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Handbook of Research
on Advances and
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Refrigeration Systems and
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Pedro Dinis Gaspar

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Pedro Dinho da Silva

University of Beira Interior, Portugal

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752

Chapter 20
Cold Thermal Energy Storage
Franc Franc Kosi Dragi Antonijevic
University of Belgrade, Serbia Singidunum University, Belgrade, Serbia

Branislav Zivkovic Mohamed Abdul Galil

University of Belgrade, Serbia University of Belgrade, Serbia

Mirko S. Komatina Uros Milorad Milovancevic

University of Belgrade, Serbia University of Belgrade, Serbia

ABSTRACT
The chapter gives an overview of cold thermal energy storage (CTES) technologies. Benefits as well as
classification and operating strategies of CTES are discussed. Design consideration and sizing strategies
based on calculated load profile for design day is presented. Some recommendation concernig design-
ing of CTES equipment are given. Special attention was paid to the analysis of specific features of heat
transfer phenomena in ice storage tank including the assessment of the duration and the rate of ice for-
mation and melting. The methodology of sizing components of the ice thermal storage system included
in an air conditioning system for a office building situated in hot wet and dry climate are presented.
Based on hourly cooling load calculation that was carried out using Carrier’s Hourly Analysis Program,
sizing of ice thermal storage system for different operating strategies included full, chiller priority and
ice priority storage operation for the design day are presented. Finally, an analysis of some operational
characteristics of the system are analyzed.

INTRODUCTION

Demands for energy savings and improved energy efficiency are becoming increasingly important. A
very promising possibility is the storage of energy whose main objective is to bridge the gap between
energy generation and consumption by overcoming the temporal shift between the energy produced and
the need for it. This allows thermal storage systems to generate heating or cooling during periods when
conditions are most favorable (e.g. the primary energy source is more available or less expensive), which
can be independent of the instantaneous thermal load (ASHRAE, 1999).

DOI: 10.4018/978-1-4666-8398-3.ch020

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Cold Thermal Energy Storage

Cold Thermal Energy Storage (CTES) usually implies storage of cooling capacity in an appropriate
medium at temperatures below the nominal temperature of the space or processing system. The main
purpose of CTES utilization is to shift electric energy use from on-peak to off-peak hours (Abdul Galil,
2013; Dorgan & Elleson, 1993). During the off-peak hours electricity is used for charging the thermal
storage in order to meet (fully or partially) the on-peak hours cooling load of the refrigeration facility or
building. Cool storage can potentially reduce the on-peak energy consumption, peak demand, and most
importantly, average cost of energy consumed (Elleson, 1997).
CTES, by itself, is not ultimately an energy savings technology; first of all it is a cost savings technol-
ogy (Chvala, 2001). By shifting chilling operations to off-peak times, when demand and energy rates
are reduced, significant money savings can be realized. The economics are more attractive when CTES
is included into existing cooling system as a replacement of older cooling equipment. Energy savings
also may be realized because CTES allows facilities to use more energy efficient chillers (Chvala, 2001).
A challenge common to all cold thermal energy storage technologies is to find an efficient and eco-
nomical means of achieving the heat transfer necessary to alternately freeze and melt the storage medium
(ASHRAE Handbook, HVAC Application, 1999). The high energy density of latent storage systems
allows compact installations and makes factory-manufactured components and systems practical.
CTES is a proven technology which can be the most cost-effective, reliable system approach to
cooling offices, schools, hospitals, malls and other buildings, and provides a steady source of low tem-
perature fluids for process cooling applications. The implementation of CTES contributes to measures
for environment protection helping to lower energy consumption and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
The CTES systems may become an economically attractive alternative if one or more of the following
conditions exist (Dincer & Rosen, 2001):

• Short period of cooling demand,

• Charges for peak power demand are high,
• Frequently varying cooling loads (loads are cyclical),
• Cooling demand and supply do not match,
• Economic incentives are provided to use off-peak energy,
• Energy supply is limited by the utility company, thus making it impossible to satisfy the maximum
load directly,
• The capacity of an existing chiller is too low to provide peak load.
• Electricity production from Combined Heat and Power (CHP) plant.

BACKGROUND

Benefits of Cold Thermal Energy Storage (CTES)

A properly designed HVAC&R system with integrated cold thermal energy storage provides the fol-
lowing benefits:

753

Cold Thermal Energy Storage

Lowest First Cost

Although installation of CTES demands additional costs, the total investment costs of the system not
infrequently can be lower as a result of smaller size of refrigeration system elements. As a thermal stor-
age system must meet the same total cooling load as a non-storage system over a given period of time
cooling equipment can be sized to meet the average load and the thermal storage system is sized to pick
up the difference in the load. The savings that result from the use of smaller chillers (including heat re-
jection equipment) reduced pump and pipe sizes and less connected electric power offset the cost of the
CTES equipment. By designing the chiller system for around 24-hour per day operation period, the size
of the chiller and the corresponding elements required for an ice system CTES is significantly reduced
compared to conventional refrigeration system designed for the instantaneous peak load.
Additional savings could be achieved by reduced pump and pipe sizes using reduced flow rates
that result from a larger temperature range (for example, 10°C instead of conventional 5-6°C, then the
flow rate is reduced by 40-50% for the same capacity) in the water loops. Further, smaller refrigeration
and hydraulic equipment require less electricity than a traditional system, and therefore smaller size of
electrical parts and components.

Reduced Energy Cost

A cold thermal storage system reduces peak demand (typical ice storage system can lower peak of
electrical demand for the HVAC or process cooling system by 50% or more), and shifts electric energy
usage from on-peak to off-peak hours.
In areas with variable market price of electricity, day to night electricity costs can vary significantly
and the use of electricity during night versus peak daytime hours can lead to significant savings.

Energy Saving

The total annual amount of electric energy used is smaller if HVAC or refrigeration system is designed
for lower supply water temperature, which is available in case of ice storage system utilization. Ice
making requires more energy than producing chilled water, but penalty due to reduced efficiency is not
as large since the ice is made during the night hours when condensing temperatures are notably lower.
Further, a CTES typically operates the chiller at full load. Typically, chiller efficiency is unsatisfactory
when it runs with low loads (for instance, during the spring and fall). A conventional chiller, used for
making cold water during daylight period, usually operates at less than 30% of its capacity during the
half the year (Baltimore Air Coil).
Use of reduced cold water flow rates means lower electric energy consumption for operation of pumps.
A higher chilled water temperature difference across the cooling coils usually results in fewer rows in a
tube bundle of air cooler and therefore reduced pressure drop exist (Baltimore Air Coil).

Extending the Capacity of an Existing System

The apparent capacity of existing HVAC and refrigeration systems can often be increased by installing
cool storage at less cost than adding conventional non-storage equipment (ASHRAE, 1999).

754

Cold Thermal Energy Storage

Variable Capacity

In ice thermal storage system it is always possible (effectively controlling the flow) to maintain a constant
supply temperature regardless the variations in instantaneous cooling demand. Thermal storage enables
HVAC&R facilities to use the optimal combination of primary equipment and storage at any given time,
providing increased flexibility, and efficiency in all seasons.

Improved System Reliability

Conventional HVAC and refrigeration systems often utilize multiple chillers. If the HVAC&R system
comprises of two chillers, a mechanical failure of a single one results with 50% decrease of the maxi-
mum available cooling capacity. Ice storage systems usually utilize two chillers, whit each chiller sized
to provide approximately 30% of the required cooling load, and the ice storage provides the remaining
40%. In case that only one chiller is available, the system is able to meet up to 70% of the cooling capac-
ity. In other words the cooling facility would meet the instantaneous daily cooling requirements during
85% of the day (Baltimore Air Coil).

