solar reactor

Abstract

The present disclosure provides a solar reactor, comprising: a main body, wherein a reaction chamber is defined within the main body, and the main body is provided with a light-transmitting port suitable for accommodating incident light formed by light rays collected from outside the reaction chamber to enter the reaction chamber, wherein the incident light is dispersed within the reaction chamber to form divergent light that is dispersed within the reaction chamber; and a solid component, disposed within the reaction chamber, and provided with a protrusion protruding toward the middle of the reaction chamber, wherein at least a portion of a light-facing surface of the protrusion facing the divergent light is configured to form an angle other than 90° with the projection direction of the divergent light, so that the divergent light extends along the thickness direction of the solid component; wherein the solid component is made of a material used as an oxygen carrier or catalyst in a chemical reaction using solar energy as a heat source.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] At least one embodiment of the present disclosure relates to the technical field of solar energy utilization, and more particularly, to a solar reactor. Background Art

[0002] Solar energy can be applied in fields such as thermochemical conversion, such as as a heat source for gas-solid or liquid-solid chemical reactions. Solar reactors are widely used in oxidation / reduction reactions or catalytic reactions that use solar energy as a heat source.

[0003] Currently used solar reactors primarily consist of a main body and a solid component disposed within the main body. The main body comprises a shell and a thermally insulating material disposed within the shell, serving as a reaction vessel. The solid component is made of oxygen carriers or catalysts to meet the requirements of different chemical reactions, such as providing a reaction site for thermochemical reactions. The efficient transfer of high-temperature solar energy is a prerequisite for these two types of thermochemical reactions. However, the directional nature of sunlight propagation significantly limits the effective transfer of concentrated solar energy to the reaction sites provided by the solid component.

[0004] Because the materials used in solid components (such as metal oxides) are generally opaque, during the thermochemical reaction, sunlight can only irradiate the inner surface of the layered solid components. Moreover, since solid components also have the characteristic of poor thermal conductivity, the transfer of heat energy within the solid components is further hindered.

[0005] To address the above-mentioned deficiencies, although the prior art can configure the solid component into a porous structure so that the sunlight can be irradiated as far as possible into the interior of the solid component along the depth direction of the solid component, the irradiation intensity of the sunlight will still be exponentially attenuated as the depth increases. Therefore, the total amount of materials that can effectively participate in the thermochemical reaction as a catalyst or oxygen carrier is severely limited, affecting the production rate of the products of the thermochemical reaction and / or the energy conversion efficiency. Furthermore, the sunlight that enters the main body is scattered roughly in a direction perpendicular to the inner surface of the solid component, which can easily lead to local hot spots in the irradiated part of the solid component, resulting in uneven heating of the solid component as a whole, making the high-temperature part of the solid component prone to melting, sublimation and / or cracking.

[0006] Therefore, how to optimize the structure of solid components in solar reactors, solve the limitations of solar thermal energy transfer caused by the directionality of the solar energy focusing-divergence process, enable solar energy to be more effectively transferred to the deep part of the solid component materials, thereby significantly increasing the proportion of materials that effectively participate in thermochemical reactions, and at the same time solve the uneven heating of solid components, has become a technical problem that needs to be solved urgently to improve the conversion effect of solar thermochemical reactors. Summary of the Invention

[0007] In order to solve at least one of the above-mentioned and other technical problems in the prior art, the present disclosure provides a solar reactor. The protrusions formed by the solid components, on the one hand, have a larger surface area that can be exposed to sunlight than the solid components in the prior art that are constructed into a layered structure. The solar energy flow per unit surface area of the solid components is reduced in density due to the change of the incident direction from vertical to inclined, so that the reactor can accept higher-power solar energy input. On the other hand, since the divergent light can extend to the depth direction of the reactor through the adjacent protrusions, the total amount of material of the solid components that can effectively participate in the thermochemical reaction can be increased; on the other hand, since the protrusions form a three-dimensional structure, the heat energy on the surface of the solid components can also be transferred inward in all directions of the protrusions, which not only alleviates the attenuation of solar energy along the depth direction of the solid components, but also balances the local heating, which is conducive to reducing or even eliminating the formation of local hot spots.

[0008] An embodiment of the present disclosure provides a solar reactor, comprising: a main body, wherein a reaction chamber is defined within the main body, and the main body is provided with a light-transmitting port suitable for accommodating the incident light formed by light gathered from the outside of the reaction chamber to enter the reaction chamber, wherein the incident light is dispersed within the reaction chamber to form the divergent light dispersed within the reaction chamber; and a solid component, disposed within the reaction chamber, wherein the solid component is provided with a protrusion protruding toward the middle of the reaction chamber, and at least a portion of a light-facing surface of the protrusion facing the divergent light is constructed to form an angle other than 90° with the projection direction of the divergent light, so that the divergent light extends along the thickness direction of the solid component; wherein the solid component is made of a material used as an oxygen carrier or catalyst in a chemical reaction using solar energy as a heat source.

