Review of the Two-Step H₂O/CO₂-Splitting Solar Thermochemical Cycle Based on Zn/ZnO Redox Reactions

This article provides a comprehensive overview of the work to date on the two‑step solar H₂O and/or CO₂ splitting thermochemical cycles with Zn/ZnO redox reactions to produce H₂ and/or CO, i.e., synthesis gas-the precursor to renewable liquid hydrocarbon fuels. The two-step cycle encompasses: (1) Th...

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Published inMaterials Vol. 3; no. 11; pp. 4922 - 4938
Main Authors Loutzenhiser, Peter G, Meier, Anton, Steinfeld, Aldo
Format Journal Article Book Review
LanguageEnglish
Published Switzerland MDPI AG 12.11.2010
MDPI
Subjects
concentrated
energy
hydrogen
reactor
Review
solar
syngas
thermochemical cycle
concentrated
reactor
syngas
solar
hydrogen
energy
thermochemical cycle
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Summary:This article provides a comprehensive overview of the work to date on the two‑step solar H₂O and/or CO₂ splitting thermochemical cycles with Zn/ZnO redox reactions to produce H₂ and/or CO, i.e., synthesis gas-the precursor to renewable liquid hydrocarbon fuels. The two-step cycle encompasses: (1) The endothermic dissociation of ZnO to Zn and O₂ using concentrated solar energy as the source for high-temperature process heat; and (2) the non-solar exothermic oxidation of Zn with H₂O/CO to generate H₂/CO, respectively; the resulting ZnO is then recycled to the first step. An outline of the underlying science and the technological advances in solar reactor engineering is provided along with life cycle and economic analyses.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-2
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
ObjectType-Feature-3
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ObjectType-Review-1
ISSN:1996-1944
1996-1944
DOI:10.3390/ma3114922