Enhancing Hygrothermal Performance in Multi-Zone Constructions through Phase Change Material Integration

\ua9 2024, Tech Science Press. All rights reserved.As buildings evolve to meet the challenges of energy efficiency and indoor comfort, phase change materials (PCM) emerge as a promising solution due to their ability to store and release latent heat. This paper explores the transformative impact of incorporating PCM on the hygrothermal dynamics of multi-zone constructions. The study focuses on analyzing heat transfer, particularly through thermal conduction, in a wall containing PCM. A novel approach was proposed, wherein the studied system (sensitive balance) interacts directly with a latent balance to realistically define the behavior of specific humidity and mass flow rates. In addition, a numerical model implemented in MATLAB software has been developed to investigate the effect of integrating PCM on the hygrothermal balances inside the building. The obtained results indicate a consistent response in internal temperatures, specific humidity, and mass flow rates, with temperature differences ranging from 5\ub0C to 13\ub0C and a maximum phase shift of 13 h. In addition, the findings provided valuable insights into optimizing the design and performance of multi-zone constructions, offering a sustainable pathway for enhancing building resilience and occupant well-being

Enhancing Energy Efficiency in Vapor Compression Refrigeration Systems Using Phase Change Materials

\ua9 2025 The Authors. Refrigeration systems are essential across various sectors, including food preservation, medical storage, and climate control. However, their high energy consumption and environmental impact necessitate innovative solutions to enhance efficiency while minimizing energy usage. This paper investigates the integration of Phase Change Materials (PCMs) into a vapor compression refrigeration system to enhance energy efficiency and temperature regulation for food preservation. A multifunctional prototype was tested under two configurations: (1) a standard thermally insulated room, and (2) the same room augmented with eutectic plates filled with either Glaceol (−10○ C melting point) or distilled water (0○ C melting point). Thermocouples were calibrated and deployed to record air and PCM temperatures during freeze–thaw cycles at thermostat setpoints of −30○ C and −35○ C. Additionally, a defrosting resistor and timer were added to mitigate frost buildup, a known cause of efficiency loss. The experimental results show that PCM-enhanced rooms achieved up to 10.98○ C greater temperature stability during defrost cycles and reduced energy consumption by as much as 7.76% (from 0.4584 to 0.4231 kWh/h). Moreover, the effectiveness of PCMs depended strongly on thermostat settings and PCM type, with distilled water demonstrating broader solidification across plates under higher ambient loads. These findings highlight the potential of PCM integration to improve cold-chain performance, offering rapid cooling, moisture retention, and extended product conservation during power interruptions

Pure seminoma: A review and update

Pure seminoma is a rare pathology of the young adult, often discovered in the early stages. Its prognosis is generally excellent and many therapeutic options are available, especially in stage I tumors. High cure rates can be achieved in several ways: standard treatment with radiotherapy is challenged by surveillance and chemotherapy. Toxicity issues and the patients' preferences should be considered when management decisions are made. This paper describes firstly the management of primary seminoma and its nodal involvement and, secondly, the various therapeutic options according to stage

A Junctionless-Multigate Design to Improve the Electrical Performances for Deep Submicron ISFET-Based Sensors

International audienceIn this work, a new multigate pH-ISFET sensor design, called the Junctionless Gate All Around (GAA) ISFET sensor (JGAAISFET), and its numerical analysis have been proposed, investigated and expected to improve the fabrication process and the sensitivity behavior for pH-ISFET sensor-based applications. The numerical analysis has been used to predict and to compare the performances of the proposed design and conventional pH-ISFET, where the comparison of device architectures shows that the proposed pH-JISFET sensor exhibits a superior performance with respect to the conventional pH-ISFET in term of fabrication process and electrical performances. The numerical model provides a basic framework to account for the electronic and chemical performances in future multigate pH-ISFET designs, being easily adaptable to gate structures as the double-gate (DG) or tri-gate (TG). Moreover, the proposed design has linear pH sensitivities of approximately 59.6 mV/pH for wide concentration range (from pH = 2 to pH = 12). The obtained results make the Junctionless ISFET sensor a promising candidate for future integrated CMOS-based sensors