[0009] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the above-mentioned solid component includes a plurality of solid components, each of which forms at least one of the above-mentioned protrusions; wherein, the plurality of the above-mentioned solid components are constructed to be radially arranged on the inner surface of the above-mentioned main body with the divergence point where the above-mentioned incident light diverges to form the above-mentioned divergent light as the center.

[0010] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the light-facing surface of the solid component forms an inclined surface inclined from an upper portion to a lower portion, and an angle formed by the inclined surface and a projection direction of the divergent light includes an acute angle.

[0011] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the distance between the upper parts of two adjacent solid components is configured to be greater than or equal to the distance between the lower parts, so that a light-transmitting area is formed between the two adjacent solid components, which gradually shrinks from the divergence point to the other side.

[0012] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the divergence point includes a focus where the incident light converges, and the incident light freely diverges through the divergence point to form the divergent light.

[0013] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the solar reactor further includes a diverging component, which is disposed on the optical path of the incident light in the light-transmitting port and is adapted to diverge the incident light radially toward the interior of the reaction chamber to form the divergent light.

[0014] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the solid member is configured into a pyramidal structure.

[0015] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a plurality of the solid members are arranged in rows and / or columns on the inner surface of the main body.

[0016] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a plurality of the solid members are arranged in a ring form on the inner surface of the main body.

[0017] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the solid component is configured as a porous structure.

[0018] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the pore sizes of the porous structure formed by the solid components are configured to be substantially the same.

[0019] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the pore size of the porous structure formed by the solid component is configured to gradually decrease from the outer layer to the inner side of the solid component.

[0020] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the solar reactor further includes: a reactant input mechanism configured to input reactants into the above-mentioned reaction chamber; and a product output mechanism configured to output products generated by the above-mentioned reactants from the above-mentioned reaction chamber; wherein the above-mentioned reactants and products include gas or liquid.

[0021] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the reactant input mechanism is configured to communicate with a side portion of the main body to serve as an input end of the reaction chamber.

[0022] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the product output mechanism is configured to communicate with the bottom of the main body to serve as an output end of the reaction chamber.

[0023] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the main body includes a shell and a heat-insulating layer disposed in the shell, and a reaction chamber is defined in the heat-insulating layer.

[0024] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the reaction chamber has a first mounting surface forming a hemispherical concave surface, and the solid component is arranged on the first mounting surface.

[0025] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the reaction chamber has a second mounting surface extending along a plane, and the solid component is arranged on the second mounting surface.

[0026] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the main body includes a base having an opening and a cover disposed at the opening position of the base, and the light-transmitting opening is provided in the middle of the cover.

[0027] According to the solar reactor provided by the present disclosure, a reaction chamber is defined in the main body, and the light-transmitting port provided on the main body is suitable for introducing the collected incident light into the reaction chamber. The protrusion formed by the solid component, on the one hand, has a larger surface area that can be exposed to sunlight than the solid component in the prior art that is constructed into a layered structure. The solar energy flow per unit surface area of the solid component is reduced in density due to the change of the incident direction from vertical to inclined, so that the reactor can accept higher-power solar energy input. On the other hand, since the divergent light can extend in the depth direction of the reactor through the adjacent protrusions, the total amount of material of the solid component that can effectively participate in the thermochemical reaction can be increased; on the other hand, since the protrusion forms a three-dimensional structure, the heat energy on the surface of the solid component can also be transferred inward in all directions of the protrusion, which not only alleviates the attenuation of solar energy along the depth direction of the solid component, but also balances the local heating, which is conducive to reducing or even eliminating the formation of local hot spots. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0028] Figure 1 is a cross-sectional view of a solar reactor according to an illustrative embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0029] Figure 2 yes Figure 1 A schematic diagram of a portion of a reaction chamber of the illustrated exemplary embodiment;

[0030] Figure 3 yes Figure 1 Schematic diagram of the porosity of porous materials used in the solid components of a solar reactor shown;

[0031] Figure 4 yes Figure 1 A light path diagram of a diverging component of a solar reactor according to an exemplary embodiment is shown;

[0032] Figure 5 yes Figure 1 A solid component of a solar reactor of the illustrated exemplary embodiment is shown, showing a cone-shaped solid component;

[0033] Figure 6 yes Figure 1 Another solid component of the solar reactor of the exemplary embodiment shown is a pyramidal solid component;

[0034] Figure 7 yes Figure 1 Another solid component of the solar reactor of the exemplary embodiment shown is a solid component in the form of a star-shaped cone;

[0035] Figure 8 yes Figure 1 Another solid component of the solar reactor of the exemplary embodiment shown is a solid component in the form of a curved cone;

[0036] Figure 9 yes Figure 1 Another solid component of the solar reactor of the exemplary embodiment shown is another solid component in the form of a curved cone;

[0037] Figure 10 yes Figure 1 Another solid member of the solar reactor of the illustrated exemplary embodiment, showing a solid member in the form of an annular cone; and

[0038] Figure 11 yes Figure 1 Another solid component of the solar reactor of the exemplary embodiment shown is a strip-cone solid component.

