Solar Production of Zinc from the Zinc Silicate Ore Willemite

2000 ◽  
Vol 123 (2) ◽  
pp. 98-101 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anke Weidenkaff ◽  
Armin Reller ◽  
Aldo Steinfeld
Keyword(s):  
Solar Energy ◽  
Solar Furnace ◽  
Zinc Silicate ◽  
High Flux ◽  
Concentrated Solar Energy ◽  
Thermal Extraction

The thermal extraction of zinc from its ore willemite, Zn2SiO4, is investigated using concentrated solar energy. Experiments conducted at above 1750 K in a high-flux solar furnace yielded the products Zn(g), O2, and SiO2l.

Surface Hardening of Steel Using Highly Concentrated Solar Energy Process

1999 ◽  
Vol 121 (1) ◽  
pp. 36-39 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Ferriere ◽  
C. Faillat ◽  
S. Galasso ◽  
L. Barrallier ◽  
J-E. Masse
Keyword(s):  
Solar Energy ◽  
Surface Hardening ◽  
Solar Furnace ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Single Spot ◽  
Energy Process ◽  
Concentrated Solar Energy ◽  
Compressive Stresses ◽  
Hardening Process ◽  
Continuous Scanning

A recent French contribution in the field of surface hardening of steel using concentrated solar energy is presented. Single spot and continuous scanning processes have been investigated in a small-scale solar furnace. Hardened regions of 0.5–1.5 mm in thickness have been obtained on specimens of carbon steel, resulting from the transformation hardening process. Compressive stresses are induced in the thermally affected layer, without tensile peak in the bulk.

scholarly journals Heat Treatment of Steel 1.1730 with Concentrated Solar Energy

2019 ◽  
Vol 56 (1) ◽  
pp. 261-270
Author(s):  
Maria Stoicanescu ◽  
Aurel Crisan ◽  
Ioan Milosan ◽  
Mihai Alin Pop ◽  
Jose Rodriguez Garcia ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Heat Treatment ◽  
Solar Radiation ◽  
Solar Energy ◽  
Vertical Axis ◽  
Solar Furnace ◽  
Solid Base ◽  
Heating And Cooling ◽  
Concentrated Solar Energy ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
The Impact

This paper presents and discusses research conducted with the purpose of developing the use of solar energy in the heat treatment of steels. For this, a vertical axis solar furnace called at Plataforma Solar de Almeria was adapted such as to allow control of the heating and cooling processes of samples made from 1.1730 steel. Thus temperature variation in pre-set points of the heated samples could be monitored in correlation with the working parameters: the level of solar radiation and implicitly the energy used the conditions of sample exposed to solar radiation, and the various protections and cooling mediums.The recorded data allowed establishing the types of treatments applied for certain working conditions. The distribution of hardness, as the representative feature resulting from heat treatment, was analysed on all sides of the treated samples. In correlation with the time-temperature-transformation diagram of 1.1730 steel, the measured values confirmed the possibility of using solar energy in all types of heat treatment applied to this steel. In parallel the efficiency of using solar energy was analysed in comparison to the energy obtained by burning methane gas for the heat treatment for the same set of samples. The analysis considered energy consumption, productivity and the impact on the environment. Thanks to various data obtained through developed experiences, which cover a wide range of thermic treatments applied steels 1.1730 model, we can certainly state that this can be a solid base in using solar energy in applications of thermic treatment at a high industrial level.

Rapid High Temperature Solar Thermal Biomass Gasification in a Prototype Cavity Reactor

2010 ◽  
Vol 132 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Lichty ◽  
Christopher Perkins ◽  
Bryan Woodruff ◽  
Carl Bingham ◽  
Alan Weimer
Keyword(s):  
High Temperature ◽  
Solar Energy ◽  
Gas Flow ◽  
Biomass Conversion ◽  
Biomass Gasification ◽  
Solar Furnace ◽  
Concentrated Solar Energy ◽  
Product Stream ◽  
Tar Reduction ◽  
Composition Ratios

High temperature biomass gasification has been performed in a prototype concentrated solar reactor. Gasification of biomass at high temperatures has many advantages compared with historical methods of producing fuels. Enhancements in overall conversion, product composition ratios, and tar reduction are achievable at temperatures greater than 1000°C. Furthermore, the utilization of concentrated solar energy to drive these reactions eliminates the need to consume a portion of the product stream for heating and some of the solar energy is stored as chemical energy in the product stream. Experiments to determine the effects of temperature, gas flow rate, and feed type were conducted at the high flux solar furnace at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO. These experiments were conducted in a reflective cavity multitube prototype reactor. Biomass type was found to be the only significant factor within a 95% confidence interval. Biomass conversion as high as 68% was achieved on sun. Construction and design considerations of the prototype reactor are discussed as well as initial performance results.

