Optimisation electrified metallic phase change material process in direct steam generation

This study uses a three-dimensional CFD model in ANSYS Fluent to examine how non-uniform, axially sectorised electrical heating affects charging of a metallic phase change material storage tank used in direct steam generation for concentrated solar power. The model, validated against literature data, shows that gradient heating improves thermal homogeneity, reduces local overheating, and improves charging efficiency while lowering the total power input compared with uniform heating.