[0039] In the drawings, the meanings of the reference numerals are as follows:

[0040] 1. Divergence point;

[0041] 2. Subject;

[0042] 21. Cover;

[0043] 211, light-transmitting port;

[0044] 22. Matrix;

[0045] 3. Solid components;

[0046] 31. Sun-facing side;

[0047] 4. Divergent light;

[0048] 5. Incident light;

[0049] 6. Collection and control agencies;

[0050] 7. Reactant input mechanism;

[0051] 8. Product output mechanism; and

[0052] 9. Light source. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0053] In order to make the objectives, technical solutions and advantages of the present disclosure more clearly understood, the present disclosure is further described in detail below in conjunction with specific embodiments and with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0054] The terms used herein are only for describing specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the present disclosure. The terms "comprise," "include," etc. used herein indicate the presence of the features, steps, operations, and / or components, but do not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, steps, operations, or components.

[0055] All terms used herein, including technical and scientific terms, have the meanings commonly understood by those skilled in the art, unless otherwise defined. It should be noted that the terms used herein should be interpreted as having a meaning consistent with the context of this specification and should not be interpreted in an idealized or overly rigid manner.

[0056] When expressions such as “at least one of A, B, and C, etc.” are used, they should generally be interpreted in accordance with the meaning commonly understood by those skilled in the art. For example, “a system having at least one of A, B, and C” should include but is not limited to systems having A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B, A and C, B and C, and / or A, B, and C, etc. When expressions such as “at least one of A, B, or C, etc.” are used, they should generally be interpreted in accordance with the meaning commonly understood by those skilled in the art. For example, “a system having at least one of A, B, or C” should include but is not limited to systems having A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B, A and C, B and C, and / or A, B, and C, etc.

[0057] Figure 1 is a cross-sectional view of a solar reactor according to an illustrative embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 2 yes Figure 1 A schematic diagram of a reaction chamber portion of an exemplary embodiment is shown.

[0058] According to the solar reactor provided by the present disclosure, Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, it includes a main body 2 and a solid component. A reaction chamber is defined within the main body 2. The main body 2 is provided with a light-transmitting port 211 suitable for receiving incident light 5 formed by light gathered from the outside of the reaction chamber into the reaction chamber. The incident light 5 is dispersed within the reaction chamber, forming divergent light 4 that is dispersed within the reaction chamber. The solid component is disposed within the reaction chamber. The solid component is provided with a protrusion protruding toward the middle of the reaction chamber. At least a portion of the light-facing surface 31 of the protrusion facing the divergent light 4 is configured to form a non-90° angle with the projection direction of the divergent light, so that the divergent light 4 extends along the thickness direction of the solid component. The solid component is made of a material used as an oxygen carrier or catalyst for thermochemical reactions.

[0059] In such an embodiment, a reaction chamber is defined within the main body, and a light-transmitting port provided on the main body is adapted to introduce the collected incident light into the reaction chamber. The protrusion formed by the solid component, on the one hand, has a larger surface area that can be exposed to sunlight than the solid component constructed into a layered structure of the prior art, and the solar energy flux density per unit surface area of the solid component is reduced, so that the reactor can accept higher-power solar energy input. On the other hand, since the divergent light can extend toward the depth direction of the reactor through the adjacent protrusions, the total amount of material of the solid component that can effectively participate in the thermochemical reaction can be increased; on the other hand, since the protrusions form a three-dimensional structure, the heat energy on the surface of the solid component can also be transferred inward along all directions of the protrusions, which not only alleviates the attenuation of solar energy along the depth direction of the solid component, but also balances the local heating, which is conducive to reducing or even eliminating the formation of local hot spots. Furthermore, the solid component forming the protrusions also makes more full use of the internal space of the solar reactor, greatly increases the total loading amount of the oxygen carrier or catalyst, and is conducive to effectively improving the reaction products and energy conversion efficiency.

[0060] Furthermore, based on the structure configured by the solar reactor, it can be approximately regarded as a black body that completely absorbs the incident sunlight and forms black body radiation in the reaction chamber. In the prior art, the solar divergent light is vertically incident on the surface of the layered structure of the solid component, while the black body radiation formed inside the solar reactor has the same irradiation direction on the surface of the solid component as the direct irradiation direction of the divergent light, and the intensity is weaker. Therefore, there is also severe attenuation, and it cannot play the role of continuing to enhance the energy transfer on the basis of the divergent light directly irradiated on the inner surface. Based on the fact that the above-mentioned protrusion forms an angle of non-90° with the projection direction of the divergent light, the intensity of the divergent light is greatly reduced, resulting in the primary irradiation effect of the divergent light on the light-facing surface and the secondary irradiation effect generated by the black body radiation being closer, so that the black body radiation can produce a beneficial supplement to the direct incidence of the divergent light, thereby improving the energy conversion efficiency of solar energy based on the three-dimensional structure formed by the protrusion. It should be understood that the embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited to this.