A Free and Open Source Monte Carlo Ray Tracing Program for Concentrating Solar Energy Research

2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jo¨rg Petrasch
Keyword(s):  
Monte Carlo ◽  
Solar Energy ◽  
Open Source ◽  
Ray Tracing ◽  
Modular Design ◽  
Numerical Models ◽  
Solar Furnace ◽  
High Flux ◽  
Energy Research ◽  
Solar Simulator

A free and open source Monte Carlo ray-tracing program for concentrating solar energy research and development is presented. The program uses non energy partitioning Monte Carlo methods to model radiative exchange between arbitrarily arranged surfaces. Surface models include concentrating geometries, such as spherical, parabolic, and elliptical concentrators as well as compound parabolic concentrators. The program’s modular design allows implementation of additional surface and source models. The program has been thoroughly tested and experimentally validated. It has been used to model several concentrating devices including PSI’s high flux solar furnace and ETH’s high flux solar simulator. Furthermore, it has been used to design PSI’s high flux solar simulator and UFL’s high flux solar simulator. The code is particularly suited to provide radiative boundary conditions for numerical models of high temperature solar receivers and solar thermochemical reactors.

Comparison of Two Sun Tracking Methods in the Application of a Heliostat Field

2004 ◽  
Vol 126 (1) ◽  
pp. 638-644 ◽  
Author(s):  
Y. T. Chen ◽  
A. Kribus ◽  
B. H. Lim ◽  
C. S. Lim ◽  
K. K. Chong ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Solar Energy ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Time Of Day ◽  
Solar Furnace ◽  
Aberration Correction ◽  
Dynamic Adjustment ◽  
Tracking Method ◽  
Concentrated Solar Energy ◽  
Full Correction ◽  
Spherical Curvature

The basic mathematics and structure of heliostat have remained unchanged for many decades. Following the challenge first made by Ries et al., the non-imaging focusing heliostat recently proposed by Chen et al. provides an alternative in the field of concentrated solar energy. This paper investigates the performance of a heliostat field composed of the newly proposed heliostats. In contrast to the dynamic curvature adjustment proposed in our previous work for a solar furnace, a fixed asymmetric curvature is used here with the spinning-elevation tracking method. This restriction is intended to equalize the manufacture cost of the new heliostat with that of traditional heliostats with azimuth-elevation tracking and spherical curvature. Fixing the curvature results in only partial aberration correction, compared to full correction using the dynamic adjustment of curvature. Nevertheless, the case studies presented in this paper show that the new heliostat design can reduce the receiver spillage loss by 10–30%, and provide a much more uniform performance without large variations with time of day.

Rapid High Temperature Solar Thermal Biomass Gasification in a Prototype Cavity Reactor

2009 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Lichty ◽  
Christopher Perkins ◽  
Bryan Woodruff ◽  
Carl Bingham ◽  
Alan Weimer
Keyword(s):  
High Temperature ◽  
Solar Energy ◽  
Gas Flow ◽  
Biomass Conversion ◽  
Biomass Gasification ◽  
Solar Furnace ◽  
Concentrated Solar Energy ◽  
Product Stream ◽  
Tar Reduction ◽  
Composition Ratios

High temperature biomass gasification has been performed in a prototype concentrated solar reactor. Gasification of biomass at high temperatures has many advantages compared to historical methods of producing fuels. Enhancements in overall conversion, product composition ratios, and tar reduction are achievable at temperatures greater than 1000°C. Furthermore, the utilization of concentrated solar energy to drive these reactions eliminates the need to consume a portion of the product stream for heating and some of the solar energy is stored as chemical energy in the product stream. Experiments to determine the effects of temperature, gas flow rate, and feed type were conducted at the High Flux Solar Furnace (HFSF) at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). These experiments were conducted in a reflective cavity multi-tube prototype reactor. Biomass type was found to be the only significant factor within a 95% confidence interval. Biomass conversion as high as 68% was achieved on sun. Construction and design considerations of the prototype reactor are discussed as well as initial performance results.