Reduced Maintenance

Having no moving parts, cold thermal storage device requires little maintenance. Because the refrigera-
tion equipment (chillers, pumps and heat rejection equipment) producing ice in a thermal storage device
are smaller, ice storage systems as a whole will have less maintenance than a traditional system. The ice
thermal storage system also allows chiller components to undergo routine maintenance during the day
when the ice storage can handle the system load (Baltimore Air Coil).

Environmentally Friendly

Reduced energy consumption in HVAC&R systems with CTES leads to a lower carbon dioxide and
greenhouse gas emissions resulting in less global warming. Electricity generated at night (when ice
storage is charged) generally has a lower heat rate; according to the California Energy Commission the
use of electricity at night created a 31% reduction in pollution over the use of electricity during the day).
Because of the smaller amounts of refrigerant in CTES the ozone layer depletion and decreases global
warming caused by refrigerant leaking is significantly reduced.

Other Benefits

Storage can bring about other beneficial synergies. As already noted, cold storage can be integrated
with cold air distribution. Thermal storage can be configured to serve a secondary function such as fire
protection, while some cool storage can be configured for recharge via free cooling (Holness, 1992;
Meckler, 1992).

755

Cold Thermal Energy Storage

Disadvantages of Thermal Energy Storage

Thermal energy storage systems can be designed in many ways as it will be discussed later. Certain
disadvantages of CTES technologies should be taken into consideration preparatory and design stages
of a HVAC&R system.

CTES Technology Does Not Always Mean Reducing Electricity Costs

Any saving in electricity cost that would be provided by cooling storage is based entirely on the pricing
policy of the electric utilities. The major disadvantage of ice systems is that they are not compatible with
most conventional chillers that use cold water, and so ice-making chillers must be used to cool a water
or water-glycol solution to between -6°C and -3°C rather than produce 5°C and 7°C water temperature
as for conventional A/C systems. Although the condensation temperatures overnight (when CTES is
usually charged) are significantly lower, CTES based on ice storage usually uses more electricity than
conventional water chillers because of the lower temperatures required for water freezing.

Reduced Chiller Efficiency

Ice storage in particular pays a high energy efficiency penalty to the fact that the chillers need to operate
at low evaporating temperature necessary for ice formation. The chiller COP of chillers producing ice is
lower by 30% to 50%, compared to water chilling, for a given condensing temperature.

Auxiliary Equipment Energy Consumption

CTES system also requires additional amount of energy to put the cooling energy into the storage and
take it out when needed. This usually takes the form of energy needed to operate additional pumps de-
pending on the type and design of the storage system.

Space Requirements

A certain amount of space is needed for the storage container and its accessories. The volume of the
storage container is roughly proportional to the volume of the space being cooled.

Typical Applications Fields

In principle, HVAC&R systems with integrated cold thermal storage are best suited within application
areas where the thermal load fluctuates notably during the day. The average cooling load for these pro-
cesses is much lower than the peak load. Therefore the main application areas of CTES technologies
are food processing (dairy brewery production of baker’s yeast), chemical industry and air conditioning
systems (sports and entertainment facilities, convention centers, public institutions and office buildings).

756

Cold Thermal Energy Storage

Food Processing

The widest application of CTES technology is in the food industry, where the peak loads occur due to
periodic delivering of food (caused by physiological cycle of animals) that need to be cooled down at a
certain time (dairy), or according to the prescribed dynamics of a technological process (breweries, etc.).
Industrial refrigeration and cooling process typically require lower temperatures than environmental air
conditioning. Applications such as vegetable hydro-cooling, milk cooling, spray cooling, and storage
room dehumidification can use cold water from an ice storage system (ASHRAE, 1999).

Air Conditioning

In hot climate regions, the peak load of electrical energy consumption occurs in the summer afternoon
due to peak cooling load required for the building. In order to reduce this peak load, the off peak load
electricity during night is stored as CTES by producing ice (or cold water) to be utilized by air condi-
tioning system during the day time.
In health care facilities, data centers, and hotel cooling loads characterizes only a slight variation
between day and night. In facilities with only a slight variation between day and night load CTES should
be sized to handle only the variation in load.
Further, cold thermal storage can provide a steady supply temperature when rapid changes in operat-
ing or meeting room temperatures are required.
Since solar irradiation is available only during peak load period (day), the excess heat collected dur-
ing day time may be stored for later utilization during off peak period (night). Due to the temporal gap
of availability and utilization period in heat recovery system, cold thermal storage is required in the case
of solar HVAC&R systems.

Other Application Fields

Thermal storage systems can be used in other application fields, such as district cooling, combustion
turbine inlet air cooling and mission-critical operations (ASHRAE, 1999).

CTES TECHNOLOGY

CTES Classification

Cold thermal storage systems can be classified according to the type of thermal storage medium, or
the way the storage medium is used. Cool storage media include chilled water, aqueous or non-aqueous
fluids, ice, and phase-change materials.
CTES systems can be divided into:

• CTES which primarily store sensible energy (fluids, solids and aquifers) - Sensible Energy Storage
• CTES which primarily store latent energy – Latent Cool Storage

757

Cold Thermal Energy Storage

Sensible Energy Storage

In HVAC&R applications water is the most commonly sensible storage medium because of its low cost,
relatively high availability and good physical and chemical properties when kept between its freezing
and boiling points. After cooling in the tank to the required temperature (above the freezing point), water
is delivered to the technological and HVAC appliances and from there back to the tank battery. Tanks
are available in many shapes; most common are vertical cylinders located above ground, partially or
completely buried, and usually operating at atmospheric pressure.
Chilled water storage systems use the sensible heat capacity of water to store cooling. Water is cooled
by chiller and stored in a tank for later use in meeting cooling needs. As a result, the storage volume
required is greater than for any type of latent cool storage (based on the water ice or eutectic salt options).
However, using water eliminates the need for secondary coolants and heat exchangers and standard wa-
ter chillers can be used without significantly decreased performance or capacity. Tank volume depends
on the temperature difference between the water supplied from storage and the water returning from
the air conditioning system, and the degree of separation between warm and cold water in the storage
tank. Chilled water is generally stored at 3.8°C to 5.5°C, temperatures directly compatible with most
conventional water chillers and distribution systems. Return temperatures of 14.4°C to 15.5°C or higher
are desirable to maximize the tank temperature difference and minimize the tank volume (Pacific Gas
and Electric Company, 1997).
The chillers in these systems cool the water during the night time when the demand for electricity is
low and store it in the tank for later use in the day time period when the demand for electricity is high.
Tanks for chilled water storage are often very large and may be very difficult to site due to space limita-
tions and aesthetic considerations. Tanks may be installed partially or completely below grade, but this
increases the first cost (Pacific Gas and Electric Company, 1997).
Tanks for cold (as well as for hot) sensible energy storage applications are constructed in different
forms and can be located above ground, partially or completely buried. This chapter focuses on chilled-
water thermal energy storage because it is the most common system type. However, similar techniques
apply to hot-water sensible energy storage for heating systems and to aqueous and non-aqueous strati-
fication fluids for cool storage.
Chilled-water storage systems are typically of large volumes and located outdoors (e.g., in industrial
plants or suburban campus locations). Tanks are typically constructed of steel or pre-stressed concrete
(then, they are usually partially or completely buried below grade). In urban areas, it is preferred that
the tanks are completely buried; however, then they must be robustly constructed or column-supported
for heavy roof loads such as parking lots, tennis courts or parks.
The cooling capacity of a chilled-water storage vessel is proportional to the temperature difference
(∆t) between the stored cool water and returning warm water. It is considered that vessels should be
sized to operate with a Δt between supply and return of 7 to 9°C because that results in a smaller tank,
reduced pipe and insulation size energy for pumping energy consumption (Caldwell & Bahnfleth, 1997).
A basic lack of installations with sensible energy storages is the mixing of a warmer fluid (water that
comes from the appliances) and the chilled water (coming from chillers). Therefore, sensible thermal
storage system must separate the cooler and warmer volumes of storage medium. This problem can be
can be solved by installing a flexible diaphragm which as a barrier, normally made from a rubber com-
position material, installed horizontally inside the water storage tank, separates the colder and warmer
water layers. With a series of two or more tanks mixing of liquids is prevented by water flowing through