[0061] For example, the solar reactor can also be used in liquid-solid two-phase chemical reactions using solar energy as a heat source.

[0062] Furthermore, the above-mentioned solar reactor includes but is not limited to being used for thermochemical reactions (such as oxidation / reduction reactions or catalytic reactions), photocatalytic reactions, photoelectrocatalytic reactions or other chemical reactions that are suitable for using solar energy as a heat source and configuring a solid component used as an oxygen carrier or catalyst in the reaction container.

[0063] According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, Figure 1 and Figure 2As shown, the solid component includes a plurality of solid components, each of which forms at least one protrusion. The plurality of solid components 3 are configured to be radially arranged on the inner surface of the body 2 with the divergence point 1 where the incident light 5 diverges to form the divergent light 4 as the center.

[0064] According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, the light-facing surface 31 of the solid component 3 forms an inclined surface inclined from the upper portion to the lower portion, and the angle formed by the inclined surface and the projection direction of the divergent light includes an acute angle.

[0065] According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, the distance between the upper parts of two adjacent solid components 3 is configured to be greater than or equal to the distance between the lower parts, so that a light-transmitting area is formed between the two adjacent solid components 3, which gradually shrinks from the divergence point 1 to the other side.

[0066] In an illustrative embodiment, Figure 1 As shown, the solid member 3 is constructed by the side close to the diverging element (such as Figure 1 The side of the main body 2 shown in the middle thereof gradually increases toward the side away from the diverging element (as shown in the Figure 1 (As shown, it is located on one side of the inner surface of the main body 2). In detail, the solid component 3 includes but is not limited to a structure configured as a cone, a truncated cone, or other three-dimensional structure with a small upper part and a large lower part.

[0067] For example, in an embodiment where the solid component 3 is configured as a conical structure, the angle (ie, α) formed by the light-facing surface and the projection direction of the divergent light is an acute angle.

[0068] For another example, in an embodiment in which the solid component 3 is constructed as a frustum-shaped structure, the top surface and side surfaces of the frustum both form light-facing surfaces, the angle (i.e., α) formed by the top surface and the projection direction of the divergent light is a right angle, and the angle (i.e., α) formed by the side surface and the projection direction of the divergent light is an acute angle.

[0069] In such an embodiment, since the solid component is constructed as Figure 1 As the width of the lower portion of the solid component increases, the area of the light-facing surface can be greatly increased, so that the divergent light 4 can be projected more evenly and widely on the light-facing surface, thereby increasing the effective material participating in the thermochemical reaction.

[0070] Figure 3 yes Figure 1 Schematic diagram of the porosity of porous materials used in the solid components of a solar reactor.

[0071] According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, Figure 3 As shown, the solid component is constructed into a porous structure.

[0072] In an exemplary embodiment, the solid component includes but is not limited to being made of a material with a porous structure. Further, the pore size of the porous structure includes but is not limited to being configured to be at least one of centimeter level, millimeter level or micrometer level.

[0073] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, Figure 3 As shown, the pore size of the porous structure formed by the solid component is configured to gradually decrease from the outer layer to the inner side of the solid component.

[0074] In an illustrative embodiment, Figure 3 As shown, the pore size of the pore structure formed by the solid component gradually decreases from the upper part to the lower part.

[0075] In such an embodiment, the aperture of the upper portion of the solid component (i.e., the side of the solid component close to the light-facing surface) is configured to be larger than the aperture of the lower portion (i.e., the side of the solid component away from the light-facing surface). This allows the light transmittance of the upper portion of the solid component to be greater than that of the lower portion, allowing more sunlight to enter the interior of the solid component through the aperture structure, further forming a body absorption of thermal energy, which is conducive to uniform distribution of energy flux density. It should be understood that the embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited to this.

[0076] In another exemplary embodiment, at least a portion of the solid component may be configured as a non-porous solid structure; or the entire solid component may be configured as a solid structure.

[0077] According to another embodiment of the present disclosure, which is not shown in the figures, the pore sizes of the porous structure formed by the solid components are configured to be substantially the same.

[0078] According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, Figure 1 As shown, the solar reactor comprises a reactant input mechanism 7 and a product output mechanism 8. The reactant input mechanism 7 is configured to input reactants into the reaction chamber. The product output mechanism 8 is configured to output products generated by the reactants from the reaction chamber, wherein the reactants and products include gases or liquids.

[0079] According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, Figure 1 As shown, the reactant input mechanism 7 is configured to communicate with the side of the main body 2 to serve as an input end of the reaction chamber.

[0080] According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, Figure 1 As shown, the product output mechanism 8 is configured to communicate with the bottom of the main body 2 to serve as an output end of the reaction chamber.

