Iachachene F., Cheradi H., Dalkiliç A. S.
Scientific works/Elmi eserler, vol.1, no.1, pp.1-10, 2026 (Conference Book)
Abstract
This work presents a numerical
investigation of the melting and solidification
processes of the phase change material (PCM)
Paraffin 25X embedded in an aluminum metal
foam square cavity subjected to a constant heat
flux. The mathematical model is based on the
enthalpy–porosity approach proposed by Voller to
simulate phase change phenomena and on the
Darcy–Brinkman–Forchheimer formulation to
describe fluid flow through the porous medium.
The governing equations are solved using the finite
volume method implemented. The influence of
metal foam porosity (ε = 0.80, 0.84, 0.88, and 0.92)
on the thermal and energetic performance of the
latent heat storage system is systematically
analyzed during both charging (melting) and
discharging (solidification) stages. The results
indicate that lower porosity enhances heat transfer
and reduces phase-change time owing to the higher
effective thermal conductivity of the composite medium, whereas higher porosity increases the
amount of stored thermal energy. To identify the
most efficient configuration, a multi-objective
optimization based on the Pareto front is
performed. The analysis reveals that a porosity of ε
= 0.88 provides the best compromise between heat
transfer enhancement and energy storage capacity,
making it the optimal configuration for both
melting and solidification processes and thus
ensuring the highest overall performance of the
thermal energy storage system.