ABSTRACT

The present thesis deals with Pumpless Ice thermal storage system which has been applied for
a patent (APPLICATION 219/MUM/2008) for its innovative idea to eliminate the Pump
from the system and make it more efficient and thus make the compressor and blower as the
only power consuming devices.

Thermal analysis for this system has been performed in detail and the same data has been
simulated in Flow simulation software packages ANSYS 14.0 and Solidworks Flow
Simulation 2012

Also, a small prototype was manufactured at the company PANASIA CORPORATION

under the kind and inspiring guidance of Mr. Surendra Shah and the experimental readings
were related to the data obtained through the analytical calculations.

The economic feasibility for such a project has been carefully studied and a business model
has been proposed that may not be used without the prior permission and consent of the
author/copyright holder

1
CHAPTER 1
GENERAL INTRODUCTION
After brief but intense interest in energy storage during the 70s and 80s, the return of
inexpensive fossil fuel dampened the sense of urgency created by insecurity about our energy
future. Nonetheless, thermal energy storage for air-conditioning applications has matured into
a robust commercial product, with broad manufacturing and marketing support. Recent
interest on energy storage is founded on more compelling and comprehensive motivations.
Climate change, energy independence and energy cost are some of the factors that are
merging to reinvigorate efforts in energy storage development. And predictably, much of the
effort is related to the ability of storage to support renewable energy sources, such as wind
and solar, that possesses some level of variability or where the availability may be
temporarily out of phase with demand.

A Thermal storage system is an innovative way to store thermal energy, either cold or hot, in
order to utilize it at a later time. A thermal storage system uses power during off peak periods
or night time to store cold thermal energy in a phase change material as latent heat, which is
then recovered during the peak load hours. A thermal storage systems operation reduces the
peak demand and helps save on the electricity bill in places where the night time tariffs are
lower. The condensing units efficiency is higher during night time due to lesser condensing
temperature. Hence, the energy stored will be greener. It can also be utilized as a back-up to
meet cooling loads during power cuts.

Thermal Storage was originally developed as a demand-side management tool designed to

allow both the electric utility industry and the utility customer to limit and/or manage peak
electrical demand. However, the current motivation for adopting Thermal Storage continues
to be demand shift and reduction.

The modern development and growth of Thermal Storage technologies has its roots in the
energy crisis during the 1970s. The rising costs of energy, at the level of both the customer
facility and the generation plant, provoked a great deal of interest in developing methods to
reduce the expense of peak period electrical generation. In this context, Thermal Storage was
similar to other alternative energy technologies, such as solar energy and renewable energy in
that only a few professionals had knowledge of or experience with the technology.

2
By the early 1980s Thermal Storage had been installed at many sites nationwide; since that
time, the number of installations has multiplied greatly. The technology has grown and
developed over the past two decades and is now present in all segments of the marketplace,
including the residential, commercial, industrial, and agricultural areas. There has been
substantial international growth of the Thermal Storage market in the past ten years. Interest
in Thermal Storage has decreased in some regions like Mumbai and Delhi with the electricity
Tariff being standardized for all strata of people i.e Residential commercial or Industrial. As
an engineer it is well understood that this Un-interrupted Power is at the cost of load
shedding in other areas of vicinity and the problem shall keep on increasing.

Ice production techniques can be divided into two main groups namely Dynamic and Static
systems and the produced ice can be used either directly or indirectly to chill the product or
system.

1.1 DYNAMIC ICE PRODUCTION SYSTEMS

Ice is periodically harvested from the freezing apparatus to a storage bin and the stored
energy is recovered by circulation of water through ice in the bin to supply the chilled water
system during normal operation.

1.1.1 Ice Harvester:

Ice is built on a vertical surface which is the evaporator section of the refrigeration system.
Water is circulated from the storage tank, over the plates until a certain thickness;
normally in the region of 8-10 mm ice is formed. This freezing process takes
approximately 20 minutes. The ice is harvested by means of hot-gas by-pass from the
delivery port to the evaporator plates to warm the surface to about 5C, resulting in the ice
in contact with the plates melting and falling into a sump or ice tank, to which chilled
water from the system is circulated.

Fig. 1.1 Ice Harvester

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1.1.2 Tubular Ice:

In principal this technique is identical to the Ice Harvester system, the only difference
being that the ice is produced within a tube rather than on the surface of plates. The
storage and system applications are identical to the ice harvester techniques.

1.1.3 Ice Flakes:

A revolving freezing apparatus produces ice flakes continuously and the flake ice is
collected at the bottom drum of the machine for later use by means of circulating chilled
water through the ice tank to satisfy the cooling demand.

1.1.4 Slurry Ice:

In this system a binary solution is cooled below its freezing temperature within a Falling
Film, scraper, vacuum or supercooling heat exchangers. The refrigerant which is
circulated outside the tube supercools the binary solution into millions of fine crystals
which are then pumped into a storage tank for later use, or directly to satisfy the process
load. During the cooling mode, warm solution is circulated through the storage tank where
it is cooled by the crystallised solution and then pumped directly to satisfy the air
conditioning chilled water circuit.

Fig. 1.2 Scraper Type Slurry Generator[11]

4
1.2 STATIC ICE PRODUCTION SYSTEMS

In principle, the ice formation and melting takes place without any physical removal of the
ice. This technique is probably the oldest in use. The most common used techniques are as
follows:

1.2.1 Ice on Coil

Refrigerant or Glycol water solution at a temperature of between -4C and -10C is

circulated within a serpentine coil, which is submerged in an insulated tank of water in
order to form ice on it. The ice builder tank consist of a low pressure air pump or paddle
blade to agitate the system in order to achieve even distribution of ice melting and
formation. The thickness of ice is measured by a sensor to control the operation and the
relevant details can be seen in Figure 1.3

Fig. 1.3 Ice Builder Concept [11]

1.2.2 Ice Banks:

The ice bank consists of a pressurized, closely packed polyethylene tube heat exchanger.
Low temperature glycol solution is circulated through the tubes, which freezes the water
around them. The water in the insulated tank is almost frozen solid at the end of the
charging cycle. The control of the system can be provided by the ice level sensor in the
tank. The system water is circulated through the tank for both techniques, to satisfy the
cooling demand. A typical Ice Bank system can be seen in Figure 1.4.

5
 Fig. 1.4 Ice Bank Systems [11]

1.2.3 Encapsulated Ice Storage:

The basic principle of this technique is the sealing of water or Phase Change Material
(PCM) in capsules which are positioned in an insulated tank and the circulation of process
fluid around the capsules Figure 06 at below freezing point during charging and vice versa
normally with flow reversal for the discharge mode. Capsules can be in any shape but the
most commercially used shapes are Balls or Flat containers. The charging and discharging
cycle can be controlled by water levels in an inventory tank which is subject to level
change due to ice expansion and contraction during the freezing and melting process
respectively or by process fluid temperatures.

Fig. 1.5 Encapsulated Container Concept [11]

1.3 MOTIVATION FOR THE PROJECT

My brief stay in Pune for 1 year proved to be a great motivation for this project where I
faced Power cuts on a daily basis and, as an engineer, felt the need to develop some solution
to this problem that has persisted in our State for more than a decade now. Developing a
Pumpless Ice Thermal Storage System is a small step towards creating surplus supply of
energy.

6
The research patent by Mr. Surendra Shah of Panasia Corporation describes of a system that
would independently work in load shedding conditions to supply air at comfort conditions
and the need to develop the product has greatly motivated this project.

1.4 OBJECTIVES OF THE PROJECT

1. The objective of the project was to develop the unit based on the novel idea of Pumpless
Ice Thermal Storage System.

2. To do a detailed Thermal analysis before making the unit and using the analysis to make
similar scaled models in the future.