[0081] In an illustrative embodiment, Figure 1 As shown, the reactant input mechanism 7 is arranged on one radial side of the main body 2 (as shown in FIG. Figure 1 The product output mechanism 8 is provided at the bottom of the main body 2 (as shown in the upper side) and is configured to pass the reactants in the radial direction of the main body 2. Figure 1 The left side of the reaction chamber is shown as a left side, configured to discharge products generated within the reaction chamber. Furthermore, the reaction chamber input end includes, but is not limited to, being disposed near the light-transmitting port 211, and the reaction chamber gas outlet includes, but is not limited to, being disposed in the middle of the bottom surface of the reaction chamber, extending along the axial direction of the reaction chamber 211.

[0082] In an illustrative embodiment, the solid component is made of a material used as an oxygen carrier or catalyst according to the reaction configuration performed in the reactor, wherein the material configuring the solid component includes but is not limited to metal oxides, perovskite materials and other materials with catalytic effects in thermochemical reactions.

[0083] In one exemplary embodiment, the solar reactor described above is used in a thermochemical oxidation / reduction reaction, with the solid component serving as an oxygen carrier. Specifically, the oxygen carrier includes, but is not limited to, cerium oxide (suitable for thermochemical reactions at reaction temperatures of approximately 1500°C to 1700°C). It should be understood that the embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited thereto.

[0084] For example, the solid component 3 may also be made of at least one oxide of Ni, Fe, Co, Cu, Rh, Ru, Ir, Pt, Pd, or other oxygen carriers / oxides suitable for chemical reactions.

[0085] For another example, the solid component 3 may also be made of perovskite material (suitable for thermochemical reactions at a reaction temperature of approximately 1100° C.). The specific material used for the solid component 3 should be suitable for meeting the reaction temperature required for the thermochemical reaction.

[0086] In an exemplary embodiment, the reactant introduced by the reactant input mechanism 7 is water vapor. Furthermore, the products generated by the thermochemical reaction of the water vapor in the reaction chamber include, but are not limited to, hydrogen.

[0087] In another exemplary embodiment, the reactant introduced by the reactant input mechanism 7 is carbon dioxide. Furthermore, the products generated by the thermochemical reaction of carbon dioxide in the reaction chamber include but are not limited to carbon monoxide.

[0088] In an exemplary embodiment, the reactant input mechanism 7 includes a first gas source storing a reactant (gas) and a second gas source storing an inert gas. Furthermore, the reactant input mechanism 7 includes a connecting mechanism (e.g., a pipeline, a valve, a flow controller, etc.) disposed between the first gas source and the reaction chamber, and between the second gas source and the reaction chamber.

[0089] In this embodiment, the solar thermal effect causes the reaction chamber to reach the reaction temperature, causing the solid component serving as the oxygen carrier to lose oxygen ions, forming oxygen. At this point, the second gas source is adapted to introduce an inert gas into the reaction chamber to expel the oxygen generated by the oxygen carrier's loss of oxygen. After the oxygen is expelled, the first gas source is adapted to introduce reactants into the reaction chamber, causing the reactants to lose oxygen within the reaction chamber and form gaseous products.

[0090] In another exemplary embodiment, the solar reactor is used in a catalytic thermochemical reaction, and the solid component is used as a catalyst and as an active site for the product.

[0091] For example, the solar reactor can be applied to methane catalytic reforming reaction, methanol cracking reaction or other thermochemical catalytic reactions.

[0092] In an exemplary embodiment, the product output mechanism 8 comprises a vacuum pump adapted to create a negative pressure in the reaction chamber, thereby further reducing the oxygen partial pressure in the reaction chamber and increasing the non-stoichiometric oxygen loss of the oxygen carrier.

[0093] In an exemplary embodiment, the product output mechanism 8 further includes a mass spectrometer suitable for measuring the product. This allows mass spectrometry of the product output by the product output mechanism 8 to analyze the composition and / or components of the product. It should be understood that the embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited thereto.

[0094] In an illustrative embodiment, the reactant input mechanism 7 is configured to have multiple sub-mechanisms, which are suitable for introducing different reactants. For example, when applied to the water gas shift (WGS) reaction, the reactant input mechanism 7 can be configured to introduce water and carbon monoxide (CO) into the reaction chamber respectively. Furthermore, the product output mechanism 8 is suitable for discharging the mixed gas of hydrogen (H2) and carbon dioxide (CO2) formed by the water gas shift (WGS) reaction together, and separating them in subsequent processes (such as using sodium hydroxide to absorb carbon dioxide in the mixed gas) to collect hydrogen (H2). Wherein, based on the above-mentioned water gas shift (WGS) reaction, the solid component is adaptively made of a catalyst, such as (Pt-Ptn) / α-MoC or any other solid catalyst suitable for catalyzing the water gas shift (WGS) reaction.

[0095] In an illustrative embodiment, the solar reactor further includes a light source 9 adapted to output sunlight or simulated sunlight into the reaction chamber, and a data acquisition and control mechanism 6 adapted to collect temperature and / or pressure information within the reaction chamber. Specifically, the data acquisition and control mechanism 6 is configured to communicate with the reactant input mechanism 7 and the product output mechanism 8, and is adapted to collect temperature and / or pressure information within the reaction chamber, control the reactant input mechanism 7 to introduce reactants or inert gas into the reaction chamber, and control the product output mechanism 8 to extract products formed after the reaction.

