Phase Change Material Based Thermal Energy Storage Appliance

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As major changes in Canada's energy infrastructure are underway to meet 2050 climate goals, there are numerous strategies with potential to make major headway and disrupt the energy industry in a positive way. This NSERC ARD 2- Alberta Innovates CASBE project aims to do just that and will involve collaboration between SAIT's Green Building Technologies (GBT) team, Home Completions Inc and ATCO to study the application of an active Phase Change Material (PCM)-based Thermal Energy Storage (TES) Appliance integrating with micro Combined Heat and Power (mCHP). This project will study the effectiveness of the PCM TES systems to efficiently solve surplus of heat and electricity of the mCHP, and the production of feasibility data on Demand-Side Management (DSM) for these systems. The goal is to efficiently arbitrage thermal and electrical energy to reduce overall natural gas and electrical consumption from the grid and encourage decentralized generation as a viable means for energy resiliency.By reducing energy demand during peak energy use hours and shifting that demand to hours of lower energy use, there is the opportunity to scale back high stress and pressure on the grid. Furthermore, as this TES is so versatile, it supports a wide range of energy systems, enabling sustainable energy performance in all Canadian climates while also promoting market variety. This will be especially beneficial to more rural areas, where energy may be unstable and at times completely unavailable. The outcomes of this project will provide much needed data on the effectiveness of PCM based TES in residential and small-commercial sectors for the Canadian cold climate. The project data will be used towards CSA (Canadian Standards Association) certification of the Phase Change Material (PCM) based Thermal Energy Storage (TES) Appliance, further the goal of manufacturing in Canada and aid in the search for a Canadian Energy Management System provider to integrate with the appliance for smart control and Demand Response initiatives. This project aligns to federal goals of drastic energy reduction and bringing green energy technologies to the Canadian market.