3. Simulate the flow of air and get approximate results so as to manufacture the prototype
accordingly.

4. To develop a business plan with the help of which the project may be implemented
easily.

1.5 SCOPE OF THE THESIS

1. Thermal Analysis of the System has been performed in the given project work.

2. Simulation of the modelled prototype has been performed on Solidworks 2012 for
different temperatures of the water in the pipe ranging from -2C to 25C

3. Experimental results have been plotted for a 1TR-hr unit prototype manufactured at the
company.

4. Regression analysis has been performed to get relation between the Temperature of water
and time.

1.6 ORGANIZATION OF THE THESIS

An introduction to Thermal Storage Systems has been given in Chapter 01. A detailed
Literature survey has been done in Chapter 02 in which literature on Ice Thermal storage
has been gathered and presented. Chapter 03 consists of the Analytical calculations done to
build the 1TR-hr unit for experimentation. Simulation analysis of the designed model has
been shown in Chapter 04. Prototype setup and Regression Analysis have been discussed in
Chapter 05 and Chapter 06 respectively. Economic Feasibility of the project has been
discussed in Chapter 07. The Advantages have been briefly put in Chapter 08. The
conclusions and future scope of work from the current thesis is presented in Chapter 09.

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CHAPTER 2

PROJECT LITERATURE
To understand the project better it is important to do a thorough literature review to get hold
of the existing practices followed in the market and the Gap or Window where our project
can serve as a catalyst to take the concept forward. In this chapter a detailed review of
Thermal Ice storage Systems developed over the years have been thoroughly studied, the
details of which can be found easily in patents and papers available over the internet.

2.1 USE OF THERMAL STORAGE

Use of block ice from lakes, rivers, or desert ambient freezing cycles to cool buildings dates
back over 1,000 years. The very first refrigerated cool storage systems were used in movie
theaters during the 1920s; the storage system consisted of large blocks of ice.

The patent of John S. Ludwigsen, Jill L. Ludwigsen, Terry A. Gallagher (Patent no.
4509344) dates back to 09.04.1985 describing the novel idea of the apparatus and method
used for cooling which include the storage of cooling capacity or thermal energy in the form
of an ice slurry or slush[1]. Subsequently, the ice is used for any cooling purpose, including
air-conditioning and industrial installations which require cooling or refrigeration.

Fig. 2.1 Working Of the System Patented by Ludwigsen et. al.[1]

2.2 WORKING OF THERMAL STORAGE SYSTEMS

The working of the Thermal storage systems have been patented by different authors based
on their various ways of operating.

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2.2.1 TYPE OF MELT

Thermal Storage Systems can be classified as External Melt and Internal melt systems.
Most of the systems patented are of the external melt type. The external melt Thermal
Storage Systems have indirect contact heat transfer between the coolant and the PCM. The
patents of Thomas Arther Gilbertson (Patent no. 161820) dated 06.02.1988 and Osborne
et. Al. (Patent no. US6415615) dated 09.07.2002 describes of such a system where
multiple tube runs nested inside a tank carry the coolant and the tank consists of the PCM
required for the storage of Thermal Energy in the form of Latent Heat[2,3].

However, the internal melt Thermal Storage System published by S. Thongwik, N.

Vorayos, T. Kiratsiriroat and A. Nuntaphan in 2008, describes of a system wherein there is
direct contact heat transfer between the coolant and the PCM. The low temperature carbon
dioxide, between 15 and 60 C, is injected into water initially at 28 C and exchanges
heat directly[6]. The flow rate of carbon dioxide is varied between 0.003 and 0.017 kg/s
while the volume of water is between 1 and 3 litre. From the experiment, it is found that
the effectiveness of the direct contact heat transfer between the carbon dioxide and the
water is close to 100%.

Fig. 2.2 Schematic sketch of the experimental set-up[6]

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 Fig. 2.3 Effectiveness of direct contact heat transfer between water and carbon-dioxide.[6]

For their project the authors mixed Compressor oil and Tween 60 with water for making
slurry ice and it was found that the suitable composition is water/oil/Tween 60 at 100/6/1
by volume. The analytical and simulation design data is found to be lagging and it is
difficult to manage or use such a system during power outages where high pumping power
is required for the continuous circulation of the coolant.

The current work is based on the external melt type cooling system where the PCM is
cooled indirectly by coolant flowing through copper tubes.

2.2.2 PHASE CHANGE MATERIAL (PCM)

The phase change material used in most of the Thermal Storage Systems is water as it has
a latent heat of fusion of 334kJ/kg which makes it an ideal material to be used as a PCM.
However, Cristopia company has used blend of Polyolefins filled in small balls suspended
in a tank as the Phase Change material, as per the technical paper by Aarti Kemkar at
Kehems engineering Pvt. Ltd. in 2009.

The charging of the cristopia system starts during the night time when the Electricity tariff
rates are the lowest and the supply of Electricity is surplus. Overnight the chiller is used to
store cool energy in the Tank filled with Nodules. The refrigerant is circulated by the
chiller using the VCRS cycle. Circulating the refrigerant through the tank causes the
crystallisation of the PCM contained in the nodules. The energy is stored at constant
temperature as latent heat during the liquid-solid transition.

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 Fig. 2.4 Charge circuit [13]

During the discharge of the system, the refrigerant enters the tank at a temperature higher
than the PCM fusion temperature and is cooled by the nodules. The leaving temperature is
controlled by the three way valve to match the system demand. The chiller remains shut
off during the discharge cycle.

Fig. 2.5 Discharge circuit [13]

The system is capable of managing higher loads by operating the chiller alongside the
Thermal storage system. When the system demand is greater than the installed chiller
capacity the cooling energy is provided by the combined efforts of the chiller and the
Nodule filled tank. The chiller works at full capacity with the tank providing the short fall.

The unit developed by Cristopia has been installed at several places in India viz. Tidel
Park, Kamat Plaza-Mumbai, Oberoi Trident-Udaipur, Samsung limited-Noida, Taj Blue
Diamond-Pune etc. However, the unit requires additional pumping power during the
discharge stage as the refrigerant flows in a closed loop and exchanges heat with the
nodules. The phase change material properties make the system bulkier as the heat
carrying capacity is a lot less than water although the freezing temperature is higher than
water.

11
2.3 PUMPLESS ICE THERMAL STORAGE SYSTEM

The patent 219/MUM/2008 claims of a system that utilizes the natural flow of the
refrigerant in place of a pump used in a thermal storage system. The lower unit is a flooded
evaporator in which the secondary refrigerant circulates naturally. The lower unit acts as the
cooling coil for the room.

The upper unit is filled with the phase change material (water) and is connected to a
condensing unit that charges the system during the night time. Thus, the system completely
eliminates the use of a pump to circulate the refrigerant and the only power consuming
devices are the compressor and the fans.[4]

Fig. 2.6 Pumpless Ice Thermal Storage System [4]

The system has no analytical calculations or simulation work and needs experimental data
to commercialise the product. The system is complicated and hence bulky and needs to be
redesigned as a compact thermal storage system.

2.4 VOIDS IN THE LITERATURE

From the literature survey it is observed that there is a need for further study of the
Pumpless Ice Thermal Storage System. Following are the issues that need to be addressed:

1. Analytical calculations are required to theoretically design a Thermal storage system

using the basic Heat Transfer Equations.

12
2. Simulation data is required to validate the data obtained by the analytical calculations
and to approximate the Thermal behaviour of the system under actual conditions.
3. A prototype is required to accurately get the results in Indian weather conditions and
experimental data can validate the calculations done so that a scaled up model can be
manufactured in the future if required.
4. The Psychrometric analysis of the supply air is necessary to design the amount of fresh
air to be allowed inside but there is no literature found on the same.
5. Economic analysis needs to be done as per the tariff structure of the Indian states and a
business model needs to be prepared to enable the commercialisation of the project.

