Solar thermal energy storage technology has made solar energy a potentially viable supplement for fossil fuels in much of the developing world. However one of the challenges in adopting the technology is the low efficiency of the storage media. Many thermal energy storage materials have difficulties and limitations such as handling, containment, storage and cost. Sand which is abundant, cheap, easy to handle and contain, can be used to alleviate the difficulties. Research carried out on sand as thermal energy storage material has been concentrated on the amount that can be stored. Literature on factors that influence the rate of charging sand thermal energy storage media could not be accessed. There is no existing information on the rate of charging various types of sand

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