[0096] The light source 9 used to form simulated sunlight includes but is not limited to a solar simulator.

[0097] According to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, the diverging point 1 includes a focus where the incident light 5 converges, and the incident light 5 freely diverges through the diverging point 1 to form the diverging light 4 .

[0098] In an exemplary embodiment, the incident light 5 comprises multiple incident light rays reflected and / or refracted by optical elements from sunlight outside the solar reactor. Specifically, the multiple incident light rays converge at a single point (i.e., divergence point 1), causing the incident light 5 to naturally diverge from this divergence point 1 to form divergent light 4.

[0099] Figure 4 yes Figure 1 A light path diagram of a diverging component of a solar reactor of a schematic embodiment is shown.

[0100] According to another exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, Figure 4 As shown, the solar reactor further comprises a diverging component which is arranged in the optical path of the incident light 5 in the light-transmitting opening 211 and is adapted to diverge the incident light 5 radially toward the interior of the reaction chamber to form diverging light 4 .

[0101] In an illustrative embodiment, Figure 4 As shown, the diverging assembly includes but is not limited to an optical element formed by a concave lens or a combination of a concave lens and a convex lens. In detail, the diverging assembly includes a wide-angle negative lens (including an aspherical concave lens) and a spherical lens (including an array of multiple small convex lenses) arranged in sequence according to the optical path. Furthermore, the spherical lens is constructed into a concave bowl-shaped structure, and the inner surface of the spherical lens (i.e., Figure 4 The upper surface shown in FIG) is arranged radially around the midpoint of the inner surface, and multiple convex lens structures protruding upward are arranged. The multiple convex lens structures located at the same radial position form a convex lens array. The multiple convex lens arrays are arranged around the midpoint. The outer surface of the spherical lens (i.e., as shown in FIG) is Figure 4 The lower surface shown) is constructed into a smooth curved surface structure.

[0102] In such an embodiment, the wide-angle negative lens is configured to diverge the beam-shaped incident light 5 , and the spherical lens is adapted to further diffuse the light outputted by the wide-angle negative lens in a direction perpendicular to the outer surface of the spherical lens to form divergent light 4 .

[0103] It should be noted that any optical element or combination of optical elements known in the art that can cause a beam of incident light to diverge radially outward from the center of a spherical surface may be used. Furthermore, the diverging assembly may include a convex lens for focusing light, positioned upstream of the wide-angle negative lens in the optical path, a filter (such as an infrared filter) for filtering light, or other optical elements and combinations thereof.

[0104] In such an embodiment, the diverging component causes the incident light (including concentrated sunlight or simulated sunlight) to be radially diverged into the reaction chamber to increase the radiation range of the sunlight, and the light-facing surface provided in conjunction with the solid component can cause the diverging light to be irradiated obliquely onto the light-facing surface. Based on the above-mentioned diverging component and solid component, the light-facing surface can be extended in the depth direction of the reaction chamber. On the one hand, the diverging light can be irradiated onto the light-facing surface at a deeper position of the shell to increase the effective material participating in the thermochemical reaction. On the other hand, it can also avoid the formation of excessively high energy flux density in a certain part of the light-facing surface, thereby improving the energy conversion efficiency of the solar reactor.

[0105] According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, the solid component 3 is configured as a pyramidal structure.

[0106] According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, a plurality of solid members 3 are arranged on the inner surface of the body 2 in rows and / or columns.

[0107] In an illustrative embodiment, Figure 1 As shown, the solid component 3 is constructed into a regular pyramid structure (i.e., the extension direction of the generatrix of the solid component is substantially parallel to the projection direction of the divergent light). In this way, the upper surface of the solid component is completely exposed to the irradiation range of the divergent light, so that the upper surface of the solid component serves as a light-facing surface.

[0108] In another exemplary embodiment, not shown in the figure, the solid member 3 is configured as an oblique pyramidal structure (i.e., the extension direction of the generatrix of the solid member forms an angle with the projection direction of the divergent light). The portion of the upper surface of each solid member exposed to the illumination range of the divergent light serves as the light-facing surface.

[0109] For example, Figure 1 A certain solid component 3 is shown divided into two symmetrical parts along the center line, and each part serves as an independent solid component.

[0110] For example, Figure 1 The generatrix of a solid component 3 shown is offset to one side (such as the left or right side) so that Figure 1 In the cross-sectional view shown, the top of the solid member has different slopes extending toward the lower sides.

[0111] In such an embodiment, by setting the solid component 3 as a right cone, the solid component can have a larger light-facing surface under the condition that the surface area occupied by the inner surface of the main body is the same, effectively reducing the local energy flow on the light-facing surface, avoiding the occurrence of local hot spots, making the energy distribution more uniform, and avoiding the occurrence of problems such as material melting, sublimation, and cracking.