Author
Ludwigsen et. Surendra H. Shah
Thomas Arther Cristopia Thermal
al (Patent S. Thongwik et.
Parameters Gilbertson energy storage
(Patent Application al.
(Patent 161820) system
4509344) 219/mum/2008

Date 09.04.1985 06.02.1988 31.01.2008 27.03.2008 21.12.2009

Type External Melt External Melt External melt Internal Melt External melt
Freez exchanger Bent tubing
- A shell tube with multiple Flooded Cylindrical water Small balls filled
Ice builders
type vertical tube runs nested Evaporator storage with PCM
setup in the tank

Compressor oil + Blend of

PCM Brine water Water Water
tween 60 + water Polyolefins

CFC, HCFC Yet to be worked CFC, HCFC

Coolant Ammonia CO2
refrigerants out refrigerants
Frozen
Water crystals Chilled Water Ice Slurry Ice Polyolefins PCM
material

No use of pump in
Concept patent Efficient heat Technique in use
Water crystals the system and
for Cool transfer is at Taj Blue
are deposited flooded
Misc. Thermal storage achieved by direct Diamond Pune,
while brine is evaporator used
in form of contact heat Cognizant Tech -
recirculated for Air-
Chilled water. transfer Chennai
Conditioning

Complicated
1. Brine freezing 1. Usage of CFC 1. Usage of CFC
system with
in the tubes- refrigerants Blockage of ice refrigerants
Drawbacks primary and
Obstruction in2. Inefficient Heat around injector 2. Mixing of the
secondary
flow Exchange coolant and PCM
circuits.

Table 2.1 : Comparative Literature review

13
CHAPTER 3

THERMAL ANALYSIS OF THE SYSTEM

For the efficient working of the system a thermal analysis has been performed on the
prototype to be built using One dimensional Transient state conduction equation. The
analytical solution thus approximates the important specifications of the system based on
which manufacturing may be done. Similar solutions may be obtained for scaled models.

3.1 CALCULATION FOR THE MASS OF ICE

For 1 ton hour we need to calculate the mass of ice required.

We know that to melt 1 kg of ice we require 334.9 kJ/kg of heat (Latent heat of ice = 334.9
kJ/kg)

Now,

1 TR-hr = 1 TR x 1 hr

= 3.516 kW x (1 x 3600) secs

= 12657.6 kJ = Q

If we intend to charge this system in 4 hours, then the R.E required would be

= 12657.6 / (4 x 3600)

= 0.879 kW 0.25 TR

Thus, the selection of the compressor can be made using the above data.

Now,

Q = Mice [(Cpi Ti) + LH + (Cpw Tw) ]

= Mice [ (1.9 x (0- (-2)) + 335 + (4.2 x (25 0)) ]

12657.6 = Mice [ 443.8 ]

Mice = 28.5 kgs 30 kgs

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Assuming C.O.P of the system as 2.5 we get

W.D = 12657.6 / 2.5

= 5063 kJ

We intend to charge the system completely in 4 hours and hence the power required is

= 5063 / (4x3600)

= 0.3516 kWThe approx. input Power that would be required by the compressor

3.2 LENGTH OF THE PIPES

The unit needs to be sized based on the amount of ice to be produced while charging. The
polypropylene pipe chosen has an internal diameter of 26mm and 31mm at the regular and
corrugation portion of the pipe respectively. Thus, we take the average value of 28.5mm for
the calculation of the volume occupied by the ice. The copper tube inserted in the pipe has a
diameter of 3/8 inch or 9.52 mm. Subtracting the volume occupied by the copper tube we
get the volume occupied by water given as :

Mice required for the prototype of 1TR-hr is 30kgs as calculated above and density of ice is
917 kg/m3

Vice = Mice / ice

Vice = 30 / 917

Vice = 0.0327 m3

Also Volume of the pipe is equal to the cross-sectional area multiplied by the length of the
pipe which is unknown.

V = Ac l

= d2pipe - d2cu_tube l
4

0.0327 = (0.02852 0.009522) l
4

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l = 57.69 m 60 m

In order to increase the Effectiveness of the Heat transfer the surface area and the heat
transfer co-efficient need to be high as they are directly proportional to the Efficiency of the
Heat Exchanger. The minimum possible diameter for a 28.5mm polypropylene pipe is
130mm as it cannot be wounded beyond this point due to material properties. Hence the
innermost diameter of the coil is chosen as d1 = 140 mm. The height of the unit has been
restricted to 1 m to avoid losses due to high pressure drop and make a compact design,
however optimization of the design is not in the scope of this project.

3.3 DISCHARGING TIME :

The Discharging time of the unit will depend on the velocity of the air being blown over it
by the blower. Assuming the discharge time to be 1 hour, we have the lumped model
analysis to predict the convective heat transfer co-efficient of the air which can then be used
to calculate the velocity of the air.

3.3.1 LUMPED MODEL ANALYSIS

In Heat Transfer Analysis, some bodies are observed to behave like a Lump whose
interior temperature remains essentially uniform at any time during a heat transfer process.
The temperature of such bodies can be taken to be a function of time only, T(t). Heat
Transfer analysis that utilizes this idealization is known as Lumped system analysis, which
provides great simplification in certain cases of heat transfer problems without much
sacrifice of Accuracy [12]

Air at T = 32C
Fig. 3.1 : Illustration of the problem as a Lumped analysis model

16
The above method is based on the principle of Energy balance

(Heat transfer into the body during dt) = (Increase in the energy of the body during dt)

hair As (T - Tf) dt = Mbody Cp dT

[T(t) - T] / [Ti - T] = e-btFinal Equation

Where,

b = hair As / ice Vice Cp

The Lumped system analysis certainly provides great convenience in Heat Transfer
analysis, however it is necessary for the system to meet the criterion for the applicability
of this analysis. The first step is to define a characteristic length which is defined as

Lc = V / As

Vbody = Volume of the body = (d42 d12) Hmodel
4

= (0.432 0.142) 0.9
4

= 0.1168 m3

As = Surface Area of the body = [( d1) + ( d4)] h Correction factor

= [( 0.14) + ( 0.43)] 0.9 1.3

= 2.09 m2

Lc = 0.1168 / 2.09 0.0557m

The second step is to find the dimensionless Biot number. When a solid body is being
heated by the hotter fluid surrounding it, heat is first convected to the body and
subsequently conducted within the body. The Biot number is the ratio of the internal
resistance of a body to heat conduction, to its external resistance to heat Convection.
Therefore, a small Biot number represents small resistance to heat conduction, and thus
small temperature gradients

17
 Velocity of the air at which it hits the body is taken by trial and error method as 6.89 m/s
Re = v d1 /
= (1.164 6.89 0.14) / 1.872e-5.Values taken from table A-15 (Properties of Air)
= 6e4
Pr = 0.7282...Values taken from table A-15 (Properties of Air)
Nu = 0.023 Re4/5 Pr0.3
= 138.97
Nu = h d1 / Kair..where Kair = 0.02588 W/mK from the table A-15 (Properties of Air)
h = 25.68 W/m2K
Heat Convection at the surface of the body
Bi = = hLc / Kpipe.where Kpipe = 0.19W/mK
Heat Conduction within the body
= 7.53 > 0.1...Hence, the Lumped analysis cannot be applied to this system
within the body. Lumped system analysis assumes a uniform temperature distribution
throughout the body, which is the case only when the thermal resistance of the body to
heat conduction is zero. Thus, lumped system analysis is exact when Bi = 0 and
approximate when Bi > 0. It is generally accepted that lumped system analysis is
applicable if Bi 0.1. Thus, when Bi 0.1, the variation of temperature with location
within the body is slight and can reasonably be accepted as being uniform. However, for
the current project analysis the lumped system method cannot be applied as Bi is 7.53 as
shown in above calculations.

3.3.2 ONE DIMENSIONAL TRANSIENT CONDUCTION ANALYTICAL

SOLUTION[12]

The method has been used to approximate the time in which the discharge takes place. As
it is a 1TR-hr unit, it is desired to be discharged within 1 hour and hence we try to develop
a one dimensional analytical solution for the same. The assumptions made for the current
method are :

1. Heat conduction in the body is 1 dimensional because of thermal symmetry about the
midpoint.
2. The Thermal Properties of the body and the heat transfer co-efficient are constant.
The fourier number is the dimensionless number representing time and it is a measure of
heat conducted through a body relative to heat stored. It is given as :

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 = ( t) / x2

Where,

= Kair / (air Cpair)Thermal Diffusivity of the medium

= 2.2e-5 m2/s..For the current project work

x = Thickness of the body

= 0.43 0.14 ...(d1 d4)

= 0.29m

The one-term analytical solution is applicable only if the fourier number > 0.2 as the
solutions converge rapidly with increasing time and thus it results in an error under 2%. A
large value of fourier number indicates faster propagation of heat through a body.

