Exploitation of Thermochemical Energy in HVAC Systems: The ECHO Prototype

Considering the current energy policies aimed at the decarbonisation of industrial and residential sectors, the recourse to energy generation systems based on renewable sources has become essential. As is already well known in the current state of the art,renewable energy systems are intermittent and non-dispatchable. Consequently, energy storage systems are the key to bridging the technological gap associated with the discontinuity of energy supply from renewable sources.Focusing specifically on thermal energy storage, thermochemical materials (TCMs) have garnered significant attention within the scientific community due to their high energy density and performance. The present study investigates the application of TCMs for thermal energy storage as a means of supporting conventional heat generation systems. This research is part of the European Horizon Europe project ECHO (Efficient Compact Modular Thermal Energy Storage System), which aims to develop an innovative thermalenergy storage system for heating, cooling, and domestic hot water production. The ECHO project specifically targets the integration of TCMs within a closed loop HVAC system, with the objective of maximising the energy storage potential during the thermodynamic charging and discharging cycles of the material. The research aims to evaluate both the energy performance and the practical applicability of the TCM based prototype in industrial and residential contexts. Therefore, a real-scale prototype has been developed at the TekneHub laboratory of the University of Ferrara. This prototype will serve as a platform for future experimental testing. The poster presented at the ICEC 2025 conference shows the experimental prototype developed at the Italian university facility and its potential operation as a dryer and humidifier for the thermal exploitation of the TCM in a closed thermodynamic cycle.