An investigation on using Phase Change Materials (PCM) inside a parked car cabin under intense sun irradiation: Experiment & CFD modeling

Severe thermal discomfort is frequently felt in car cabins left under direct sunlight especially in summer days under intense sunlight irradiation. This problem both may bother people inside the car and cause excessive fuel consumption which is followed by the air pollution. PCM units are among pioneer thermal storage systems that are capable of remaining the cabin temperature in desired conditions. In this paper first a set-up was made to simulate experiments in hot weather using a paraffin PCM and then a CFD model was developed and compared with experimental results to ensure the validation. Finally, a model was developed to simulate real car cabin conditions and it was seen that using PCM can decrease the temperature about 10 ºC.

Keywords:

PCM , CFD simulation , Thermal analysis