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HYDROSOL-2 – Solar Hydrogen via Water
Splitting in Advanced Monolithic Reactors for Future Solar Power Plants |
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Participants:
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Founding:
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Contacts:
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Duration:
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Background
A promising new
method for solar-heated two-step water-splitting thermochemical processes
operating at temperatures below 1500 K is being developed. It includes a
support structure capable of achieving high temperatures when heated by
concentrated solar radiation, combined with a redox system capable of water
dissociation and at the same time suitable for regeneration at high
temperatures. The feasibility of this technology has been previously
demonstrated within the project HYDROSOL. A pilot-scale solar reactor was
designed, built and operated at the DLR solar furnace facility in Cologne (Germany),
continuously producing “solar hydrogen”.
Objectives
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Develop and
test an optimized pilot plant (100 kWth) based on the novel reactor concept
at the Plataforma Solar de Almería (PSA, Spain)
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further scale
up this technology and demonstrate its effective coupling with solar
platform concentrating systems
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provide
stable metal oxide/ceramic support assemblies ca-pable of performing at
least 50 water-splitting cycles in a row
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decrease the
temperature level of the regeneration step considerably below 1500 K
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optimize the
efficiency of water-splitting and oxygen-releasing steps
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develop the
solar field control strategy.
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Achievements
in 2006
The results of the
project can be summarized as follows:
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New iron oxide based
material families have been syn-thesized in large quantities, with and
without incorpora-tion of platinum group metals (PGM).
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Multi-layer, multi-functional
coatings have been prepared on both small and large scale porous ceramic
honeycomb supports, meeting the operational demands of solar reactors.
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A solar experimental
campaign at DLR has proven the long-term stability of metal oxide/ceramic
support assemblies during cyclic testing. With one sample, more than 50
cycles encompassing hydrogen generation and metal oxide reduction were
performed in a row. A segment shutter was specially developed for
controlling the incoming concentrated solar radiation according to the
required temperature of the reaction steps in each of the two reactor
module (Figure 4.12). A further expe-rimental campaign is planned for
early 2007.
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A concept for the
solar concentrating system providing alternating solar flux has been set
up and refined with respect to the SSPS central receiver system at PSA.
Strategies for the pilot plant operation and flow diagrams for the
control procedure have been prepared.
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Modeling tools were
developed and first simulations were successfully performed.
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The design of the
pilot reactor was iteratively optimized and is ready for construction.
It is planned to install the receiver-reactor at the SSPS tower of PSA
by the end of 2007.
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Receiver-reactor
for continuous hydrogen production. The temperature for both reactor modules
is individually controlled by a segment shutter implemented at DLR’s Solar
Furnace. |
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Publication:
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[4.32] Roeb M.,
Monnerie N., Schmitz M., Rietbrock P., Sattler C., Konstandopoulos A.G.,
Agrafiotis C., Zaspalis V.T., Nalbandian L., Steele A., Stobbe P. (2006)
Thermo-chemical production of hydrogen from water by metal oxides fixed
on ceramic substrates, Proc. 16th World Hy-drogen Energy Conference (WHEC),
June 13-16, Lyon, France.
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