758

Cold Thermal Energy Storage

vessels in series, with opposite flow directions during charging and discharging. This procedure allows
using horizontal or vertical tanks of any configuration and size; drawbacks are the significant enlarge-
ment of investment costs (larger volume of vessels, longer pipelines, much more valves) and complexity
of controls and installation handling.
The ambient temperature is typically higher than the temperature of the water in the cold storage
tanks and heat load from the environment can be a major cause of inefficient operation of the system.
Thus tank surfaces should be properly insulated including high-integrity exterior vapor barrier to prevent
the chilled-water from unwanted warming and to minimize ingress of moisture and condensation into
the insulation layer.
Chilled-water storage tanks are typically constructed of steel or pre-stressed concrete which can be
partially or completely buried. Chilled-water storage tanks made from steel are usually located outdoors
(e.g., in industrial plants or suburban locations).
At low-temperature applications (below 4°C) liquids also can be used as a sensible cool storage
medium. Today there are a number of fluids specially developed for the purpose of low temperature
applications (aqueous solutions containing corrosion inhibitors or non-aqueous chemicals).
Aquifers are underground or water-yielding geological formations that can be used to store large quanti-
ties of thermal energy from ambient winter air, waste heat, and renewable sources. Soil and groundwater
are very suitable heat sources for heat pump applications because of its large capacities and relatively
uniform or slightly variable temperatures throughout the heating season (ASHRAE, 1999).

Latent Cool Storage

Although sensible cold thermal storages are simple and cost effective, the size of these devices is quite
large when compared to ice storage; therefore the latent CTES has been receiving much more atten-
tion recently. The review of various types for CTES techniques is presented (Khudhair & Farid, 2004),
(Vermaa & Singalb, 2008). The latent CTES, ice-making, types further can be classified based on heat
transfer process in storage tank either as a static process, in which heat transfer takes place via a solid
surface which including both external and internal melt ice-on-coil and encapsulated ice thermal stor-
age. The ice slurry and ice-harvesting storage systems are along to dynamic process, in which the heat
transfer medium and storage medium are in direct contact. Most of the latent CTES, ice-making types
have been incorporated with conventional air conditioning system are static.
The thermal energy can be stored in the latent heat of fusion of water (ice) or other materials. Although
a number of other materials have been developed, plain water is practically the only material used with
latent storage systems. Water has the highest latent heat of fusion of all common materials (334 kJ/kg),
high density, safety, appropriate fusion temperature (at sea level, the melting or freezing point of 0°C)
and insignificant cost. Water ice expands by about 9% on freezing and this is often used as an indicator
of ice inventory where the ice remains completely submerged. Ice density is practically constant (920
kg/m3) over the region close to the phase-change temperature.
A chilled water temperature of 1.0°C can be produced by using ice storage systems. Through a
proper use of low temperature chilled water throughout the building, a reduction in the piping and air
distribution can be achieved. Other significant advantages of using low temperature chilled water are
a reduction in mechanical room space, ceiling space, and electrical installation. Factors that must be
considered when designing a low temperature air distribution system when using ice thermal storage
systems are reported by (Fields & Knebel, 1991). The overall energy consumption of ice storage can

759

Cold Thermal Energy Storage

increase, due to the production of low temperature chilled water during the night time. During the night
time, the chiller must cool a water-glycol solution to a temperature of between -9.0°C to 3.0°C rather
than produce a water temperature of 5.0°C to 7.0°C as for conventional systems. This has the effect of
reducing the nominal chiller capacity by approximately 30% to 40%. However, compressor efficiency
will vary only slightly because lower night time dry bulb temperatures in the case of air cooled chillers,
result in lower condenser temperatures and this will help the chillers to operate more efficiently (Sebzali
& Rubini, 2006).
Although there are a wide variety of latent cool storage technologies, of practical significance are
the ones based on the accumulation of water-ice:

• Ice harvesting,
• Encapsulated,
• Ice slurry,
• Internal melt ice-on-coil storage,
• External melt ice-on-coil storage.

Ice Harvesters

In an ice harvesting system ice is generated by circulating 2.7°C water from the storage tank over the
surfaces of plate or cylindrical evaporators arranged in vertical banks above the storage tank. The ice
harvesting plant is technically called an ice harvester chiller, or ice harvester, since it operates as both an
ice maker and as a water chiller (Dorgan & Elleson, 1993). During charging cycle (ice making) the ice
is formed over the evaporator plates, the thickness of the ice ranges from 8 mm to 10 mm depending on
the length of the cycle. The ice is harvested by a hot-gas defrost cycle, which melts the bond between the
ice and the evaporator surface and allows the ice to drop into the storage tank below, which would lead
to reduced system performance due to the increase the temperature of the outer surface of evaporator
to about 5°C. During the discharging cycle (water chilled) the chilled water is pumped from the storage
tank to the load and returned to the ice generator. The selection of ice making or chiller cycle is made
automatically, depending on the temperature of water as it enters the evaporator. If the water is at or near
the freezing point, ice making cycle is selected, and a defrost cycle is activated at intervals to release the
ice from the evaporator. In the water chiller cycle, the defrost cycle is deactivated. The cooling capacity
and efficiency increase with the temperature of the water entering the evaporator. The amount of cooling
discharged can be determined by measuring chilled-water flow rate and supply and return temperatures.
Cooling stored in the tank can be measured as the difference between the energy input to the compressor
and the heat rejection from the condenser, or estimated on the basis of compressor performance data and
operating conditions (ASHRAE, 1999).

Ice Slurry

The ice slurry is one form of dynamic ice thermal storage. Small particles of ice within a solution of glycol
and water are produced in ice-making machines, resulting in a slushy mixture that can be pumped. An
ice slurry system has the advantage of separating production of ice from its storage without the control
complexity and efficiency losses associated with the ice harvester’s defrost cycle. Slurries also offer
the possibility of increased energy transport density by circulating the slurry itself, rather than just the

760

Cold Thermal Energy Storage

circulating secondary liquid. Thus, ice slurry generators do not suffer from the efficiency deterioration
that occurs as ice builds up on an evaporator surface. A heat exchanger is usually used to separate the
storage tank flow from the cooling load distribution loop. Like harvesters, slurry systems have very high
discharge rates and provide coolant consistently close to the phase-change temperature (ASHRAE, 2009).
In ice slurry systems, ice particles are generated by passing a weak glycol/water solution (5-10%
glycol) through tubing that is surrounded by an evaporating refrigerant contained within a shell (the
evaporator unit is a shell-and-tube heat exchanger). As the glycol/water solution is cooled by the evapo-
rating refrigerant, ice particles are formed. Depending on the system configuration, the resulting slush
can either drop directly into a storage tank or be pumped into it. Discharge is accomplished by pump-
ing the cool solution from the tank either directly through the cooling load or through an intermediate
heat exchanger that isolates the cooling load from the ice slurry system. A warm solution is returned to
the top of the tank and distributed over the ice slurry via multiple spray nozzles. The small size of the
particles results in better heat transfer between the solution and the ice than is possible for either ice
harvesting or ice-on coil systems.

Encapsulated Ice Systems

An encapsulated ice thermal storage system consists of plastic containers of water immersed in a sec-
ondary coolant, such as an ethylene glycol. Freezing and thawing take place in the water held inside the
containers (Dorgan & Elleson, 1993). Containers placed in storage tanks can be either spherical or rect-
angular in shape, which are made of high density material such as steel pressure vessels, open concrete
tanks, suitable fiberglass or polyethylene tanks. In tanks with spherical containers, water flows vertically
through the tank and in tanks with rectangular containers, water flows horizontally.
During charging storage, a secondary coolant (25% ethylene glycol and 75% water) is cooled to
about -4°C by a liquid chiller and circulates through the tank and over the outside surface of the plastic
containers, causing ice to form inside the containers. The temperature at the end of the charge cycle is
lower -5.5°C, and the chiller must be capable of operating at this reduced temperature. During discharg-
ing, coolant flows either directly to the load or to a heat exchanger, thereby removing heat from the load
and melting the ice within the plastic containers (ASHRAE, 2009).

