Experimental and numerical assessment of a novel all-in-one adsorption thermal storage with zeolite for thermal solar applications

The paper discusses the performances of a novel all-in-one adsorption thermal storage based on steam vapour and zeolite 13X for industrial end-users. Steam production/condensation for the adsorption/desorption processes are executed within the same vacuum reactor, where the zeolite is heated and cooled by the thermal fluid which flows within a heat exchanger. Both experimental approach and numerical method are used to assess the behaviour and energy performances of the novel system. So, a medium-scale prototype was constructed and some experimental tests for the charging and discharging phases were carried out, producing useful data for the validation of a time-dependent model of the adsorption/desorption processes, which resulted very reliable in the simulation of the thermal storage system. The charging and discharging efficiency of thermal energy can reach values higher than 80% and 50%, respectively. The experimental campaign and the simulative activities highlighted some operative criticalities of the all-in-one thermal storage system and suggested some possible technical improvements to face and solve them.