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Phase-change materials (PCMs) integrated into multi-pane windows can reduce building energy consumption and improve thermal comfort by increasing energy storage capacity. In this study, three window configurations with PCMs (TGP-1, TGP-2, and TGP-3) were thermally evaluated and compared with a conventional triple-pane (TG) window. The evaluation was performed for each season’s warmest and coldest days, which were selected based on the ambient temperature. A numerical code was developed in C + + based on the finite volume method to model the transient heat transfer in windows. For the modeling, we used meteorological variables (solar radiation, ambient temperature, and wind velocity) of Mérida, Yucatán, for the boundary conditions. We found that the TGP-3 reduced heat fluxes through it by up to 37.4 % regarding TG on the warmest day of spring. Furthermore, the annual electricity consumption cost and CO 2 emissions obtained by the TGP-3 (27.9 USD/m 2 and 281.2 kgCO 2 e/m 2 ) were 7.1 % lower than those of TG. Furthermore, the TGP-3 exhibited satisfactory dynamic thermal performance in the spring and summer; therefore, it is recommended to be used in these seasons. And for autumn and winter seasons, it is proposed to combine this configuration with technologies that reduce direct solar radiation. • Unsteady heat transfer in a triple glazing window (TG) with PCM, TGP-3, was modeled. • TGP-3 decreases the surface temperature up to 2.5 °C compared to TG on the spring day. • TGP-3 reduces the indoor heat flux on the spring day by 37.4 % compared to the TG. • TGP-3 reduces the CO 2 emission up to 7.1 % compared to one without PCM. • TGP-3 presents high values of time lag on both spring and summer seasons.
Rodriguez-Ake et al. (Sat,) studied this question.