Internal Melt Ice-on-Coil Storage

A secondary coolant solution (most current 25% ethylene glycol and 75% water) is required as heat transfer
fluid in internal melt ice on coil storage systems. It circulates through tubes or coils submerged in water
filled tanks. During charging, the glycol solution is cooled by a standard chiller and flows through the
coils inside the tank with temperatures of -6 to -3°C causing the ice to build on the outer surface of the
coil. The tubular heat exchangers are typically constructed of polyethylene or polypropylene plastic, or
galvanized steel. The entire water volume between heat exchanger tubes is frozen. Approximately 9%
of the tank volume, all above the heat exchanger, is reserved for expansion of the water as it freezes.
The thickness of ice on the coils and the percentage of frozen water in the tank depend on the coil
configuration and on the type of the system. There is usually no benefit of limiting the amount of ice
produced, so the storage can be fully charged every night. Because the internal storage temperature is
always at the phase-change temperature, during discharging the warm glycol solution flows through the
coil, melting the ice from the inside out and reducing the temperature of the solution for use in meeting

761

Cold Thermal Energy Storage

the load. The close tube spacing needed for good discharge performance provides excellent ice-making
performance, because the thermal conductivity of ice is about 3.5 times higher than that of liquid water.
Advantages of an internal melt system are:

• The cooling system is a closed loop.

• Water in the storage container remains static and goes through phase changes only. This water is
not circulated in the cooling system.
• Since it is a closed loop, controls are simple.
• Minimum leaving glycol temperature is typically 3°C. Not as low a temperature as with external
melts systems but still well below conventional chilled water system designs.

External Melt Ice-on-Coil Storage

An external melt ice-on-coil storage system, sometimes referred to as an ice builder, builds and stores
ice on the exterior surfaces of a heat exchange coil submerged in a cylindrical or rectangular tank of
water (Dorgan & Elleson, 1993). The chiller charging storage circulates liquid refrigerant or a secondary
coolant, inside the heat exchanger coils, causing ice to form on the outside surface of the coils. During
discharging the ice is melted from the outside of the formation by circulating the return water through the
tank, whereby it again becomes chilled. Ice-making temperatures (evaporating temperature) are driven
lower by excessive ice thickness. Since new ice must be formed on the surface of existing ice, there is
a benefit of limiting the ice thickness to what is needed for the following discharge period, while still
ensuring an adequate storage inventory (ASHRAE, 2008).
Tanks for external melt, ice-on-coil storage applications may be constructed in different shapes.
However, rectangular parallelepiped or vertical cylinders are the most widely used shapes which can be
located above ground (properly protected from rain and snow) or in cellars. The tanks are usually made
from hot-dip galvanized steel, reinforced with full-length structural steel angles beneath and on all four
sides, with welded seams to ensure watertight construction. Extruded polystyrene insulation is provided
between the tank and the exterior panels (usually, 80 mm thick on the tank sides and ends, and 50 mm
thick on the bottom and inside the covers). Exterior panel seams provide a complete vapor barrier and
protect the insulation. The coils on which the ice layer is formed are produced as hot-dip galvanized
(after fabrication) steel tubing encased in a steel framework.
The annular thickness of ice formed on the heat exchanger can vary widely, but an average of about
36 mm is a typical dimension used in published ratings. Air is bubbled through the water during the
beginning of the charging cycle and during discharging, to equalize the water temperature and promote
even building and melting of the ice. The tanks operate at atmospheric pressure, and additional measures
may be needed to accommodate pressurized systems or elevation differences.
In order to advance even ice building, some agitation is needed (usually provided by distributing
compressed air). After the first three hours of ice build, it is suitable to turn off the air agitation blower(s).
During the melting of ice, the agitation device should work continuously.
Instead of a refrigerant, a secondary coolant (25% ethylene glycol and 75% water) can be pumped
through the coils inside the storage tank. The refrigerant inventory is greatly decreased but a refrigerant-
to-coolant heat exchanger between the refrigerant and the storage tank is required.
The advantages of an external melt system are:

762

Cold Thermal Energy Storage

• Ice water supplied to the system is at a temperature of 1°C or lower.

• Since there are no restrictions to the ice water flow, the rate of ice melt can vary greatly. The rate of
ice melt can be constant (over 8-10 hours), rapid (melting all the ice in a short period of 1-2 hours),
or fluctuating that satisfies the cooling requirements for air conditioning or process applications.
• The thermal ice storage cooling water is often the same as the cooling system fluid.
• Best overall system efficiency. Since the chiller and associated pumps are turned off during the
on-peak hours, the only energy input is from the ice water pump. The on-peak system efficiency
is often as low as 0.20 kW/ton.

Internal melt ice-on-coil systems are the most commonly used type of ice storage technology in
commercial applications. External melt systems are more common in industrial applications, although
it can also be applied in commercial buildings and district-cooling systems.

Latent Cool Storage Operating Strategies

Several operation strategies are available for charging and discharging storage to meet building cooling
load during peak time. The operating strategies of cool thermal storage systems are classified as either full
storage or partial storage, referring to the amount of cooling load transferred or shifted from the night to
the day period. Partial storage is further classified into a chiller priority system and ice priority system.

Full Storage

Full storage systems are designed to utilize the stored cooling to shift all building cooling loads from
the on-peak period to the off-peak period of the design day. This strategy shifts the largest amount of
electrical demand and results in the lowest operating cost. The refrigeration system (chillers) runs at
its full capacity during the night period when electrical utility rates are typically lowest (off-peak) and
the building load is small. During the day, when utility rates are higher (on-peak), the ice is melted to
provide cooling to the building.
However, the equipment first cost is considerably higher than partial storage systems due to larger
chiller and storage requirement and full storage is therefore seldom used.

Partial Storage

In a partial storage system, the refrigeration system (chillers) and storage together meet the on-peak
building cooling load allowing chiller to run for 24 hours per day at its full capacity. The chiller oper-
ates to meet part of the cooling load and the rest is met by the storage tank during the day time. Usually
in this type of system design, the chiller is sized at a capacity smaller than the conventional system and
full storage operating strategy. In many cases, the smaller chiller selection is the driving force for an
ice storage system because of lower installed electrical kW, smaller refrigerant charge, smaller cooling
towers or other heat rejection equipment (lower noise), smaller standby chillers (if required) and lower
capital and maintenance cost.
There are several types of partial storage systems whose application is dependent on building loads,
system equipment and energy costs.

763

Cold Thermal Energy Storage

Other partial storage operating strategies stop the chiller during a few hours per day when electricity
cost are high and/or where non-cooling electricity usage are crucial. However, the more hours the chiller
is stopped during the day, the size of the chiller and storage equipment need to be increased.
In a chiller priority system (a load levelling system) the chiller always operates at full capacity for
24 hours of the design day. When the building cooling load is less than the chiller capacity, the excess
cooling is stored in the storage tank until the tank is full. When the cooling load exceeds the chiller
performance, the excess is covered by the melting ice. A constant portion of the load is covered by the
chiller while the variation in load is covered by the ice.
In an ice priority system (a demand limiting system), a constant part of the load is covered by the ice,
where the variation in load is taken by the chiller operating at a reduced capacity during the day time.
Because the chiller does not continuously operate at its maximum capacity, it will be oversized versus
the chiller priority system, and therefore should be avoided.
Normal practice is that partial storage systems using chiller priority with 24 hours chiller operation
are most commonly used.

