Heat Transfer Enhancement for Finned Double Tube Latent Heat Thermal Energy Storage using Lattice Boltzmann Method

Articles in Press

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors
Oussama El Mhamdi 1
Elalami Semma 2
Hamza Faraji 3
Mustapha El Alami 4
1 EIGSI, Casablanca, Morocco
2 Laboratory of Engineering Industrial Management and Innovation, University Hassan 1st, FST Settat, Morocco
3 Cadi Ayyad University, UCA, National School of Applied Sciences, LaRTID Laboratory, Marrakech, Morocco
4 Physics Department, LPMAT Laboratory, Faculty of Sciences Ain Chock, Hassan II University, Casablanca, Morocco
10.22055/jacm.2026.49250.5837
Abstract
Latent heat thermal energy storage (LHTES) is a widely employed technique in various practical applications. However, it suffers from the drawback of low conductivity, which significantly impacts the efficiency of both charging and discharging processes. This paper focuses on the numerical study of the thermal performance of a latent heat tube heat exchanger. The investigation involves the consideration of natural convection, and it is conducted using the Lattice Boltzmann method with double population. To take account for the solid/liquid phase change phenomena, the enthalpy method is employed. We investigate the effect of the insertion of conducting fins on the enhancement of thermal transfers within the phase change material (PCM). We explore the influences of control parameters, including the size, number, and thickness of fins, on the duration of the charge and discharge processes within the system. The obtained results show that the presence of natural convection accelerates the melting process by about 25% in the case without fins. The results also disclose that when fins are added, the enhancement of charge-discharge time compared to the case without fins may in some cases reach 80%. In addition, the discharge time is greater than the charge time and the discharge speed depends mainly on the number of fins.
Keywords
Lattice Boltzmann Method
Double tube exchanger
Melting
Solidification
Latent heat storage
Subjects

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Journal of Applied and Computational Mechanics

Articles in Press, Corrected Proof
Available Online from 02 September 2026