Considering our problem to be of the plane wall type we have the relation given as :

0,wall = [T(t) - T] / [Ti - T] = A1 e - 1

2
Center of Plane Wall

Where the constants A1 and 1 are functions of the Bi number only and their values are
listed in table no. 4-2 against the Bi number for all the 3 geometries viz. plane wall,
cylinder and sphere.
The Bi number has been calculated as 7.53 from the above calculation. The corresponding
value of A1 and 1 is 1.255 and 1.38 respectively.
We have
2
[T(t) - T] / [Ti - T] = A1 e - 1

2
= 1.255 e - 1.38
2532
232

= 0.94

> 0.2Thus, application of this one term analytical solution is possible

Now,

= ( t) / x2

0.94 = (2.2e-5 t) / 0.292

Thus, time (t) is found out to be 3620 seconds or 60.3 minutes in which the ice at -2C
initially, discharges into water at 25C

19
CHAPTER 4

SIMULATION OF THE SYSTEM

To approximate the results that may be obtained from the prototype manufactured, a model
resembling the unit was developed in the CAD software SOLIDWORKS 2012[13]. The gap
formed due to the corrugations between the consecutive layer of pipes in the experimental
prototype was assumed to be circular in shape and were laid out in a circular and then in a
linear pattern throughout the body of the Prototype in the CAD model.

In the actual prototype too, there is a formation of a plenum inside the body and the air tries
to escape out through the gaps formed due to the corrugations of the pipes, thus facilitating an
effective Heat Transfer.

Fig. (a) Fig. (b) Fig. (c)

Fig. 4.1 The Above fig shows
(a) The model created in Solidworks 2012 has similar dimensional characteristics and hence it gives us a
near exact value upon simulation.
(b) The Cut Section of the Actual Model prototype prepared based on the calculations and the similar
conditions through which air flows in simulated model
(c) The actual model pressure opening during discharge.

In the present study, 5 different cases have been considered for simulation wherein the
temperature of the water is changed for each case and an approximate result has been derived.
The results have been obtained at -2C, 0C, 5C, 10C, 15C, 25C.

20
4.1 STEPWISE SETUP OF THE FLOW SIMULATION PROBLEM[13]
The first step towards the flow simulation is to model the lids or surfaces for the inlets and
outlets to define the proper inlet and outlet conditions on those surfaces easily.
Creation of Lids have two purposes :
1. Closing Off any openings
2. Allowing for Solid Geometry on which Boundary conditions (i.e. static pressure, mass
flow rate, etc.) are defined.
Lids can be created manually by using the Extrusion feature and selecting the option of
extrude from midplane thus giving an easy view of the lid created. The thickness of the
extruded part should not exceed 2 mm as the additional surface has been created for the
purpose of defining the inlet and outlet conditions only.

(a) (b) (c)

Fig. 4.2 (a) Cylinder Model resembling the unit containing the phase change material
(b) Housing of the unit with a pressure opening
(c) Assembly of the Unit
The next step towards simulating the flow is setting up the Flow Simulation Wizard.

(a) The flow simulation wizard of Solidworks consists of defining the unit system to be
used in the flow simulation. Selection of SI units is done for the current project.
(b) The next is to define the analysis type in the wizard. There are 2 type of analysis type
viz. Internal and External. Internal flows relate to flows in closed space or a closed
volume separated from the surrounding e.g Flow inside a duct whereas external flow
is defined as flow in open space e.g Flow over an Airfoil. The current project work
has been simulated as an Internal analysis type flow.
(c) The next step is to define the default fluid that is used in the analysis as well as the
type of flow it will encounter (i.e. Laminar, Turbulent, both). The default fluid

21
 selected for the current project is air and the both the conditions of Laminar and
Turbulent flows have been given.
(d) We have to define the Wall conditions or the boundary conditions for the flow at the
walls of the geometry. Adiabatic wall conditions have been selected for the current
project since there is no heat transfer between the surroundings and the system and the
walls are assumed to be perfectly insulated.
(e) We then introduce the boundary conditions required for the problem. A boundary
condition is required to describe where the fluid enters or exits the system
(Computational Domain) and can be set as a Pressure, Mass Flow, Volume Flow or
velocity. A computational domain is defined as a volume fixed with respect to a co-
ordinate system within a fluid flow field. Although, the fluid moves into and out of
the computational domain, the computational domain itself remains fixed in space.
(f) The next step is to define the initial and ambient conditions of the solids and fluids in
the model. The closer the initial values are set to the final values determined in the
analysis, the quicker the analysis will finish. Since we do not have any knowledge of
the expected final values, we have not modified the initial guess taken by the system.

4.2 MESHING
Solidworks flow simulation automatically generates a computational mesh. The mesh is
created by dividing the computational domain into slices, which are further sub-divided into
rectangular cells. The mesh cells are then refined as necessary to properly resolve the model
geometry. Solidworks flow simulation discretizes the time dependent Navier stokes
equations and solves them on the computational mesh.

4.2.1 INITIAL MESH

The initial mesh is created from the basic mesh by refining the basic mesh cells in
accordance with the applied mesh settings. The basic mesh is formed by dividing the
computational domain into cubes using parallel and orthogonal planes which are aligned
with the global co-ordinate systems axes. Although the automatically generated mesh is
usually appropriate, thin and small geometrical features can result in extremely high cell
counts, causing the physical RAM required to solve, to increase. The default values of the
initial mesh are 0.1524m for the minimum gap size and 0.8123 for the minimum wall
thickness. However, this value may be insufficient to recognize relatively small gaps and
thin model walls. Thus, we manually enter the value of the minimum gap size and wall

22
thickness to refine the mesh. Using the slider for level of initial mesh, there are 8
resolution levels that can be selected. The first level will give fastest results but the level
of accuracy may be poor. The eighth level will give the most accurate results but may take
a long time to converge. Internal flows can achieve stable results if the initial mesh starts
from level 3. For the current project, level 3 has been chosen as the initial mesh level and
then refinement has been done on the same.

4.2.2 MESH REFINEMENT

In the initial mesh box, the minimum gap size is automatically set to a certain value. To
refine the mesh, we have to manually input the minimum gap size and the minimum wall
thickness that is desired in the meshed region. The minimum gap size should be a value
which is much lower than the size of the tiniest detail in the model. For the current project,
the holes on the cylinder face resembling the gap between the corrugations of the pipe are
the smallest details and hence a minimum gap size of around 2mm fulfils our condition of
obtaining a refined minimum size mesh of 2 mm cell size near the detailed structure and a
bigger cell size in the other volume of the unit. The minimum gap size and the minimum
wall thickness have been kept as 2 mm, since the holes resembling the gap between the
corrugations of the pipe have a diameter of 10mm.
The level of initial mesh governs the solution accuracy through mesh settings and
convergence criteria. The user has to specify an initial mesh level in accordance with the
desired solution accuracy, available CPU time and computer memory. Higher the number
of generated mesh cells, longer the CPU time required.
There are different type of cells
1. Fluid Cells These are cells entirely in the fluid.
2. Solid Cells These are cells entirely in the solid.
3. Partial Cells These are cells partly in the solid region and partly in the fluid region.
4. Irregular Cells These are the partial cells with an undefined normal to the solid face.
The current project when meshed and refined gives us a count of 9,00,000 cells
throughout the body which is sufficient enough to get an accurate result.