Sizing of CTES Systems

The Distribution of Thermal Load

Proper sizing of storage and chiller capacity for different operating strategies including full and partial
storage operation requires calculating a load profile for the design day. An accurate cooling load profile
calculation for the design day, for each hour of the storage cycle (usually 24 hours) is crucial in order to
determine the required amount of storage capacity, to ensure that the storage capacity is available when
it is needed, and to provide necessary data for storage producers.
The distribution of thermal load during the design day for air-conditioned spaces (office buildings,
shopping centers, hotels, etc.) is shaped like a normal distribution curve. During the design period of
24 hours, there is only one load peak (depending on the construction characteristics of the building and
climatic conditions, usually in the early afternoon hours). In the food industry, load profile also typically
has the shape of a normal distribution, but within 24 hours often appear two or more short peak loads.

The Optimal Geometry of Ice Storage

Ice storage is usually made as pipes, and rarely as plates immersed in chilled water. During charging
(and discharging), the outer surface of the ice on the pipes is significantly increased, comparing to plate.
Therefore, the specific consumption of steel (mass exchangers necessary for the unit quantity of ice) for
the tubes is for approximately 15% lower than for plate. An increased outer surface of ice resulting in
more efficient melting of the ice allowing handling of large heat loads. According to Plank (1959), ice
melting on the pipes with a diameter of 42 mm and the initial ice thickness of 30 mm is about 20% more
efficient than with the plate storage. At the same time, power consumption per ton of ice is minimal if
the ice thickness is 20 to 30 mm. Increased outer surface for heat transfer in tubular storages leads to a
decrease of mean temperature difference. As a result, evaporating temperature at pipe storage is higher
comparing to plate exchangers (with the identical heat load and overall heat transfer coefficient for both
types of storages), thus specific energy consumption (kWh per kilogram of ice) is lower for pipe storages.

764

Cold Thermal Energy Storage

Good Practice in the Design of Equipment

Conventional methods for sizing the air-conditioning and refrigeration equipment cannot be applied
to sizing thermal storage equipment, since they are based on the assumption that all processes taking
place in the steady-state conditions at which equipment performance can be characterized using standard
parameters. On the contrary, cool storage devices never work under steady-state operating conditions.
The usable storage capacity of a cool storage device may vary noticeably depending on the application
(AHRI, 2013).
The amount of stored cooling, that can be supplied from the CTES depends on the load profile and
temperature requirements typically is practically always less than, the nominal capacity. The designer
must carry out an hourly analysis to determine the nominal storage capacity and discharging capacity
required to meet a given load profile.
AHRI Guideline (AHRI, 2013) provides the minimum information required for specifying cool stor-
age equipment, which are classified into two categories:

• Application recommendation specified by user,

• Thermal performance data specified by designer of supplier of equipment

User-Specified Application Recommendations should be provided for a design period and must in-
clude thermal load profile, operating mode, supply and return temperature and flow rate from the load,
maximum time available to charge, minimum temperature available to charge and discharge fluids. Design
heat sink rejection temperature, is preferred, but not required ARI Guideline T (FK3)
Supplier –Specified Thermal Performance must include cooling load to be met by the CTES, load
on refrigeration equipment, thermal storage system load, thermal storage device charge and discharge
rate, heat load caused by parasitic processes, accessories and environment, net accumulated measured
storage capacity at a given period of time during a 24 hour cycle, design parameters for the refrigeration
plant (when this equipment is to be supplied by other), temperature and flow rate of supply and return
fluid, flow rate and pressure drop of fluid across the thermal storage device and any heat exchanger(s)
included in the supplier’s scope of supply, as well as energy input to thermal storage refrigeration
equipment including parasitic and caused accessories loads, and total heat rejection and condensing
temperature for the chiller operation.

Heat Transfer Phenomena in Ice Storage Tank

The Assessment of the Duration and Rate of Ice Formation and Melting

Ice Thermal Energy Storage (ITES) technology is based on the application of water ice as a storage
medium. Having high density (920 kg/m3), ice is a very convenient material, because it is possible to
accumulate proportionally large amount of cold thermal energy in a relatively small volume of storage
device at temperatures suitable for HVAC&R and many other industrial applications.
Under variable cooling loading during the day, refrigeration systems operate in unsteady-state mode.
Application of Ice Thermal Energy Storage (ITES) technology (in such storage devices, water ice is stor-
ing medium) in HVAC&R installations resulting in an increase in the non-stationary which is especially
characteristic for processes of formation and melting of ice. Due to the change in thickness of the ice

765

Cold Thermal Energy Storage

occurs a significant decreasing of the overall heat transfer coefficient (due to the low heat conductivity
of ice in comparison to the steel or copper from which the pipes in the storage are most often made). At
the same time, the freezing or melting of ice are associated with the changes in evaporation temperature
of and the refrigeration effect during the formation and melting ice processes, as well as changes in the
water flow regime.
The freezing process begins when the temperature of outside surface of the pipes sufficiently drops
below freezing point of water. Under some conditions, water undercooling may occur causing decreasing
of the initial freezing point by 1 to 2°C, and the phase-change temperature rapidly returns to 0°C immedi-
ately after this initial nucleation period. Impurities usually found in plain water, residual ice, intentional
or random agitation reduce or eliminates the undercooling tendency for subsequent ice-making periods.
In the calculation of the time needed for ice formation it is reasonable to introduce the following
simplifications (Cheng et al., 1988):

• Non-stationary processes of freezing is the quasi-stationary processes,

• Specific heat capacity of ice is neglected in comparison with the heat of fusion,
• Ice density does not change with the increase of the thickness,
• Convective thermal resistance between water at the freezing temperature and the surface of ice is
neglected,
• Water in the ice storage has already been cooled down to the freezing temperature (in practice the
duration of the cooling down of water to cryoscopy temperature is negligible compared with the
total time of accumulation of ice.

In the process of freezing the total heat resistance of pipes increases and evaporation temperature
drops (depending on the size of storage, this change can be several degrees Celsius). If it is adopted that
the temperature is constant and equal to the arithmetic mean temperature during the process, the follow-
ing expression can be used to determine the approximate time needed that the outer diameter of ice
layer reaches a value of Dx (Cheng et al., 1988):

 1 1  D 
τf =
ρice ⋅ r
⋅  +
1
4 ⋅ ( tcr − te )  hi ⋅ Di 2 ⋅ π ⋅ k p
D
⋅ ln o −
Di 4 ⋅ kice 
( )
 ⋅ Dx 2 − Do 2 +
1
2 ⋅ λice
⋅ Dx 2 ⋅ ln x 
Do 
(1)
 

where:

τ f , the duration of the freezing process to achieve an outer diameter Dx of ice, s

, density of ice, kg/m3
tcr , Te , bulk freezing temperature and temperature of refrigerant, respectively, °C
hi , convective heat transfer coefficients evaluated for refrigerant, W/(m2K)
k p , kice , thermal conductivity of pipe material and ice, respectively, W/(m·K)
Do , Di outer and inner diameter of pipe, respectively, m
Dx , outer diameter of ice layer on pipes (assuming the shape of a cylinder), m

766

Cold Thermal Energy Storage

Equation 1 is also valid in the case when an aqueous solution of ethylene glycol flows through the
pipes and then for Te should be used the arithmetic temperature between inlet and outlet bulk tempera-
tures of secondary fluid). Total time to reach the desired ice thickness has to be increased by the time
required that the return water reaches the freezing temperature, which can be estimated using the expres-
sion (Milenkovic, 1994).

mw ⋅ C w twi − te
τo = ⋅ ln (2)
U s ⋅ As tcr − te

where:

τ f , time period needed that water returning from appliances reaches the freezing temperature, s,
mw , total mass of water in storage vessel, kg,
Cw , constant pressure specific heat of water, °C,
U s , overall heat transfer coefficient of storage, W/(m2K),
As , surface area of storage, m2,
twi , inlet water bulk temperature, °C,
Dx , outer diameter of ice (assuming it is a cylinder), m.