scholarly journals Waste and Solar Energy: An Eco-Friendly Way for Glass Melting

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 16
Author(s):  
Isabel Padilla ◽  
Maximina Romero ◽  
José I. Robla ◽  
Aurora López-Delgado
Keyword(s):  
Solar Energy ◽  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Raw Materials ◽  
Glass Melting ◽  
Glass Network ◽  
X Ray Diffraction ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Concentrated Solar Energy ◽  
Calcium Source ◽  
The Aluminum Industry

In this work, concentrated solar energy (CSE) was applied to an energy-intensive process such as the vitrification of waste with the aim of manufacturing glasses. Different types of waste were used as raw materials: a hazardous waste from the aluminum industry as aluminum source; two residues from the food industry (eggshell and mussel shell) and dolomite ore as calcium source; quartz sand was also employed as glass network former. The use of CSE allowed obtaining glasses in the SiO2-Al2O3-CaO system at exposure time as short as 15 min. The raw materials, their mixtures, and the resulting glasses were characterized by means of X-ray fluorescence, X-ray diffraction, and differential thermal analysis. The feasibility of combining a renewable energy, as solar energy and different waste for the manufacture of glasses, would highly contribute to circular economy and environmental sustainability.

Behavior of a Heat-Protective Material Based on Al2O3 and SiO2 Fibers under Exposure to Concentrated Solar Energy Flux

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Kh. Suleimanov ◽  
V. G. Babashov ◽  
M. U. Dzhanklich ◽  
V. G. Dyskin ◽  
M. I. Daskovskii ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Solar Energy ◽  
Energy Flux ◽  
Protective Material ◽  
Concentrated Solar Energy ◽  
Solar Energy Flux

scholarly journals Solid-State Redox Kinetics of CeO2 in Two-Step Solar CH4 Partial Oxidation and Thermochemical CO2 Conversion

Catalysts ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 723
Author(s):  
Mahesh Muraleedharan Nair ◽  
Stéphane Abanades
Keyword(s):  
Solid State ◽  
Solar Energy ◽  
Kinetic Models ◽  
Oxygen Carrier ◽  
Co2 Conversion ◽  
Oxidation Reactions ◽  
Redox Kinetics ◽  
Concentrated Solar Energy ◽  
Ceria Reduction ◽  
Kinetics Of

The CeO2/CeO2−δ redox system occupies a unique position as an oxygen carrier in chemical looping processes for producing solar fuels, using concentrated solar energy. The two-step thermochemical ceria-based cycle for the production of synthesis gas from methane and solar energy, followed by CO2 splitting, was considered in this work. This topic concerns one of the emerging and most promising processes for the recycling and valorization of anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. The development of redox-active catalysts with enhanced efficiency for solar thermochemical fuel production and CO2 conversion is a highly demanding and challenging topic. The determination of redox reaction kinetics is crucial for process design and optimization. In this study, the solid-state redox kinetics of CeO2 in the two-step process with CH4 as the reducing agent and CO2 as the oxidizing agent was investigated in an original prototype solar thermogravimetric reactor equipped with a parabolic dish solar concentrator. In particular, the ceria reduction and re-oxidation reactions were carried out under isothermal conditions. Several solid-state kinetic models based on reaction order, nucleation, shrinking core, and diffusion were utilized for deducing the reaction mechanisms. It was observed that both ceria reduction with CH4 and re-oxidation with CO2 were best represented by a 2D nucleation and nuclei growth model under the applied conditions. The kinetic models exhibiting the best agreement with the experimental reaction data were used to estimate the kinetic parameters. The values of apparent activation energies (~80 kJ·mol−1 for reduction and ~10 kJ·mol−1 for re-oxidation) and pre-exponential factors (~2–9 s−1 for reduction and ~123–253 s−1 for re-oxidation) were obtained from the Arrhenius plots.

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