Microencapsulated phase change materials (MPCM) are well known in advanced technologies for the utilization in active and passive systems, which have the capacity to absorb and slowly release the latent heat involved in a phase change process. Microcapsules consist of little containers, which...

Nowadays, industrial processes use large quantities of fuel and electricity that produce heat, but much of which is wasted either to the atmosphere or to water. Many types of equipment have been developed to re-use some of this waste heat. Waste heat usefulness is determined by its temperature...

Sustainability of building construction systems depends on their material and energy consumption, and the consequent environmental impact. Thus, the evaluation of their sustainability requires a wide analysis that includes these three topics. Material Flow Analysis (MFA) and Life Cycle...

The use of night cooling ventilation in addition of phase change materials (PCMs) is a very powerful strategy for reducing the cooling demand of buildings. Nevertheless, there are inherent drawbacks in the way things have been doing so far: (a) The limited area of contact between PCM and the...

Today, green roofs are a building system which provides interesting benefits over traditional roof solutions. The most important advantages are the reduction of surface runoff in cities, improvement of the urban climate, biodiversity support, improvement of the durability of roofing materials,...

Thermal properties of materials used in building envelopes must be analysed in order to evaluate the thermal response of the constructive system. This thermal characterisation is a key point during the design phase of a building. However, thermal characterisation of constructive systems at...

Currently, there is an increasing interest in concentrated solar power (CSP) plants as alternative to produce renewable electricity at large scale by using mirrors to concentrate the solar energy and to convert it into high temperature heat. These facilities can be combined with thermal energy...

At this moment, the global energy consumption in buildings is around 40% of the total energy consumption in developed countries. Thermal energy storage (TES) is presented as one way to address this energy-related problem proposing an alternative to reduce the gap between energy supply and energy...

Solar energy can be efficiently used if thermal energy storage systems are accordingly designed to match availability and demand. Thermal energy storage by thermochemical materials (TCM) is very attractive since these materials present a high storage density. Therefore, compact systems can be...

Lithium, mainly used in electrical energy storage, has also been studied in thermal energy storage. It is recognized as a “critical material” and is produced from minerals and from brines. Chile is one of the biggest producers, here from brine and with lower costs than in other countries....