[0112] Figure 5 yes Figure 1 A solid component of a solar reactor in the exemplary embodiment shown is a cone-shaped solid component. Figure 6 yes Figure 1 Another solid component of the solar reactor of the exemplary embodiment shown is a pyramidal solid component. Figure 7 yes Figure 1 Another solid component of a solar reactor according to the exemplary embodiment shown is a solid component in the form of a star-shaped cone. Figure 8 yes Figure 1 Another solid component of the solar reactor of the exemplary embodiment shown is a solid component in the shape of a curved cone. Figure 9 yes Figure 1 Another solid component of the solar reactor of the exemplary embodiment shown is another solid component in the shape of a curved cone.

[0113] In an illustrative embodiment, Figures 5 to 9 As shown, the solid member 3 is constructed into a regular cone structure with the generatrix of the cone structure as the center line. In detail, the lower parts of the plurality of solid members 3 are mounted on the inner surface of the housing in rows and / or columns, and the upper parts of the plurality of solid members 3 extend toward the divergent light 4. Further, each row (e.g. Figure 1 Left and right directions as shown) solid member 3 and / or each column (as shown Figure 1 The solid component array formed by the solid components 3 (facing and away from the paper) can be constructed in a corresponding arrangement or in a staggered arrangement, so as to arrange more solid components within the limited surface area of the shell 2.

[0114] Figure 10 yes Figure 1 Another solid component of the solar reactor of the exemplary embodiment shown is a solid component in the form of an annular cone.

[0115] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a plurality of solid members 3 are arranged in a ring form on the inner surface of the body 2 .

[0116] In an illustrative embodiment, Figure 10 As shown, in the vertical projection, the solid component 3 is constructed as an annular cone with a substantially circular ring structure at the bottom. Further, a plurality of solid components are arranged around the center line of the shell.

[0117] Figure 11 yes Figure 1 Another solid component of the solar thermochemical reactor of the exemplary embodiment shown is a strip-cone solid component.

[0118] In an illustrative embodiment, Figure 11 As shown, the solid member 3 is configured as a tapered strip that gradually increases in size from top to bottom. Specifically, in vertical orthographic projection, multiple solid members 3 are arranged around the centerline of the housing and are configured to extend radially outward in the radial direction of the reaction chamber to form an annular array of solid members 3. The array of multiple solid members 3 is arranged around the centerline of the housing.

[0119] In such an embodiment, the solid components are constructed into different conical structures and can be arranged according to the shape and size of the inner surface of the shell so that the solid components have as large a light-facing surface as possible, so that they can be heated under the thermal effect of the divergent light, thereby ensuring that there is a higher amount of effective material in the solar reactor that can participate in the thermochemical reaction.

[0120] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, which is not shown in the drawings, the main body 2 includes a shell and a heat insulating layer disposed in the shell, and a reaction chamber is defined in the heat insulating layer.

[0121] According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, Figure 2 As shown, the reaction chamber has a first mounting surface forming a hemispherical concave surface, and the solid component is arranged on the first mounting surface.

[0122] In this embodiment, the first mounting surface, configured as a hemispherical concave surface, forms a hemispherical reaction chamber within the solar reactor. The inner surface of the reaction chamber is approximately orthogonal to the projection direction of the divergent light. Therefore, the solid components arranged on the first mounting surface can be configured to have the same shape and / or size, facilitating the processing of the solid components and their assembly with the reaction chamber. It should be understood that the embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited to this.

[0123] According to another embodiment of the present disclosure, which is not shown in the figures, the reaction chamber has a second mounting surface extending along a plane, and the solid component is arranged on the second mounting surface.

[0124] For example, the reaction chamber may be configured in a cylindrical, truncated cone, or other structure having a second mounting surface extending along a plane.

[0125] In such an embodiment, the configured solid components can transform the original one-dimensional surface structure (i.e., there is only one direction for the energy propagation of sunlight, which depends only on the penetration depth of sunlight) (i.e., it protrudes upward along the original extended plane) into a three-dimensional body structure through the configured solid components to form a body absorption of thermal energy, which is beneficial to alleviate the attenuation of the intensity of sunlight from the surface to the depth inside the solid component, and increase the effective materials participating in the thermochemical reaction.

[0126] According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, Figure 2 As shown, the main body 2 includes a base 22 with an opening and a cover 21 disposed at the opening of the base 22 . A light-transmitting opening 211 is provided in the middle of the cover 21 .

[0127] In an illustrative embodiment, Figure 2 As shown, the cover 21 is constructed into a ring structure. Further, the cover 21 is installed at the opening position of the upper part of the base 22.

[0128] In this embodiment, the cover 21 and the base 22 can be processed separately, which helps to reduce the difficulty of manufacturing the main body 2. In addition, the cover 21 also has a certain thermal insulation function, which helps to improve the heat collection effect of the solar reactor. In addition, the cover 21 can also block at least a portion of other external light from affecting the solar reactor. It should be understood that the embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited to this.

