Numerical analysis of influencing factors on heat storage time of phase change material in an inclination rectangular cavity based on orthogonal method

In this paper, factors affecting the completely melting time of phase change material (PCM) in a rectangular cavity are analyzed. The influence of three factors including inclination angle of the cavity, heating temperature, and geometry of the cavity on completely melting time is discussed under the boundary condition of single size heating and double sizes heating respectively, while other sides are considered to be adiabatic. A two-dimensional mathematical model is established for the simulation analysis and verified by experiments. In order to analyze the influence of all factors on the completely melting time, the orthogonal analysis method is adopted, and the range analysis method is used to determine the influence of three factors on the completely melting time. Based on the orthogonal analysis, it can be found that the heating temperature is the most significant factor during single side heating, while geometry of the cavity is the most important factor during double sides heating. The results will be helpful to optimize the structure of PCM component used for energy storage system or temperature control structure.