23
 (a) (b) (c)
Fig. 4.3 (a) Assembly showing basic mesh with an initial automatic mesh level of 5
(b) Refined mesh using a minimum gap size of 0.002m
(c) Isometric View of the Refined mesh Assembly

4.3 MATERIAL SELECTION

The material selection is a very important aspect while doing a simulation. The material
chosen for the Pipe containing Ice is chosen as PVC since the polypropylene material of the
pipes can be assumed to have properties similar to PVC which can be found in insulating
materials under Building Materials Insulating materials domain. The fluid is selected to
be air.

4.4 TEMPERATURE CONTOUR PLOTS

The Contour plots show the distribution of the temperature in the unit. These plots are
plotted using the cut section so as to visualize the temperature distribution in that section
throughout the unit. Also the surface plots have been shown to approximate the temperature
at the exit surface. The Flow Trajectories help us visualize the flow pattern of the air and the
temperatures of the air at various sections

4.4.1 Cut Plots

A Cut Plot displays any result on any Solidworks plane or at a specified offset from the
plane. The representation can be as contour plot, as isolines, or as vectors and also in any
combination of the above. The cut plots showing the temperature contours of air is shown
below. The plots have been taken at different temperatures of water to approximate the
condition of the air coming outside.

24
Fig.4.4 Cut Plot of Temperature Contours of Air when water is at -2C

Fig. 4.5 Cut Plot of Temperature Contours of Air when water is at 0C

25
Fig. 4.6 Cut Plot of Temperature Contours of Air when water is at 5C

Fig. 4.7 Cut Plot of Temperature Contours of Air when water is at 15C

26
Fig. 4.8 Cut Plot of Temperature Contours of Air when water is at 20C

Fig. 4.9 Cut Plot of Temperature Contours of Air when water is at 25C

27
4.4.2 SURFACE PLOTS

Fig. 4.10 Exit Surface Plot of Temperature Contours of Air when water is at 0C

Fig. 4.11 Exit Surface Plot of Temperature Contours of Air when water is at 15C

28
4.4.3 FLOW TRAJECTORIES

Fig. 4.12 Flow Trajectories of Air when water is at 0C

Fig. 4.13 Flow Trajectories of Air when water is at 15C

29
CHAPTER 5

PROTOTYPE SETUP
The calculated mass of ice required for 1TR-hr cooling is 30kgs or 30 liters in terms of
volume. Since we know the diameters of the copper tube and the polypropylene pipe, the
length required for 30 liters of water has been calculated as 60m in previous chapters.

As per the calculation 60 meters of copper tubing was purchased from a Mumbai based
dealer. 50 feet of copper tubing constituted 1 roll and hence to meet our requirements, 5 such
rolls were purchased. The extra copper tubing of 15 meters was intended to be used for the
extra piping as may be required by the unit

The straightened Copper tube was inserted into the polypropylene pipes and then folded to
the desired outer diameter with the help of a refrigerant cylinder around which the pipe was
wound.

Fig. 5.1 Polypropylene pipes coiled and stacked above one another

The bundle height was limited to 1 meter as calculated for the optimum space utilisation for
the given diameter and length of the pipes. The height was sufficient enough to accommodate
65 meters of pipe coiled in diameters of I.D 140mm and O.D 212mm, 284mm, 356mm
and 428mm. The bundles of pipes were firmly strapped together as it may tend to loosen up
and become shapeless once they are filled with water.

30
The inlets and outlets were then segregated into their respective categories and were
connected by a common distributor (supply to the cooling coil) and header (return line
towards the compressor) by the brazing process. The plastic pipes were sealed with rubber
corks to avoid any spillage of water. The rubber corks were drilled to provide passage for the
temperature sensors (Pt 100) inserted to get the experimental data logged into the computer.

Fig. 5.2 Distributor end of the unit and temperature sensor Pt 100 inserted in the medium

The condensing unit was assembled with the compressor model no. KCN416LAG of
Kirloskar Copeland make with a capacity of 0.3 TR at -6.7C (Evaporating termperature) and
43.3C (Condensing temperature)

Fig. 5.3 The condensing unit set up

The outer body was then made using Tin sheets of 22mm gauge. Sheet metal drawings were
given to the workers to get the sheet cut into the required sizes and then bend or weld it into
the form of a box which would contain polypropylene pipes.

31
 Fig. 5.4 Sheet Metal work done on 22-Gauge Sheet

Once the box was made the blower was mounted atop the box. The desired mass flow for the
blower, as per calculations, was 300CFM but due to unavailability of the blower we have
used a blower whose volume flow is calculated to be 150 CFM

= A V

Where,

A = Area of the opening kept for return air (for measurement purpose)

V = Velocity of the return air measured in m/s by an Anemometer

was calculated to approximately 150 CFM. Now, using relation A1V1 = A2V2 the velocity
of the supply air to the room was recorded as 1.6 m/s using an Anemometer. The data has
been further used for simulating the Air flow through the unit using software package
Solidworks 2012.

The box was well insulated to avoid any infiltration of air and the PT 100 sensors were
connected to the Data logger whose results have then been used for a regression analysis and
to tally with the theoretical results obtained using thermodynamic relations. The table below
shows the bill of materials purchased for the construction.

32
 5.1 BILL OF MATERIAL

No. Item Quantity Rate Price

Condensing Unit-
Rs.
01. R134a 01 10000/-
10000/-
(0.3 TR)

5 rolls of 50 feet Rs. 670 per kg or Rs.

02. Copper Tubing Rs. 8800/-
each 1675/- per roll

03. Polypropylene pipes 65 meters Rs. 45 per meter Rs. 2925/-

01 sheet of 8x4 feet

G.I Sheet (16kg)
04. Rs. 55 per kg Rs. 1430/-
(22-gauge) 01 sheet of 5x4 feet
(10kg)

05. Blower 01 blower 11 inch Rs. 5000/- Rs. 5000/-

06. Insulation 55 ft2 or 5.1 m2 Rs. 70 per ft2 Rs. 3850/-

07. Rubber corks 10 Rs. 45/- Rs. 450/-

08. Labour cost 7 working days Rs. 500/- Rs. 3500/-

Rs.
09. Total Cost
35955/-

Table 5.1 Bill of Material for the current project

33
5.2 EXPERIMENTAL FINDINGS

The Experimental charging and discharging of the system was conducted at Panasia
Corporation under the guidance of Mr. Surendra Shah. Pt 100 temperature sensors were
inserted to get the experimental readings data logged into the computer with the help of
Smartlog hardware and software. The below figure shows the Smartlog software and slot
no. 07, 08, 09, 10 connected to the PT sensors at the Distributor side water, header side
water, supply air and return air respectively.

Table 5.2 Data logged using the Smart Log data logger on 01.06.2013

The condensing unit was connected with a Power meter to note the actual Power
consumption by the condensing unit. The blower is not considered as a Power consuming
device for the current project as it is supposed to run on Inverter Backup or Solar energy

34
 during Power Outages. The condensing unit was also connected with Pressure Gauges to
record the suction and discharge Pressure.

Fig. 5.5 Pressure Gauges Connected to the Condensing Units Suction and Discharge side

The temperature data was logged at an interval of 2 mins. The pressure readings and the
power consumption reading were taken manually at an interval of 15 mins. The table below
represents the readings logged during the charging time which have also been used for
regression analysis later in the report.

35
 System Charge Readings
Time Distributor Header Temperature Suction Pressure Discharge Pressure
(Mins) Temperature (C) (C) (Psi) (Psi)
0 26.1 26 35 230
2 24 25.6 35 230
4 21.3 25.2 35 230
6 18.9 25 34 225
8 17 24.6 34 225
10 15.5 24.2 34 225
12 14.3 23.8 33 224
14 13.3 23.4 33 224
16 12.4 23.1 33 224
18 11.6 22.7 32 223
20 11.2 22.2 32 223
22 10.6 21.8 32 223
24 10.1 21.5 31 222
220 -1.8 0.5 19 195
222 -1.8 0.3 19 194
224 -1.8 0.1 19 193
226 -2.1 0 19 192
230 -2.3 0 18 190
232 -2.4 -0.1 18 189
246 -3.4 -1.2 18 184
248 -3.5 -1.4 18 184
250 -3.7 -1.5 17.5 184
252 -3.9 -1.7 17.5 183
254 -4.3 -1.9 17.5 183
256 -4.6 -2 17.5 183
Table 5.3 Experimental data logged on 30.05.2013 shows the timewise temperature drop of water.

