Objective: The paper presents a new concept of building integrated thermal energy storage unit and novel mathematical and numerical models of its operation. This building element is made of gypsum based composite with microencapsulated PCM. The proposed heat storage unit has a form of a ceiling panel with internal channels and is, by assumption, incorporated in a ventilation system. Its task is to reduce daily variations of ambient air temperature through the absorption (and subsequent release) of heat in PCM, without additional consumption of energy. Methods: The operation of the ceiling panel was investigated experimentally on a special set-up equipped with temperature sensors, air flow meter and air temperature control system. Mathematical and numerical models of heat transfer and fluid flow in the panel account for air flow in the panel as well as real thermal properties of the PCM composite, i.e.: thermal conductivity variation with temperature and hysteresis of enthalpy vs. temperature curves for heating and cooling. Proposed novel numerical simulator consists of two strongly coupled sub models: the first one - 1D - which deals with air flowing through the U-shaped channel and the second one - 3D - which deals with heat transfer in the body of the. panel. Results: Spatial and temporal air temperature variations, measured on the experimental set-up, were used to validate numerical model as well as to get knowledge of thermal performance of the panel operating in different conditions. Conclusion: Preliminary results of experimental tests confirmed the ability of the proposed heat storage unit to effectively control the air temperature inside the building. However, detailed measurement of the temperature of PCM composite have shown some disadvantages of the panel used in the study, e.g. thickness of the walls and distribution of PCM should be optimized. This can be achieved with the aid of the numerical simulator developed in this research. Practical implications: The proposed ceiling panel, optimised from the point of view of thermal performance in a given environmental conditions, can be used as a part of ventilation systems in residential and office buildings. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.