The required amount of ice mice that needs to be accumulated is determined on the basis of required
storage capacity which is calculated using known design load profile.

Qsc
mL = (3)
rice

where Qsc (in kWh) is required storage capacity, and rice (in kJ/kg) fusion heat of ice.
The rate of ice formation (ice thickness increase over time) can be estimated from the expression
(Milenkovic, 1994).

d δice
=
dτ
1 1
⋅
C1 δ 2 32 δ 3 160 δ 4
4 ⋅ C 2 ⋅ Do + 2 ⋅ C 3 ⋅ Do + 8 ⋅ C 2 ⋅ δice + 12 ⋅ C 3 ⋅ δice + 8 ⋅ ice + ⋅ C 3 ⋅ ice + ⋅ C 3 ⋅ ice
Do 3 Do 3 Do
(4)

ρice ⋅ rice 1 1 D 1 1
C1 = , C2 = + ⋅ ln o − , C3 = (5)
4 ⋅ ( tcr − te ) hi ⋅ Di 2 ⋅ k p Di 4 ⋅ kice 2 ⋅ kice

where d δice is the thickness of the ice layer.

767

Cold Thermal Energy Storage

From Equation 4 it follows that the increase in thickness of ice reduces the speed of ice forming.
Convective heat transfer coefficients evaluated for refrigerant hi has an impact on the freezing rate only
at low thicknesses of ice (when the convective heat resistance evaluated for refrigerant is the same order
of magnitude as the resistance due to the heat conduction through the ice layer). With higher thick-
nesses of ice influence of convection can practically be ignored.
During ice melting process convective heat transfer evaluated for water is by two orders of magni-
tude smaller compared with those during freezing. According to Tkacev & Danilova (1953) value of
convective heat transfer for water during freezing process under conditions of natural convection and
with the arithmetic mean temperature difference between water and ice less than 1°C can be to more
than 10,000 W/(m2K).
This may be explained by increasing the thickness of the boundary layer due to the presence of water
produced by ice melting in relation to the thickness of the boundary layer during the freezing as well as by
increasing temperature difference between the boundary surface of water-ice and the surrounding water.
The rate of ice melting can be estimated using the heat balance equation of ice melting (Milenkovic,
1994).

d δice hw ⋅ (twm − tcr )

= (6)
dτ ρice ⋅ tice

where hw , W/(m2K) is convective heat transfer coefficient evaluated for water and twm , twm , K is arith-
metic mean temperature of water in storage vessel.
The intensification of convection heat transfer at melting ice phase is typically achieved by forced
flow of water through storage vessel using axial pumps, when it is possible to reach the value of the
coefficient hw in the range of 2100-2500 W/(m2K) (with velocity of 1÷1.2 m/s of water flow along the
pipes). Nowadays, in industrial practice prevails pneumatic agitation water by blowing compressed air
or inert gas.
An overview of expressions for the convective heat transfer coefficient calculation during freezing
and melting process can be found in Milenkovic (1994).

OPERATIONAL CHARACTERISTICS OF REFRIGERATION MACHINE

AND WATER-ICE THERMAL ENERGY STORAGE: AN EXAMPLE

The methodology of sizing components of the ice thermal storage system of an air conditioning system
and an analysis of the power demand and energy consumption for different operating strategies for the
design day is presented (Abdul Galil, 2013). The schematic diagram of an external ice thermal storage
system is given on the Figure 1.
In this example Halocarbon R134a has been chosen as a primary refrigerant in chiller device with air
cooled condenser because of the relatively small required refrigeration capacity and the implementation
of A/C system in a commercial building located in the central area of the urban city.
For application in large commercial or industrial systems, the ammonia is more suitable refrigerant
than R134a. Ammonia has superior thermodynamic properties and therefore ammonia refrigeration

768

Cold Thermal Energy Storage

Figure 1. Schematic diagram of the external ice thermal storage system

systems are more efficient (3-10%) than most traditional and newer refrigerants (inluding R-134a) in a
wide range of evaporating and condensing temperatures (+10 to –45°C). Generally speaking, ammonia
refrigeration systems cost 10-20% less to install than systems using alternative industrial refrigerants.
Further, ammonia is environmentaly friendly refrigerant because it is characterized by zero Ozone
Depletion Potential (ODP), zero Global Warming Potential (GWP), and low Total Equivalent Warm-
ing Impact (TEWI). Ammonia has no cumulative effects on the environment (very limited, a few days,
atmospheric lifetime, because it is considered to be “biodegradable.”). Ammonia has self-alarming
pungent odor, even the slightest traces of ammonia in the air can be easy detected. And finally, ammonia
is difficult to ignite and exibits a narrow range of flammability (it is flammable only at hifh concentar-
tions under extremely limited conditions) and does not sustain a flame on its own (without open fire).
Properly designed ammonia refrigeration systems that are well ventilated and free of open flames or
ignition sources mitigate against potential explosion.
Another environmental friendly refrigerant that has been increasingly used in recent commercial and
industrial air connditioning systems is Carbon dioxide (CO2). When simple theoretical cycle analyses
are carried out, CO2 does not compare favorably against traditional refrigerants as regards energy ef-
ficiency because its low critical temperature (around 31°C). However, by proper design of the system
aimed at fully exploiting the unique characteristics of CO2 and/or the exclusive features of trans-critical
cycles, it is possible to bring about important factors that improve the practical performance of CO2
systems. Thus, the application of CO2 in many areas already displays some excellent results in the use
in compression-type, including mobile and residential air conditioning, heat pumps, water chillers, com-
mercial and marine applications (Kim, 2004).
With halocarbon R134a as a primary refrigerant in chiller device with air cooled condenser, the ice-
on-coil rectangular storage tank consists of a large number of small diameter pipes to effectively transfer
the heat from a transport fluid (water) to the storage medium (ice), and to provide a large surface area

769

Cold Thermal Energy Storage

for heat transfer. The tank has two sections with 14 vertical rows of pipes, which of them consists of 19
pipes. The round pipes are evenly spaced in both the horizontal and vertical dimensions and have inner
and outer diameters of 0.034 m and 0.038 m respectively. This configuration provides a gap between
rows in the horizontal and vertical dimensions. The gap between rows is necessary for circulation of the
tank water and to maintain an open space between the ice cylinders which allows efficient heat transfer
between the tank water and the ice on the tubes to provide the maximum cooling capacity of storage.

Cooling Load Estimation

The starting point is a calculation of cooling loads based on the design conditions. Depending on the
cooling loads and according to the desire of the users, either a pure air system, a pure water system
or hybrid air/water systems are possible for extraction of heat and humidity out of the building during
summer season.
The cooling load calculation was carried out using Carrier’s Hourly Analysis Program (HAP) con-
sisting of two tools; a tool for calculating cooling load and designing systems and a tool for simulating
energy use and estimating energy cost of the conventional system. The Design Cooling Load profiles
are computed for one design cooling day in each month using design weather conditions, design day
operating schedules and the ASHRAE-Endorsed Transfer Function load calculation method. Design
weather data uses design temperature data, coincident humidity levels and clear sky solar radiation
conditions. The required input data include climate data for the building location, construction material
data, building size and layout data, exposure orientations and external shading features. Internal load
characteristics are determined by levels and schedules for occupants, lighting systems and office equip-
ment within the building.

Design Load Profiles

For a typical office building in hot wet and dry climate, A/C system should be designed to operate only
during office working hours which are typically from 07:00 am to 07:00 pm. Monthly cooling load
calculations in summer season lasting from April to September was performed for the whole building.
Hourly load profiles were examined for the 21th of each month in summer season to obtain the design
month in which the maximum cooling load is occurred, Figure 2 (Abdul Galil, 2013).
As it can be seen in the Figure 2, the highest building cooling loads is observed in June, July and
August unlike other months in the season and this is due to the relatively high outdoor temperatures and
solar gains during this months. The peak cooling load for entire building within the day for all months
is occurred at after noon hours (02:00-05:00pm). The maximum cooling load that reaches 484 kW is
at 04:00 pm.

