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Being one of the major energy consumers, cooking is a necessary part of daily life. Non renewable cooking fuel sources, such as wood or cow dung cause hazardous pollution and a poor ecosystem worldwide. Over the past few decades, solar-powered cooking has undergone numerous improvements. Solar cooking has been predominantly used as a substitute for reducing oil and gas dependence, increasing environmental sustainability, and reducing global warming threats. This paper talks about the recent development of the box-type solar cooker. The paper discusses the principles and classifications of various parameters that affect the performance, energy, and exergy related to the solar cooking system. In line with the sustainable development goals of the UN agenda 2030 and especially the heed to the accomplishment of SDG 7 and SDG 13, various economic factors, such as the payback period (PP), net present value (NPV), benefit–cost (B–C) ratios, internal rate of return (IRR), levelized cost of heat (LCOH), and levelized cost of cooking a meal (LCCM) have been discussed. The environmental analysis has also been presented to show the overall benefit of solar cooking. The review also focuses on the current development of a box-type solar cooker, its components, and its heat transfer characteristic. Various geometrical modifications, the use of reflectors, and transparent insulating materials that improve cooking have been discussed. The concept of energy storage in the form of Phase change material (Latent heat storage) with the latest studied designs improvements of solar cookers has been obtained to be efficient, which also help in late-evening cooking. It can be said that with better policy implications, the social and economic acceptability of the solar cooker can be achieved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current paper summarizes the development of nano‐enhanced phase change materials (NPCMs) using capric acid (CA) and manganese dioxide (α‐MnO2) nanoparticles. The nanoparticles were obtained by the green synthesis technique using the leaves of Ficus retusa plant. The obtained nanoparticles were used in 1%, 2%, and 3% weight fractions in the nano‐formulations. The field‐emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) was employed to confirm the morphological structure and energy‐dispersive X‐ray (EDX) spectroscopy was used for the elemental analysis of the synthesized nanoparticles. The crystallographic studies were done using X‐ray diffraction (XRD) spectroscopy. The Fourier‐transform infrared (FT‐IR) spectroscopy results showed that the insertion of nanoparticles did not disturb the chemical configuration of CA. The differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) analysis revealed that the developed nanocomposites had excellent thermal energy storage capability that lay within the range of 145–164 kJ/kg. Five hundred extended thermal cycles were carried out which showed that the developed PCM had excellent thermal reliability and can be useful for a year‐long application. The variations reported with 1% nano‐formulation was −1.43% to +0.53%, −0.03% to +1.52%, and −6.67% to 9.94% with respect to onset, peak melting temperature, and latent heat of fusion. The thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA) results showed that developed PCMs were stable within the working temperature range. The melting/solidification curve showed faster heat storage and release rates owing to the increased thermal conductivity. These developed PCMs are useful for photovoltaic/thermal and building applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: In the existent paper, the performance of thermal storage hybrid buildings exploiting the latent heat of phase change materials (PCMs) for thermal refrigeration and heating of the contemporary period has been investigated. The conventional buildings consume a large amount of electricity, primarily for the heating and cooling applications. Electricity generation primarily relies on coal‐based thermal power plants. The emissions from these establishments pose a serious threat to the environment. Moreover, conventional heating/cooling units rely on exorbitant energy cost. The usage of any kind of thermal storage system is an efficacious way of stockpiling thermal energy and utilizing it when needed. This paper gives a comprehensive overview of the available thermal storage units incorporating PCMs. The various segments of the buildings, viz, ceiling, window, wall, and floor have been analyzed in details. The results are quite promising in terms of load reduction and overall energy saving. Indoor surface temperature reduction of up to 7oC has been achieved. The energy saving of up to 40% can be realized by employing PCM. A comprehensive list of the PCMs is also tried to build up for end users according to their temperature requirement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phase change materials have been overwhelmingly used for thermal energy storage applications. Among organics, fatty acids are an important constituent of latent heat storage. Most of the saturated fatty acid PCMs so far studied are either unary or binary constituents of pure fatty acids. In the present study, ternary blends of saturated fatty acids i.e., capric, lauric, myristic, stearic, and palmitic acids have been developed with different weight proportions. A series of 28 ternary blends viz. CA-LA-MA, CA-LA-PA, CA-LA-SA, CA-MA-PA, CA-MA-SA, and CA-PA-SA were prepared and analyzed with differential scanning calorimetry, thermal gravimetric analysis, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. DSC analysis revealed that the prepared materials lie in the 15–30 °C temperature range. Also, 300 thermal melt/freeze cycles were conducted which showed ±10% variation in terms of the melting peak for most of the PCMs, with the average latent heat of fusion between 130 and 170 kJ/kg. The TGA analysis showed that most of the PCMs are thermally stable up to 100 °C and useful for medium-low storage applications, and FTIR analysis showed that the materials are chemically stable after repeated thermal cycles. Based on cycle test performances, the developed materials were found to be reliable for long-term use in building and photovoltaic applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cooking is known to be one of the most energy-intensive sectors, with an estimated energy consumption of about 30–40% of global energy consumption, with a significant share in developing and underdeveloped countries. Traditional cooking, mainly based on biomass and fossil fuels, is one of the main sources of particulate matter (PM) emissions in household buildings, which is an important risk factor for lung cancer. Due to the negative impact on the environment and the waste of energy by traditional cooking systems, innovative and environmentally friendly cooking technologies are becoming more and more popular. Solar energy, as a renewable resource, is best suited for integration into cookers. Several researchers have studied solar cooking technologies to improve their performance and support their use worldwide. Among various solar cooking technologies, concentrating solar cookers (CSCs) have recently attracted much attention, especially in large-scale cooking, due to their special characteristics of generating high temperatures and significantly reducing cooking time. This study has focused on CSCs including parabolic through solar cookers (PTSCs), parabolic dish solar cookers (PDSCs), and Fresnel lens solar cookers (FLSCs), and describes their various aspects, including their operating principles, design considerations, thermal operation, and test procedures, while recent progress in the research and evolvement of these cookers are comprehensively discussed, taking into account their economic aspects. The major drawback of CSCs remains their high initial cost, especially when thermal energy storage (TES) is integrated. However, overcoming the limitations and realizing the great advantages of CSCs to replace them with other cooking methods can make their use more successful and improve their possibility to become commercial worldwide. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]