Ice slurry based thermal storage in multifunctional buildings

Ice slurry based thermal storage plays an important role in reshaping patte rns of electricity use for space cooling and heating. It offers inherent ad vantages in energy efficiency, operating savings, load follow-up and flexib le installation over conventional thermal storage technologies. This paper provides discussions on the generation mechanism and performance of ice slu rry, as well as the operation principle of the ice slurry based thermal sto rage system. Details of the system design, control strategy and operation p erformance are given through a case study on a recent installation in Herbi s Osaka, the largest simple building complex in Japan. An evaluation of dif ferent installations with ice slurry thermal storage reveals that it is a r ewarding technology that provides significant operating savings for the bui lding air-conditioning and improves energy utilization efficiency in modern society.