Selection of Conventional System

The previously obtained cooling load profiles of the office building is used to determine the size of
HVAC system that are required to maintain acceptable comfort levels within office building. In common
practice sizing of chillers is selecting equal to maximum cooling load obtained for the considered build-
ing. An air-cooled screw packaged chiller with a nominal cooling capacity of 500 kW installed in the
central chiller plant is dedicated for extended hours of operation. The chiller is working with four semi-

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Cold Thermal Energy Storage

Figure 2. Monthly building cooling loads

hermetic screw compressors with a nominal capacity of 125 kW for each, at 46°C outdoor temperature.
Basically, the chiller is coupled with two chilled water distribution system (7/12°C) which operated by
chilled water pumps to serve both terminal devices (fan coil units) and primary air cooling coil in the
Air Handling Unit (AHU). The chilled water supply of fan coil unit system is regulated by individual
control thermostat to maintain the desired space temperature of 26°C in each zone.

Sizing and Control Strategy of Ice Thermal Energy Storage (ITES)

Ice thermal storage system of the building will be sized for different operating strategies included full,
chiller priority system (partial leveling) and ice priority system (demand limiting) storage operation for
the design day.
The total integrated load is equal to the total cooling loads of office building during operating hours
for the design day which is 4953 kWh. According to cooling load profiles of a selected building and the
applied operating strategies and charging and discharging time, the sizes of chiller and storage capacities
can be obtained by applying Equation 7 and Equation 8 (Dorgan & Elleson, 1993).

Qtil
qchil = (7)
Hchar ⋅ CRchar + Hdirt ⋅ CRdirt

SC = qchil ⋅ Hchar ⋅ CRchar − TCchar (8)

where:

771

Cold Thermal Energy Storage

Qtil , total daily integrated system cooling load, kWh

SC , storage capacity, kWh
Hchar , Hdirt , number of charging and direct cooling hours, respectively, h
CRchar , CRdirt , chiller capacity ratio (expressed as the capacity of each cooling mode percentage to
its nominal capacity),
TCchar , total integrated system cooling load during charging time, kWh

The selection software (of a certain compressor producer) was used to select the required compact
screw compressor integrated into an air cooled chiller to determine its capacity for different condensing
temperatures (40°C, 50°C) during charging and discharging operations. A mean evaporating temperature
of -4.5°C and useful superheat of three degrees were adopted for day and night modes. In the full storage
operation strategy, the refrigeration equipment does not run during on-peak period and all cooling loads
are met by the storage. The chiller with the cooling capacity of 413 kW operates only for 12 hours dur-
ing off-peak hours when there is no cooling load (as shown in Figure 3) (Abdul Galil, 2013). On-peak
hours refer to the period of the building occupied hours while off-peak hours refer to unoccupied hours.
In a chiller priority (load levelling) operation strategy, the refrigeration equipment runs with full
capacity for 24 hours. However, the total chillers capacity in this case is only 258 kW which starts to
charge the storage at 21:00 pm and ends at 5.51 am with variation of evaporating temperature from
-2.5°C to -6.5°C. Besides, during night hours the performance of the chiller is enhanced due to lower
outdoor temperature, which results in reduction of condensing temperature.

Figure 3. Hourly cooling capacity profile for different operating strategies, outdoor temperature and
cooling load

772

Cold Thermal Energy Storage

In 55% (Figure 4 b) and 65% (Figure 4 c) (Abdul Galil, 2013) load ratio of ice priority operation
strategy, the refrigeration equipment operates at a demand level during the on-peak period. The portion
of integrated cooling load during on-peak hours will be met by the chiller and the rest will be met by the
storage. In this case, the charging time during off-peak hours varies from 5.5 h to 9 h depending on the
amount of cooling load which would be covered by the storage during on peak hours. Charging hours
should be determined by control strategy of the design system. The charging time is selected so that it
coincides with the time when the cost of electricity is low. However, in the areas where is no difference
in the tariff of electricity between day and night some other criteria should be used for selecting charging
hours (for example, the peak of electricity demands caused by non-cooling appliances).
Required chiller power input values are obtained in the scenarios where 55% (Figure 4 b) and 65%
(Figure 4 c) of the cooling load are supplied by the chiller (remaining amount is supplied by the storage).
As it can be observed from Figure 4 (Abdul Galil, 2013), the lowest value of the power input is achieved
with a load leveling and 55% demand limiting scenarios because the cooling capacity of the chiller is
less during day and night compared to other designs of scenarios. However, the longest charging period
is for partial leveling storage (Figure 4 b) while the least is for 65% demand limiting storage. The total
energy required to operate the chiller day and night in the two scenarios 55% and 65% are 1794 and
1920 kWh, respectively.
From above, it is clear that the ice thermal energy storage system can reduce or even eliminate the
power demand for the chiller during the on-peak hours. However, the obtained amount of reduction in
energy consumption varies from one to another operating strategy. Furthermore, due to a changeable
amount of energy charge and demand power charge that increases cost per kWh and kW during on-peak
hours respectively, the demand power and total energy consumption are important parameters to compare
between operating strategies for ice storage systems.
The 65% demand leveling storage operating strategy has the biggest energy consumption compared
to other operating strategies. The total amount of energy consumption for 55% demand leveling storage
strategy is found to be 24%, 5.7%, and 6.5% higher compared to full storage (Figure 4 a), partial load
leveling storage and demand limiting 55% respectively.
A further analysis may be conducted based on the selection of the charging hours in an attempt to
reduce energy consumption of the chiller using different partial storage demand limiting load ratios.
The chiller capacity in the partial storage demand limiting operation with 65% load ratios is larger than
55% load ratio and lower than full storage.

Operational Characteristics of the System

Sizing components of refrigeration device (chiller as a part of ITES) is based on their capacities, flow
and thermodynamic parameters of heat source and sink (flow and temperature of the fluid flowing
through the evaporator and condenser) and desired operation mode (the temperature of evaporation
and condensation). As a result obtained are the paremeters of the elements of refrigeration equipment
(compressor, evaporator, condenser ...).
However, when assembling refrigeration device combining only standard components which differ
somewhat in size than required, the actual performance and the operating mode different from the desired
ones. The performance of a complete system is a result of the balance between all device components. It
is therefore very important to determine the operating mode of refrigeration plant assembled from com-

