Experimental Study on PCM-Based External Wall Cladding for Energy Efficient Buildings

Abstract

The present work reports the experimental investigation of the phase change material (PCM) incorporated into the external wall claddings for achieving energy conservation in building through a passive cooling application. Three types of wall claddings of size 458 mm × 458 mm (1.5 ft × 1.5 ft) in dimension were developed in this experimental study. Lauric acid was utilized as the PCM to be incorporated into the wall claddings. Experimental results suggest that the lauric acid exhibited good latent heat potential, congruent phase change processes, and was thermally stable within operating temperature ranges. Furthermore, it was concluded that out of three cladding types being tested, the percentage drop of air temperature was more in composite wall cladding and the percentage drop of heat flux was more in aluminum box cladding with PCM and coarse aggregate. In total, the cladding incorporated with the PCM was found to be the potential candidate for the enhancement of energy efficiency in building through passive thermal storage and cooling load reduction.