An overview of phase change materials for building applications

The increasing level of greenhouse gas emissions and the rise in fuel prices are the main reasons for efforts to effectively use various sources of renewable energy. One of the effective ways to reduce the consumption of fuel is by using thermal energy storages. The use of a latent heat storage (LHS) system using phase change materials (PCMs) is an effective way of storing thermal energy and has the advantages of high-energy storage density and isothermal nature of the storage process. Nowadays, for using lightweight materials in buildings, architects need lightweight thermal storages, hence the use of PCMs started. In this chapter, the authors discuss the benefits of using PCMs as thermal mass instead of the common thermal mass. Next, the characteristics of PCMs, their categories, and building applications that can use PCMs as thermal mass are discussed. Finally PCMs can provide benefits for lightweight buildings as thermal mass for reducing building loads and fuel consumption. © Springer India 2015.