773
Figure 4. Hourly power input profile of the chiller for different operating strategies in the design day

774
Cold Thermal Energy Storage


Cold Thermal Energy Storage

ponents available at the given parameters of the heat sources and sinks. This task is somewhat inverted
in relation to the sizing of components and can be solved by coupling their characteristics.
The operating parameters of chiller components are interdependent, and must be harmonized in their
common work. In addition, in steady conditions mass and energy fluxes must be in accordance with
the laws of conservation of matter and energy. Moreover, it should be kept in mind that, when work-
ing together, the capacity of all the components relate to the same characteristic parameters (primarily
evaporation and condensation temperatures). Therefore, the characteristics of each component of the
machine is expressed as the cooling effect of the certain component to be achieved in the evaporator by
given evaporation and condensation temperatures, ie. as a function of the cooling effect of evaporation
and condensation temperatures.
When analyzing the system, the performance of any of two interdependent components is expressed
as functions of the evaporation and condensation temperatures within a region of interest. “The point of
intersection” of these two functions indicates the conditions at which the refrigeration capacity will be
same for the both components. This point is called the balance point and in steady-state the combina-
tion will achieve these conditions. Similar procedure can be extended to include the other components.
Finally, a balance point for the entire system can be obtained by taking into account the individual
characteristics all the components.
By applying the above-described method of analysis it is possible to predict thermal behavior of A/C
system considered in this example; some of the important features of the system are discussed below.
The chiller is designed to operate with full capacity of 222 kW, during operating hours (from 07:00
to 19:00) to be capable of handling a portion of building cooling load. The remaining extra load which is
above maximum chiller capacity during on-peak hours is met by the storage capacity. Figure 5 illustrates
the storage capacity and volume of ice for various thickness of the ice layer (Abdul Galil, 2013). As it is
evident from the figure, the storage capacity increases slightly as thickness of ice increases reaching a
maximum value of 2229 kWh, which corresponds to the ice layer thickness and ice volume of the 0.035
m and 25.6 m3 respectively.
In short, the thicker the ice layer, the greater is the thermal resistance, which therefore significantly
slows the rate of ice build-up. Further, a certain decrease of evaporating temperature is occurred. Ideally,
so as to maximize the rate of the ice build-up, the ice layer thickness should be kept as thin as possible.
However, this would reduce the amount of latent energy storage per tube, thus requiring a greater total
number of tubes to be installed in a package to maintain the same overall total thermal storage capacity
of the unit. Therefore the maximum ice thickness was designed to be 0.035 m to store the desired amount
of energy required to meet the cooling load of the building.
Clearly as shown in Figure 6 (Abdul Galil, 2013), an increase in outdoor temperature causes an increase
of condensing temperature, and therefore the increase of compressor power input. For instance, at 45°C
condensing temperature, the required power input is 98 kW, while at 55°C condensing temperature; the
power input is about 121 kW when evaporator temperature is -2.5°C.
Regarding the sensible heat transfer process, the thickness of the ice is assumed to be zero at the initial
case of charging, so the transfer fluid (R134a) is in direct contact with water (neglecting the thermal
resistance of conduction through the pipe wall). Therefore, for the zero ice thickness the evaporating
temperature will be -2.5°C. When the water temperature approaches zero, the ice layers start to build
around the pipes, which means that the latent heat transfer process takes place and the evaporating tem-
perature has decreased to -6.5°C in order build the required thickness of the ice layer.

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Figure 5. Storage capacity and volume of ice for various thickness of ice layer

Figure 6. Increasing power input of compressor

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The ice thickness increased with decreasing outdoor temperature for the same capacity of the chiller
as shown in Figure 7 (Abdul Galil, 2013). This is due to the enhancement of chiller performance at lower
outdoor temperatures. Conversely, in higher outer temperatures more energy is required for the ice layers
formation. Increasing of thermal resistance of the ice layer as it built on the heat exchanger tubes results
in cooling capacity reduction. Furthermore, Figure 5 observes that with lower outdoor temperatures,
less charging time is required to reach the optimum ice layer thickness of 0.035 m.
The ice thickness on the heat exchanger tubes increases, a further decrease of the evaporating tem-
perature is required and in return further decreases of cooling capacity, as observed in Figure 8 (Abdul
Galil, 2013). The mass flow rate of the refrigerant consequently decreases. In addition, cooling capacity
is also affected by the outdoor temperature. At 40°C a cooling capacity of 277 kW is obtained, while at
60°C the produced cooling capacity is specified to be 228 kW.

SOLUTIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

CTES offers the possibility of additional energy savings and improvement of energy efficiency of the
HVAC&R system as a whole. Further expansion of applications in thermal systems generally should be
expected, but nowadays there are still some barriers to the expansion of the application which include
technical (refrigeration and safety engineering), supply and availability (materials, equipment, com-
ponents, secondary fluids), commercial (investment, profit, financial incentives), market (customer,
consumer, competing products), information resources (know-how, guidance, technical data), regulatory
and quasi-regulatory (legislation, standards), and even psychological and sociological aspects (rumor
and influence of peer groups, personal desire to see or to not see barriers, etc.).

Figure 7. Increasing thickness of ice with time

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Figure 8. Decreasing cooling capacity with thickness of ice

Having in mind certain disadvantages of CTES technologies, some suggestions that could be useful
to overcome the barriers listed above, may be formulated as:

• Increase of awareness about the need of energy saving and environment protection - systemati-
cally throughout the process of education.
• To organize training to non-technical staff, who make investment decisions, that they will receive
technical and other necessary data.
• The investment decision makers, should be aware of the importance of the total life cycle cost of
a refrigerating system: 1) investment cost, 2) cost of energy in the life cycle (in about 30 years)
and 3) maintenance cost.
• Encouragement (financial incentives) of planners, designers, contractors, and investors to acquire
new knowledge and to accept the new solutions.
• Strengthening the legislation, but also empowerment of control services by strengthening of fi-
nancial sanctions.
• Development of the network of state advisory institutions focusing on resolving practical problems.

FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS

Although ITES technologies are widely used in HVAC&R systems for many years, there are not much
published research results dealing with heat transfer in the storage vessels. Some suggestions concerning
the future research directions could be:

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• Enhancement of convective heat transfer in thermal energy storage tanks, especially for the pro-
cess of ice melting.
• Development of cool storage operating and control strategies.
• Development of methods testing the dynamic behavior of the industrial system under real
conditions.
• Improving methods for testing the hourly profile on the site.
• The improvement of management of HVAC & R systems with included ITES technologies to
increase energy efficiency.

CONCLUSION

The cold thermal energy storages (CTES) are widely used in air-conditioning to adjust a time lag between
demands and supply of cold energy (shifting of peak-load to an off-peak period), as well as in industrial
applications (such as in food processing) where large short duration loads are required. The main goal
of this chapter is to establish the useful information required for planning, designing and sizing of cold
storage equipment. In this regard general suggestions needed for implementation of CTES technologies
including design consideration and sizing strategies, specific features of heat transfer phenomena in ice
storage tank, the methodology of sizing components of the ice thermal storage system included in an air
conditioning system are given. In addition, an example of an ice thermal storage system is described and
analyzed for different operating strategies (full load, chiller priority and ice priority storage operation).

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Dincer, I., & Rosen, A. M. (2001). Energetic, Environmental and Economic Aspects of Thermal Energy
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ADDITIONAL READING

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KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS

Chiller Priority System: (A load levelling system). ITES in which the constant portion of the cooling
load is covered by the chiller while the variation in load is covered by the ice.
Cold Thermal Energy Storage (CTES): The storage device with storage medium at temperatures
below the nominal temperature of the space, or processing system.
Combined Heat and Power (CHP) Plant: The system which consists of prime power (driver) that
drives a generator to produce electricity, and heat recovery system which uses heat from the exhaust gas
and/or water cooling engine.
CTES Technology: The collection of tools, including machinery, modifications, arrangements and
procedures in which CTES with water ice as a storing medium is included into HVAC&R systems.
External Melt Ice-on-Coil Storage: A thermal storage device in which an evaporating refrigerant or
cold secondary coolant is circulated through the coils/plates causing ice forming on the external surfaces.
Full Storage: ITES designed to utilize the stored cooling to shift all building cooling loads from the
on-peak period to the off-peak period of the design day.
Ice Thermal Energy Storage (ITES): The storage of cooling capacity using water ice as a storage
medium.
Internal Melt Ice-on-Coil Storage: A thermal storage device in which secondary coolant is circulated
through the coils/plates being cooled by ice malting on the external surfaces.
ITES Technology: The collection of tools, including machinery, modifications, arrangements and
procedures in which ITES is included into HVAC&R systems.

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Latent Cool Storage: The device in which the thermal energy can be stored as the latent heat of
fusion of water (ice) or other materials.
Net Usable Storage Capacity: The part of stored cooling capacity that can be supplied by the stor-
age device at the specified temperature.
Nominal Storage Capacity: A theoretical (maximal) capacity of the storage device.
Partial Storage Ice Priority System: ITES in which a constant part of the load is covered by the ice,
where the variation in load is taken by the chiller operating at a reduced capacity during the day time.
Sensible Energy Storage: The device using water, fluid (without phase change), soil, and various
construction materials as a storage medium being heated or cooled.
Thermal Storage Device: Collection of equipment units which stores cooling capacity using sensible
or/and latent heat of an appropriate medium.

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