Charging Of The System

250

200
Temperature

150

100

50

0
0 50 100 150 200 250 300
-50
Time
Distributor Temp in C Header Temp in C
Suction Pressure in Psi Discharge Pressure in Psi
Fig. 5.6 Graph depicting the timewise decrease in temperature as shown in the above result table

36
 System Discharge Readings
Time Distributor Temperature Header Temperature Supply Air Temperature
(mins) (C) (C) (C)
0 -2.6 -1.5 6.1
2 -1.7 -0.6 6.6
4 -1.2 -0.1 6.9
6 -0.9 0 7.2
8 -0.1 0 7.4
10 0 0 9.6
12 0 0.1 9.8
14 0 0.1 10.3
16 0 0.2 10.6
18 0.1 0.2 11.6
20 0.1 1.1 12.4
22 0.1 2.1 13.1
24 0.1 2.6 13.5
26 0.2 3.2 14.1
28 1.2 3.8 14.5
30 2.4 4.2 14.8
32 3.2 4.8 14.9
50 18 18.8 20.3
52 18.4 19.3 20.7
54 18.8 19.6 21.1
56 19.3 20.1 21.5
58 19.8 20.4 21.7
60 20 20.6 21.9
80 22 22.7 24.2
82 22.4 22.8 24.5
88 23.5 23.3 25.1
90 24.5 24.3 25.5
92 25.3 24.9 25.9
Table 5.4 Experimental data logged on 30.05.2013 shows the timewise temperature increase of water.

Discharging Of The System

30

25

20
Temperature

15

10

0
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
-5
Time
Distributor Temp in C Header Temp in C Supply Air Temp in C

Fig. 5.7 Graph depicting the timewise increase in temperature as shown in the above result table

37
CHAPTER 6

REGRESSION ANALYSIS
In statistics, regression analysis is a statistical process for estimating the relationships among
variables. It includes many techniques for modelling and analyzing several variables, when
the focus is on the relationship between a dependent variable and one or more independent
variables. More specifically, regression analysis helps one understand how the typical value
of the dependent variable changes when any one of the independent variables is varied, while
the other independent variables are held fixed. For the current project Regression analysis has
been done using Polymath 6.1-trial version. The data collected from the Experiments
conducted on the system has been regressed and linear equations have been obtained.

6.1 MULTIPLE LINEAR REGRESSIONS [14]

It gives the option to select multiple Independent variables to ascertain the relativity
between them and the dependent variables. This Polymath option fits a linear function of the
form:

y(x1, x2, ..., xn) = a0 + a1*x1 + a2*x2 + ... + an*xn

where a0, a1, ..., an are regression parameters, to a set of N tabulated values of x1, x2, ..., xn
(independent variables) versus y (dependent variable). Note that the number of data points
must be greater than n+1 (thus N >= n+1). The program calculates the coefficients a0,
a1,....an by minimizing the sum of squares of the deviations between the calculated and the
data for y.

6.2 PRE-PROCESSING [14]

The user interface of the software allows us to select the options as mentioned below

1. Report:
If this option is marked, a report showing regression model, numerical values and
confidence intervals of the parameters and some additional statistical information are
displayed.

2. Graph:
If this option is marked, a graph showing calculated points and data points is displayed.

38
 3. Store Model in column:
Store the regression model and the calculated parameters in the next available empty
column.

4. Residuals:
If this option is marked, a graph showing the deviation between the data and the calculated
values of the dependent variable (error, residuals) points is prepared and displayed.

5. Dependent Variable:
Select the dependent variable column name for regression from the pull-down menu.

6. Independent Variables:
Select the independent variables for regression (indicated by x 1, x2, ... ,xn' in the regression
equation above). Note that holding down the Control key will select more than one
variable.

7. Through origin:
If this option is marked, the free parameter is set to zero in the regression model (a0 = 0).
The statistical indicators and the various plots provided by the Polymath program can be
used to assess the quality of the regression models and to compare between various
models. A practical guide for the use of the indicators and plots for these purposes
follows:

6.3 RESULTS AND ANALYSIS [14]

The output of the regressed data allows us to understand the behaviour of the equation.

6.3.1 Graph

This creates a plot of the calculated and measured values of the dependent variable. When
the plots show different trends, this usually indicates an inappropriate model. If the
difference between the measured and calculated points is large, but no clear trend exists,
this may also indicate very noisy data (excessive experimental error) that cannot be
accurately modeled.

6.3.2 Residual plot

The residual plot shows the difference between the calculated and measured values of the
dependent variable as function of the measured values. If the regression model represents

39
the data correctly, the residuals should be randomly distributed around the line of err=0
with zero mean. If the residuals show a clear trend, this indicates that an inappropriate
model is being used.

6.3.3 Confidence intervals

For the regression model to be stable and statistically valid, the confidence intervals must
be much smaller than the respective parameter values. An unstable model may yield very
inaccurate derivative values and absurd results for even a small range of extrapolation. For
an unstable model, a small change in the data (by adding or removing a data point, for
example) may lead to large changes of the parameter values.

6.3.4 Co-relation Co-efficients R2 and R2adj

The co-relation coefficients are frequently used to judge whether the model represents
correctly the data, implying that if the correlation coefficient is close to one then the
regression model is correct. The residual plot should be used for judging the
appropriateness of the model while the correlation coefficients can be used for comparing
various models representing the same dependent variable.

In the following formulas, n is the number of scores (or observations) and yi is a specific
observation. The notation "obs" relates to observed data and the notation "calc" relates to
calculated data.

6.3.5 Variance and Rmsd

Just like the correlation coefficients, these two indicators are recommended to be used for
comparing various models representing the same dependent variable. A model with
smaller variance and Rmsd represents the data more accurately than a model with larger
values of these indicators.
With the help of equations obtained through regression analysis we can predict the results
for a scaled model operating at similar conditions.
40
Table 6.1 The readings show the actual and calculated values of the temperature at the distributor side when the
inputs are time, header side Temperature, suction and discharge pressures.

The equation obtained to calculate the Distributor temperature for this model :
Tdistr = (-0.0161591*t) +( -0.5618106*Thdr) + (1.715647*Ps) + (0.0597061*Pd) + (-1810.622*ref)

41
Fig. 6.1 Graph showing Residuals for Independent variable Distributor temperature values

Fig. 6.2 Difference in the calculated and expression value of Distributor Temperature

42
 Table 6.2 The readings show the actual and calculated values of the temperature at the Header side when the
inputs are time, Distributor side Temperature, suction and discharge pressures.

The equation obtained to calculate the Distributor temperature for this model :
Thdr = (-0.0451275*t) +( -0.0517962*Tdist) + (1.004559*Ps) + (-0.0005387*Pd) + (-351.7209*ref)

43
 Fig. 6.3 Residuals for Independent variable Distributor temperature values

Fig. 6.4 Difference in the calculated and expression value of Header Temperature

44
CHAPTER 7

ECONOMIC ANALYSIS
The capital cost for a 1TR-hr unit has been calculated in the previous chapter. A scaled model
can be predicted to have a cost similar to the above calculated cost with just an increase in the
copper tube and polypropylene pipe. Hence, for every extra additional ton hour we need to
add Rs. 12000/- approximately and the model can be scaled to any size unless there is a space
restriction at the site. The working cost of the system can be simplified as below.

