Unsteady heat transfer during cold storage process utilizing numerical approach

In this study, a novel enclosure design is investigated for the solidification process. The container features two Tshaped fins, and the entire domain is filled with liquid water. To improve conductivity, nanoparticles of various shapes are dispersed within the water. The equations representing solidification are derived by neglecting velocity terms, and a single-phase mixture of nanomaterial is used to simplify the equations. The model solution is obtained using the Galerkin method. During mesh generation, the mesh adapts to the position of the ice front. Changing the volume fraction from 0.02 to 0.04 causes freezing period to decrease about 16.93 %. Additionally, powders with a higher shape factor accelerate freezing by approximately 10.74 %. Implementing nanomaterial reduces the freezing time from 9514.43 s to 6403.37 s. Overall, the findings demonstrate the promising potential of the proposed enclosure design and nanoparticle-enhanced water mixture in improving the efficiency and effectiveness of cold energy storage systems.