A refrigeration, or thermal, energy storage system for storing refrigeration, or thermal, energy, comprising a body, closed and insulated, the body being configured to contain two fluids, respectively a Phase Change Material (PCM) type fluid and a secondary fluid, the two fluids being immiscible with each other and having different densities, so as to be stratified within the volume of the body; withdrawal means configured to draw the secondary fluid from the body, and to convey the same inside a heat exchanger configured to exchange frigories, or calories, with the secondary fluid; and distribution means configured to draw the secondary fluid from the heat exchanger, and distribute the secondary fluid into the PCM type fluid, so that the secondary fluid exchanges with the PCM type fluid frigories, or calories, absorbed in the heat exchanger, the secondary fluid having a solidification temperature substantially lower than that of the PCM type fluid.

An air conditioning system includes a cooling unit having a cooling coil and a fan, the cooling unit for cooling recirculated air from a return duct; a bypass duct providing an air pathway bypassing the cooling unit; a phase change material (PCM) module including a PCM and a PCM fan for drawing makeup air over the PCM; and a supply duct fluidly coupled to the cooling unit and the PCM module, the supply duct for supplying conditioned air to a space to be conditioned.

A ductwork system including a temperature modulating blanket with phase change material. The system allows for attic installation of ductwork while substantially avoiding effects of excessive temperatures and temperature gradients of the attic space on conditioned air run through the ductwork. Thus, smaller HVAC and overall power requirements may be realized for air conditioning applications in structural facilities. This may be of particular benefit for structural facilities retrofitted with HVAC systems where attic space is more likely to be made greater use of for accommodating ductwork.

A device to store energy includes a phase change material (PCM), with a phase change temperature Tc, contained in a sealed container and constituting a storage core. A source to exchange heat with the PCM, at a temperature TA, to cause a phase change of the PCM. A recuperator to exchange heat with the PCM, at a temperature TB, to cause a phase change of the PCM in the opposite direction to the phase change produced by the source. A controller to control the heat flows between the PCM, the source and the recuperator. An apertured support in contact with the PCM in the sealed container and in thermal contact with the source and the recuperator.

A transportable PCM (phase change material) module comprises a number of PCM packs; a housing for thermally insulting said number of PCM packs from a module's surrounding medium; spaces separating said packs and forming one or more channels for the flow of a fluid; said housing incorporating a fluid inlet and a fluid outlet; whereby, in use, fluid flows through said channels from said inlet to said outlet. A PCM (phase change material) pack comprises a laminate of a first conducting panel and a second conducting panel enclosing a portion formed primarily of PCM; wherein said portion of PCM incorporates thermal conductors.

A system including a chilled air generation system, a forced air convection system, one or more phase change material (PCM) modules, and a controller. The controller is configured to regulate the temperature of a facility by selectively utilizing the chilled air generation system and the forced air convection system based on multiple factors, which may include energy source type(s), relative costs of the energy from the source(s), availability of energy from the source(s), facility temperature, PCM module temperature, and/or temperature of goods stored within the facility, among other considerations. The controller may thus advantageously and cost-effectively control the periods of time during which the chilled air generation system is used and those during which the thermal energy stored in the PCM modules is used.

A carrying case utilizes a layer of phase change materials and a thermal insulation layer in order to provide a temperature-stabilized environment for enclosed payloads such as musical instruments during transport through an environment in which temperatures differ greatly from those to which they are normally exposed. In one aspect, the phase change materials and thermal insulation provide an extended period of temperature constancy, without the addition of either active thermal control or excessively bulky insulation.

A vehicle air-conditioning system includes at least one chiller and one cold storage unit which is designed as a PCM storage system with phase change material. The refrigeration power required for air-conditioning and for charging the PCM storage system are provided by the chiller where the cold stored in the PCM storage system is supplied to the assemblies for air-conditioning the passenger compartment in selected operating states of the vehicle. A sufficiently large amount of cold can be conducted from a phase change material of the PCM storage system into the passenger compartment such that the chiller of the air conditioning system designed for cold generation is largely put out of operation and the discharge of larger amounts of heat from the rail vehicle into the tunnel is thereby avoided.

A thermal-storage container used in thermal systems to exchange heat by fluid flow though phase-changing material disposed inside the thermal-storage container, including a thermal-storage container housing, a fluid inlet and a fluid outlet, and one or more capsules containing the phase-change material, and defining a plurality of passages configured to direct the flow of the fluid at different portions inside the housing, wherein an actual fluid flow length from the fluid inlet to the fluid outlet is longer than a direct length measured between the fluid inlet and the fluid outlet through all sections through which the fluid flows. Related apparatus and methods are also described.

This invention relates to a hybrid air cooling system 10 comprising a primary inlet 12 for receiving a primary air stream 14, a primary outlet 16 for supplying a conditioned air stream 18 to a conditioned space, and a primary air flow passage 20 extending between the primary inlet and outlet 12, 16. The system 10 further comprises a primary heat exchange means 22, disposed in the primary air flow passage 20, which is adapted to permit the primary air stream 14 to operatively pass therethrough, to extract heat energy from the primary air stream 14 as it passes therethrough and thereby form the conditioned air stream 18. The primary heat exchange means 22 includes a first indirect heat exchange element 24 utilising a first coolant 26 for extracting the heat energy from the primary air stream 14, a second indirect heat exchange element 28 utilising a second coolant 30 for extracting the heat energy from the primary air stream 14, and a third direct heat exchange element 32 utilising a third coolant 34 for extracting the heat energy from the primary air stream 14.