The total consumed power is that of the Compressor and the condensor fan which has been
calculated using the power meter installed beside the prototype. The total charging time is 4
hours and the power reading taken from an experiment conducted on May 2013 gives us the
total power consumed as 2.307KW-hr (Or 2.5 units). The BTUs obtained after discharging
the system were calculated using a Psychrometric chart. By plotting the wet bulb and dry
bulb conditions of the supply airs initial and final conditions we get the difference in the
enthalpy which can then be multiplied by mass flow of air to get the BTUs per hour using

Q = (h1 - h2) = 4.788 KW

Where Q = 16341.3 BTUs / hr

= x Therefore, the EER is calculated as

16341.3
= 150CFM x 4.719E-4 x 1.184 EER =
2500

0.084 kg/sec
= 6.53
Now,
C.O.P = 4.788 / 2.5
Q = 0.084 (74 17)
= 1.9

7.1 FIXED COST

As stated earlier in the chapter, for every extra additional ton hour we need to add Rs.
12000/- approximately to the cost of the unit calculated as Rs. 37205/- Fixed cost of an
8TR-hr unit:

Cost of a 1TR-hr Himoder + 12000 additional cost per TR-hr

Rs. 37,205 + (12000x7) = 1,21,205/-

45
 Estimating the manufacturers margin at 20% we get the final Fixed cost as

Fixed Cost = Rs. 1,51,506/- for an 8TR-hr unit

(Neglecting the Wholesale cost for mass production)

7.2 OPERATING COST

The operating cost is calculated based on the electricity tariff chargeable to the customer.
The present analysis is for the city of Bangalore, India and thus the Tariff applicable under
KERC has been used to calculate the operating cost for the unit (charging time is 4 hours)
and a normal 1 ton AC unit working for 8 hours.

7.2.1 Pumpless Ice Thermal Storage 7.2.2 Normal 1 Ton Air-Conditioning

System
Considering the usage of the project in a
commercial complex based in Bangalore
whose tariff rate is Rs.6.70/- per unit till
the first 2 lakh units.
The electricity used by a 1TR-hr unit while
charging is 2.307 units. Considering a 30%
increase in Power consumption, per TR-hr
rise for a bigger model and a putting a
correction factor of 30% we get
2.307 x (7 TR-hr x 0.3) x 1.3
6.5 units of electricity consumed for
charging an 8TR-hr machine
The rebate given to the company in
Bangalore is Rs. 1.25/- per unit and so the
reduced cost becomes Rs. (6.7x6.5) - Rs.
(1.25x6.5) which comes to Rs. 35.42/- per
day and Rs. 1062.75/- per month and Rs.
12,753 per year.
Unit
However, a one TR air conditioning unit
with a 5 star rating consumes 1500W or
1.5 units per hour. Continuous operation
for 8 hours calculates to 12 units per day
and hence an operating cost of Rs. 80.4 per
day and Rs. 2412/- per month and Rs.
28,944/- per year.
During the power outage The Diesel
Generator consumes about 0.5 litres of fuel
per hour for 1.5 kW-hr load. Thus, the
total fuel consumption for 8 hours of
power outage on a working day amounts to
0.5 liters x 8 hrs x Rs. 55 = Rs. 220/- per
day.
Assuming an 8 hour power outage per
week, we get the fuel consumption of Rs.
220 x 4 = Rs. 880/- per month. More
importantly the conventional system
would consume 16 litres of fuel per month
per tonnage of refrigeration. Thus, a large
amount of fuel can be saved if we consider
about a thousand offices running at the
same time in the city.

7.3 SAVINGS THROUGH THE OPERATING COST

The savings obtained for the operating cost is calculated as the difference between the
operating cost of the normal air-conditioner and a Pumpless Ice Thermal Storage unit. As
calculated above the two costs are 28944 and 12753 respectively.
28944 12753 = 16,191/-

46
Thus, we calculate a total saving of Rs. 16,191 per year in the operating cost alone. This
also means that we save about 2417 units of electricity per year. Mandating such a project
could save loads of electricity and prevent load shedding in rural parts of the state. The state
can easily generate a surplus of electricity.

7.4 PAYBACK

The difference between the fixed cost of a 1 ton Air-Conditioning unit and an 8 TR-hr
Pumpless Ice Thermal storage unit is
1,51,506 25,000 = Rs. 1,26,506/-
The payback for the unit shall be 7.8 Years based just on the electricity Tariff rebate
applicable for the state. However, detailed statistics prove that the fixed cost of a diesel
generator set needs to be taken into account while calculating the fixed cost of a 1 ton AC
unit as it shall run on the diesel generator during power outages. The cost of diesel too
should be considered.

Now, the initial cost of a 20kW, 25kVA diesel generator set is approximately Rs. 3,00,000/-
and the cost of diesel in Bangalore is Rs. 55/- per liter.

Fig. 7.1 The approximate fuel consumption of a 20kW Diesel Generator

The fuel consumed on an average for full load condition is 6 liters per hour. However the
load for a 1 ton unit is just 1.5kW per hour and hence the fuel consumed reduces to 0.5
liters for Air-conditioning load. Hence, for 8 hours the fuel consumption is 4 liters. If the
cost of diesel currently is taken to be as Rs. 55/- per litre then the total cost comes to Rs.
220/- per working day. Adding the Diesel Generator set fixed cost to the cost of the 1 ton
AC unit, it is clear that the Pumpless Ice Thermal storage system would prove far more
economical than the conventional system being used. The operating cost however would
differ from region to region as every state has a different Electrical tariff but in general it is
assumed that there shall be a rebate of atleast Re. 1/- for usage during off-peak hours. Also
the unit can be most efficiently employed in regions experiencing heavy load shedding and
hence the huge amount of fuel can be saved.

47
Fig. 7.2 Psychrometric Chart Plot for the above considered data

48
CHAPTER 8

ADVANTAGES OF INSTALLING A PUMPLESS ICE

THERMAL STORAGE SYSTEM
The main advantage of using a Thermal storage is that it can save you electricity costs in a
phenomenal way but it doesnt end here. My projects main focus is to exploit the idea of
Precision Air-conditioning.

8.1 PRECISION AIR-CONDITIONING

Precision air-conditioners were originally developed prior to the advent of PCs when large
main frame computers were used by corporations to cater to their business operational
requirements. These large computers required reliable air conditioning systems capable of
running round the clock, maintain very close control on environmental conditions i.e.
temperature and humidity and have high sensible cooling capacity (equipment cooling /
equipment heat removal) since the equipment loads were dominant in these applications.

These computers were housed in buildings which had their own central air conditioning
plants not designed for these requirements. The industry developed packaged units that
could perform reliably and meet the expectations of computer manufacturers. These
specially developed packaged units were called precision air conditioners mainly based on
the applications and to differentiate them from the normal comfort packaged air
conditioners.

Today, precision air conditioning systems are used in a wide range of applications such as
Server rooms, Computer rooms, Data centres, Switch centres, Telecom shelters, Quality
Control labs, Precision Manufacturing CNC Machine, Pharmaceutical industry, Medical
equipment, Clean rooms and many more.

The conference rooms of most of the office buildings consist of either a cassette AC or a
split AC unit, to compensate the extra load that may prove vital to the centralized AC
system in sharing the load.

49
 Fig. 8.1 Cassette AC [23]

However, these costly units can be easily replaced with the product developed under this
project, i.e Himoder. It can very efficiently do the job of a cassette AC at a phenomenally
lower capital cost and working cost. Even after centralizing the whole AC system of a
building and buying a cassette unit for Rs. 85000/-[19], is it worth to pay a monthly extra
price for the electricity consumed by these Cassette units?

8.2 LOWER CAPITAL COST

Since the centralized air conditioners load is now shared by Himoder, we can easily scale
down the capacity of the System. If the building had a 10 ton centralized air-conditioning
system for one floor, using the conventional source of energy, it can now be scaled down to
5 ton unit as the load is being shared by the Thermal Energy storage system. Thus the
capital cost of the unit decreases as the same 5 ton compressor can do the job of making ice
during the night time and cool the building during the day time.

Fig. 8.2 Load shared by Himoder

50
8.3 BEE CERTIFICATIONS [20]

The Bureau Of Energy Efficiency, India decides on the points to be awarded to a certain
building. The threshold to qualify it as a green building is 80 points out of 100. With this
project certain points can be scored as under

8.3.1 Criterion 13 : Optimize building design to reduce the conventional energy

demand.

