Solar Heat Receiver Cavity Structure for Low-Loss High-Pressure Heating
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional heat receivers using quartz disks for concentrated solar radiation suffer from high costs, limited pressure capacity, heat loss, and reduced optical transmissivity due to soot and tar deposition, restricting their application to processes without tar or soot generation.
Innovation Solution
A heat receiver design featuring a cylindrical cavity with a conical reflector and a black inner surface to absorb and reflect solar radiation efficiently, preventing leakage and maintaining high internal pressure and temperature, allowing for thermal decomposition and chemical reactions of coals or biomass.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Illumination intensity
If a quartz disk is used as a light aperture for concentrated solar radiation, then optical transmissivity is improved, but the device becomes expensive, has limited pressure capacity, and suffers from heat loss
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the quartz disk (light aperture) from the system entirely. Instead of using a quartz window to transmit solar radiation, the invention uses a cavity structure where solar radiation enters through an opening and is trapped by reflective inner walls, eliminating the need for a quartz disk and its associated problems with cost, pressure capacity, and heat loss
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs a composite structure combining reflective materials (for inner wall coating) with a cavity geometry. The inner walls are coated with high-reflectivity materials to trap solar radiation within the cavity, creating an effective solar receiver that eliminates the need for quartz while maintaining optical performance and reducing heat loss
2Illumination intensity
If a quartz disk is used as a light aperture, then optical transmissivity is maintained, but optical transmissivity decreases over time due to soot and tar deposition
Solution Approach 1:
The patent eliminates the quartz disk from the system, removing the surface that would otherwise accumulate soot and tar. By using a cavity with reflective inner walls instead of a transparent window, the system avoids the degradation problem entirely while maintaining optical transmissivity
Solution Approach 2:
The patent converts the potential harm of soot and tar deposition into a beneficial design choice by eliminating the quartz disk. The cavity structure allows solar radiation to be trapped and absorbed effectively without requiring a transparent window that would suffer from contamination, turning a design constraint into an advantage
3Temperature
If conventional heat receiver design is used, then solar radiation is received, but heat leakage occurs due to reflection and re-radiation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a composite structure with reflective inner wall coatings combined with a cavity geometry. The reflective coating on the inner walls traps solar radiation by reflecting it multiple times within the cavity, preventing heat leakage through reflection and re-radiation while maintaining high temperature for thermal decomposition
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs a cavity structure with curved inner walls that reflect solar radiation back into the cavity multiple times. The curved geometry ensures that reflected rays remain within the cavity volume, maximizing heat retention and preventing heat leakage through strategic use of reflective surfaces
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The design effectively contains concentrated solar radiation, reducing heat loss and maintaining uniform temperature, enabling efficient thermal decomposition and chemical reactions of coals or biomass at elevated pressures and temperatures.
Implementation Method 1
a black inner surface to absorb and reflect solar radiation efficiently
Implementation Method 2
a conical reflector and a black inner surface to absorb and reflect solar radiation efficiently
Implementation Method 3
The design effectively contains concentrated solar radiation, reducing heat loss and maintaining uniform temperature
Data Source
AI summary
A heat receiver, a reactor, and a heater utilize the heat of concentrated solar light for thermal decomposition and/or chemical reaction of coals, etc. The heat receiver includes: a side portion forming a substantially cylindrical side surface; a substantially circular bottom portion connected to the lower edge of the side portion; and a ceiling connected to the upper edge of the side portion. A substantially circular aperture is formed in the center of the ceiling. The heat receiver has a substantially cylindrical cavity and the opening portion is open. When the cavity has a diameter of D and a length of L, and the aperture has a diameter of d, d=D/2 or less and L=2D or more. Concentrated solar light entering the heat receiver is to be contained in the heat receiver to effectively utilize the solar light.