Phase Change Materials Technologies Review and Future Application in Lebanon: Part 1

Energy is the most precious resource in our daily life. Global energy consumption is increasing in constant rate, hence the environmental degradation caused by polluting fossil fuel usage as energy resources should be limited. These resources increase the quantity of greenhouse gases emissions, the global warming, and the climate change. The building sector and related activities is responsible of a large part of energy consumption. Therefore, to reduce the energy usage and to increase the dependency of the building, renewable energies are utilized such as solar energy. Noting that this energy is intermittent, a thermal energy storage system must be installed. Thus, phase change materials (PCM) with different ways of building integration are used as a solution. In this paper, a representation of different types of PCM and thermal energy storage applications in the building environment is highlighted.