[0129] For example, in a scenario where the reaction temperature required for a thermochemical reaction is relatively low, the base 22 without the cover 21 can serve as the main body 2 of the solar reactor. Specifically, the opening formed by the base 22 serves as a light-transmitting port for introducing incident light 5.

[0130] It should also be noted that directional terms such as "upper," "lower," "front," "back," "left," and "right" mentioned in the embodiments are merely references to the directions in the accompanying drawings and are not intended to limit the scope of protection of this disclosure. Throughout the drawings, identical elements are represented by identical or similar reference numerals. Conventional structures or configurations will be omitted where they may cause confusion in understanding this disclosure.

[0131] The embodiments of the present disclosure are described above. However, these embodiments are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure. Although each embodiment has been described separately above, this does not mean that the measures in each embodiment cannot be used in combination to advantage. The scope of the present disclosure is defined by the appended claims and their equivalents. Without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, those skilled in the art may make various substitutions and modifications, which should all fall within the scope of the present disclosure.

Claims

1. A solar reactor, characterized in that: include: A main body (2), wherein a reaction chamber is defined within the main body (2), and a light-transmitting port (211) is provided on the main body (2) for receiving incident light (5) formed by light rays collected from outside the reaction chamber and entering the reaction chamber, wherein the incident light (5) is diffused within the reaction chamber to form diffused light (4) diffused within the reaction chamber; as well as A solid component is arranged in the reaction chamber, the solid component is provided with a protrusion protruding toward the middle of the reaction chamber, at least a portion of the light-facing surface (31) of the protrusion facing the divergent light (4) is configured to form an angle other than 90° with the projection direction of the divergent light, so that the divergent light (4) extends along the thickness direction of the solid component; The solid component is made of a material used as an oxygen carrier or catalyst in a chemical reaction using solar energy as a heat source.

2. The reactor according to claim 1, characterized in that The solid component comprises a plurality of solid members, each of the solid members (3) forming at least one protrusion; The plurality of solid components (3) are configured to be radially arranged on the inner surface of the main body (2) with the divergence point (1) where the incident light (5) diverges to form the divergent light (4) as the center.

3. The reactor according to claim 2, characterized in that The light-facing surface (31) of the solid component (3) forms an inclined surface inclined from the upper portion to the lower portion, and the angle formed by the inclined surface and the projection direction of the divergent light includes an acute angle.

4. The reactor according to claim 3, characterized in that The spacing between the upper parts of two adjacent solid components (3) is configured to be greater than or equal to the spacing between the lower parts, so that a light-transmitting area is formed between the two adjacent solid components (3), which gradually shrinks from the divergence point (1) to the other side.

5. The reactor according to any one of claims 2 to 4, characterized in that The diverging point (1) includes a focus where the incident light (5) converges, and the incident light (5) freely diverges through the diverging point (1) to form the diverging light (4).

6. The reactor according to any one of claims 2 to 4, characterized in that It also includes a diverging component, which is arranged on the optical path of the incident light (5) in the light-transmitting port (211) and is suitable for radially diverging the incident light (5) toward the interior of the reaction chamber to form the divergent light (4).

7. The reactor according to any one of claims 2 to 4, characterized in that The solid component (3) is configured as a pyramidal structure.

8. The reactor according to claim 7, characterized in that A plurality of the solid members (3) are arranged in rows and / or columns on the inner surface of the body (2).

9. The reactor according to claim 7, characterized in that A plurality of the solid members (3) are arranged in a ring form on the inner surface of the main body (2).

10. The reactor according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that The solid component is configured as a porous structure.

11. The reactor according to claim 10, characterized in that The pore sizes of the porous structure formed by the solid components are configured to be substantially the same.

12. The reactor according to claim 10, characterized in that The pore diameter of the porous structure formed by the solid component is configured to gradually decrease from the outer layer to the inner side of the solid component.

13. The reactor according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that Also includes: a reactant input mechanism (7), configured to input reactants into the reaction chamber; as well as a product output mechanism (8) configured to output a product generated from the reactants from the reaction chamber; Wherein, the reactants and products include gas or liquid.

14. The reactor according to claim 13, characterized in that The reactant input mechanism (7) is configured to communicate with the side of the main body (2) to serve as an input end of the reaction chamber.

15. The reactor according to claim 13, characterized in that The product output mechanism (8) is configured to communicate with the bottom of the main body (2) to serve as the output end of the reaction chamber.

16. The reactor according to claim 1, characterized in that The main body (2) comprises a shell and a heat-insulating layer arranged in the shell, and a reaction chamber is defined in the heat-insulating layer.

17. The reactor according to claim 16, characterized in that The reaction chamber has a first mounting surface forming a hemispherical concave surface, and the solid component is arranged on the first mounting surface.

18. The reactor according to claim 16, characterized in that The reaction chamber has a second mounting surface extending along a plane, and the solid component is arranged on the second mounting surface.

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