Recent Progress of Phase Change Materials and Their Applications in Facility Agriculture and Related-Buildings—A Review

Facility agriculture, which involves agricultural production in controlled environments such as greenhouses, indoor farms, and vertical farms, aims to maximize efficiency, yield, and quality while minimizing resource consumption and environmental impact. Energy-saving technologies are essential to t...

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Main Authors: Yijing Cui, Raza Gulfam, Yousaf Ishrat, Saqib Iqbal, Feng Yao
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2024-09-01
Series:Buildings
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/14/9/2999
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author Yijing Cui
Raza Gulfam
Yousaf Ishrat
Saqib Iqbal
Feng Yao
author_facet Yijing Cui
Raza Gulfam
Yousaf Ishrat
Saqib Iqbal
Feng Yao
author_sort Yijing Cui
collection DOAJ
description Facility agriculture, which involves agricultural production in controlled environments such as greenhouses, indoor farms, and vertical farms, aims to maximize efficiency, yield, and quality while minimizing resource consumption and environmental impact. Energy-saving technologies are essential to the green and low-carbon development of facility agriculture. Recently, phase change heat storage (PCHS) systems using phase change materials (PCMs) have gained significant attention due to their high thermal storage density and excellent thermal regulation performance. These systems are particularly promising for applications in facility agriculture and related buildings, such as solar thermal utilization, greenhouse walls, and soil insulation. However, the low thermal conductivity of PCMs presents a challenge for applications requiring rapid heat transfer. This study aims to provide a comprehensive review of the types, thermophysical properties, and various forms of PCMs, including macro-encapsulated PCMs, shape-stabilized PCMs, and phase change capsules (PCCs), as well as their preparation methods. The research methodology involves an in-depth analysis of these PCMs and their applications in active and passive PCHS systems within facility agriculture and related buildings. The major conclusion of this study highlights the critical role of PCMs in advancing energy-saving technologies in facility agriculture. By enhancing PCM performance, optimizing latent heat storage systems, and integrating intelligent environmental control, this work provides essential guidelines for designing more efficient and sustainable agricultural structures. The article will serve as the fundamental guideline to design more robust structures for facility agriculture and related buildings.
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spelling doaj-art-7aa2315111e9472daedebcae2473540f2025-08-20T01:56:06ZengMDPI AGBuildings2075-53092024-09-01149299910.3390/buildings14092999Recent Progress of Phase Change Materials and Their Applications in Facility Agriculture and Related-Buildings—A ReviewYijing Cui0Raza Gulfam1Yousaf Ishrat2Saqib Iqbal3Feng Yao4College of Electrical, Energy and Power Engineering, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225127, ChinaCollege of Electrical, Energy and Power Engineering, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225127, ChinaSchool of Economics and Management, Southeast University, Jiulonghu Campus, Nanjing 211189, ChinaSchool of Materials Science and Engineering, Southeast University, Jiulonghu Campus, Nanjing 211189, ChinaSchool of Environmental Science and Engineering, Suzhou University of Science and Technology, Suzhou 215009, ChinaFacility agriculture, which involves agricultural production in controlled environments such as greenhouses, indoor farms, and vertical farms, aims to maximize efficiency, yield, and quality while minimizing resource consumption and environmental impact. Energy-saving technologies are essential to the green and low-carbon development of facility agriculture. Recently, phase change heat storage (PCHS) systems using phase change materials (PCMs) have gained significant attention due to their high thermal storage density and excellent thermal regulation performance. These systems are particularly promising for applications in facility agriculture and related buildings, such as solar thermal utilization, greenhouse walls, and soil insulation. However, the low thermal conductivity of PCMs presents a challenge for applications requiring rapid heat transfer. This study aims to provide a comprehensive review of the types, thermophysical properties, and various forms of PCMs, including macro-encapsulated PCMs, shape-stabilized PCMs, and phase change capsules (PCCs), as well as their preparation methods. The research methodology involves an in-depth analysis of these PCMs and their applications in active and passive PCHS systems within facility agriculture and related buildings. The major conclusion of this study highlights the critical role of PCMs in advancing energy-saving technologies in facility agriculture. By enhancing PCM performance, optimizing latent heat storage systems, and integrating intelligent environmental control, this work provides essential guidelines for designing more efficient and sustainable agricultural structures. The article will serve as the fundamental guideline to design more robust structures for facility agriculture and related buildings.https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/14/9/2999facility agriculturephase change materialslatent heat storagebuildings
spellingShingle Yijing Cui
Raza Gulfam
Yousaf Ishrat
Saqib Iqbal
Feng Yao
Recent Progress of Phase Change Materials and Their Applications in Facility Agriculture and Related-Buildings—A Review
Buildings
facility agriculture
phase change materials
latent heat storage
buildings
title Recent Progress of Phase Change Materials and Their Applications in Facility Agriculture and Related-Buildings—A Review
title_full Recent Progress of Phase Change Materials and Their Applications in Facility Agriculture and Related-Buildings—A Review
title_fullStr Recent Progress of Phase Change Materials and Their Applications in Facility Agriculture and Related-Buildings—A Review
title_full_unstemmed Recent Progress of Phase Change Materials and Their Applications in Facility Agriculture and Related-Buildings—A Review
title_short Recent Progress of Phase Change Materials and Their Applications in Facility Agriculture and Related-Buildings—A Review
title_sort recent progress of phase change materials and their applications in facility agriculture and related buildings a review
topic facility agriculture
phase change materials
latent heat storage
buildings
url https://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/14/9/2999
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AT razagulfam recentprogressofphasechangematerialsandtheirapplicationsinfacilityagricultureandrelatedbuildingsareview
AT yousafishrat recentprogressofphasechangematerialsandtheirapplicationsinfacilityagricultureandrelatedbuildingsareview
AT saqibiqbal recentprogressofphasechangematerialsandtheirapplicationsinfacilityagricultureandrelatedbuildingsareview
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