Commitment : Apply solar passive measures, including daylighting, in order to reduce the
demand on conventional energy for space conditioning and lighting systems in buildings.
Plan appropriately to reflect climate responsiveness, adopt an adequate comfort range, less
air-conditioned areas, daylighting, avoid over-design of the lighting and air-conditioning
systems.

8.3.2 Criterion 14 : Optimize the energy performance of the building within specified
comfort limits.

Committment : Optimize use of energy systems in buildings that maintain a specified

indoor climate conducive to the functional requirements of the building. Ensure that
energy consumption in building under a specified category is 10%40% less than that
benchmarked figure through a simulation exercise of a base case example.

Points
Rating
scored

5060 One star

61-70 Two star

71-80 Three star

81-90 Four star

91-100 Five star

Table 8.1 Points and ratings for Buildings as per their energy consumption [20]

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CHAPTER 9
CONCLUSIONS AND SCOPE FOR FUTURE WORK
The major conclusions from the current project work have been presented in this section.
Additionally, some suggestions for the future investigations are outlined.

9.1 ANALYTICAL CALCULATIONS

The analytical calculations on the system have been performed and we can easily increase
the size of the system by increasing the amount of ice to be produced and stored in the unit.
For the current 1TR-hr project, 30 kgs of ice is required to be produced. A scaled model can
be manufactured based on the calculation.

Also 1 dimensional transient heat conduction solution shows us that the unit shall be
discharged from -2C to 25C in 60.3 mins if the heat transfer co-efficient of the air is
maintained at 25.68W/m2K. However, the time can be calculated using similar set of
equations for a bigger model and reversibly the required blower speed can be calculated.

9.2 SIMULATION RESULTS

The simulations on the prototype have been performed using Solidworks 2012 software
package and similarly results can be obtained for scaled models. The input parameters need
to be modified accordingly. The volume flow inlet needs to be specified as per the blower
used in the system and the thermal conditions need to be set correctly.

The Boundary conditions applied for the current project shall be applicable to scaled models
as well and the results can be approximated at various temperatures of the volumetric
source.

9.3 EXPERIMENTAL RESULTS

The experimental results have been obtained for the prototype and upon comparing them
with the simulation results we get an average error of

9.4 PERFORMANCE OF THE SYSTEM

The system has a capacity to operate at an overall C.O.P of 1.6. The COP of the Normal 1
Ton Air-Conditioning Unit is considered as 2.5 in the industry and hence we can easily say

52
that the overall COP obtained through experimentation is comparable to the conventional
system. The Overall COP could have been more, if the experimentation would have been
carried out during the night as the condensing temperatures is less. Also a more powerful
and efficient condensing unit used for experimentation shall result in a better overall COP
of the system.

9.5 SUGGESTIONS FOR FUTURE WORK

1. A detailed study and analysis is required for the uniform transformation of water into
ice. Several techniques may be used to enable uniform drop in temperature.
2. Optimization of the system design is required so that the system can be made less
bulky and shall occupy less space. Thus, we can also calculate the minimum possible
manufacturing cost for the same output.
3. Detailed transient simulation work can be performed on the system to approximate the
change in phase from water to ice and vice versa to compare the experimental readings
and thus find the error due to human negligence.
4. Different Phase Change Materials can be used to store the Thermal Energy.
5. Installation of a scaled model is required to inspect the performance of the novel idea
on a larger scale. The analysis of the current projects prototype can help calculate and
design a larger model to be installed at offices.
6. Optimization of insulation design for the system may help increase the C.O.P.
However, a detailed ambient heat infiltration study is required for the same.
7. Better marketing is required for the product which has the potential to be a short term
solution to load shedding in various parts of the country. Such projects can help
develop offices in the remotest of places and hence create employment and help the
Indian economy.
8. By-pass air is required to be supplied through another opening to maintain the required
temperature and humidity conditions of the room. Thus, a more finished product could
be manufactured for a more precise experimental data.
The prototype manufactured gives us the result of varying air temperatures at different
temperatures of the volumetric source i.e Ice and there is no provision to regulate the
temperature and humidity of the outlet air. The same model can be worked upon as an
engineering project to achieve the above goal.

53
REFERENCES

Patents
1. John S. Ludwigsen et. al; US patent no. 4509344, 09.04.1985.
Available at http://google.com/patents/4509344
2. Thomas Arther Gilbertson; Indian patent no. 161820, 21.08.1984.
Available at http://ipindiaservices.gov.in/patentsearch
3. Osborne et. al.; US patent no. 6415615, 09.07.2002.
Available at http://google.com/patents/6415615
4. Surendra H. Shah; Indian Patent Application no. 219/mum/2008.
Available at ipindia.nic.in/ipr/...2008/...022008/official_journal_15022008.pdf
5. John H. Bean Jr; US patent no. 2010/0154438, 24.06.2010.
Available at http://google.com/patents/2010/0154438

Papers

6. Thermal analysis of slurry ice production system using direct contact heat transfer of
carbon dioxide and water mixture; S. Thongwik et. al; Elsevier; 27.03.2008
Available for free through subscription of VIT, Pune
7. Cost-benefit analysis of using cold thermal energy storage systems in building
applications; B. Rismanchi et. al; Elsevier; 27-28 December 2011.
Available for free through subscription of VIT, Pune
8. Thermodynamic evaluation of utilizing Different ice thermal energy Storage Systems for
Cooling Application in Office Buildings in Malaysia; B. Rismanchi et. al; Elsevier;
20.06.2012.
Available for free through subscription of VIT, Pune
9. An Analysis of Maharashtras Power Situation; Chandrarao More et. al; Economic and
Political Weekly; 29.09.2007
10. Market Assessment of Thermal Energy Storage; Thermal Storage Applications Research
Center; Report No: TSARC 96-01 May 1996 http://www.engr.wisc.edu/centers/tsarc/tsarc.html
11. Plus-ice Phase change materials, thermal energy storage design guide, 2011
www.pcmproducts.net/files/design_manual.pdf

54
Other References :

12. Yunus Cengel and Afshin Ghajar, Heat And Mass Transfer, Tata Mc Graw Hill
Education Pvt. Ltd., 4th Special Indian Edition in SI units, (226-250)
13. Solidworks 2012; Solidworks Flow Simulation Training Manual, Dassault Systemes
Solidworks Corporation; Massachusetts, USA.
Tutorials and videos available at
http://www.solidworks.com/pages/programs/SimulationXpress/
14. Polymath software 6.1 demo version, Help Documentation
http://www.polymath-software.com/demos/demos.htm

15. For India, a Power Failure Looms, The Wall Street Journal, India Edition, January
03,2012
Available online at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electricity_sector_in_India
16. Load Generation Balance Report 2011-12, Central Electricity Authority, Government of
India Ministry of Power, 2011-12
Available for free online at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electricity_sector_in_India
17. Case Studies of Thermal Energy Storage (TES) Systems: Evaluation and Verification of
System Performance; H. Akbari et.al; University Of California, Berkeley; Jan 1992.
Available online at H Akbari,O Sezgen-1992-osti.gov
18. Efficiency & load shifting opportunities in hvac systems; Aarti Khemkar, Kehems
Engineering Pvt. Ltd;
Available online at
http://scholar.google.co.in/scholar?hl=en&as_sdt=0,5&q=kehems+engg or
http://www.kehems.com/product_performance_contracting_solutions.html

19. Electrcity Tariff for the city of Bangalore for the year 2013; KERC Tariff order Bescom
Available online at bescom.org/wp-content/up...011/11/ANNEXURE-III.pdf
20. Energy Efficiency ratio for Air conditioners; BEE India
www.beeindia.in/awareness_and_outreach/.../Annexure_III.pdf

21. http://www.dnaindia.com/mumbai/report_cut-down-on-air-conditioner-usage-now_1370698
DNA Newspaper article, published on Apr 13,2010
22. Criteria of the Rating System, Green Rating for Integrated Habitat Assessment (GRIHA);
http://www.grihaindia.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=17#eval

23. www.shopbychoice.com/home-appliances/air-conditioners/cassette-ac

55