Energy Transport of Photocatalytic Carbon Dioxide Reduction in Optical Fiber Honeycomb Reactor Coupled with Trough Concentrated Solar Power

Abstract

Thanks to the high photon efficiency and reaction density, the optical fiber monolith reactor (OFMR) for InTaO4-based CO2 photoreduction is regarded as a promising photoreactor. In this work, the OFMR coupling with parabolic trough concentrator (PTC) is proposed to enlarge the daylighting area by several times without increasing the cost of photocatalysts. Based on the Monte Carlo ray-tracing (MCRT) approach and the finite volume method (FVM), a computational model of the reaction module considering the light, heat, and mass transfer is developed to optimize the fiber honeycomb reactor coupled with the PTC. As a result, the volume-averaged concentration of production reaches 1.85 × 10−4 mol·m−3, which is much higher than the traditional OFMR with the production concentration of 9.61 × 10−6 mol·m−3 under the same condition. The optimized structure of the monolith for better photocatalytic performance is obtained. It shows that the diameters of gas channels ranging from 1.5 to 2 mm are beneficial to the reaction efficiency. Finally, the results suggested that the even number of the gas channel should be avoided due to the pseudo-steady zone in the middle of the monolith. The reaction element with the high serial number along the flow direction has the reduced reaction density and endangers the organic optical fibers especially when the serial number exceeds 5.

Reactor and Plant Designs for the Solar Photosynthesis of Fuels

“…As a result, the volume-averaged product concentration reached 1.85•10 −4 mol m −3 , significantly higher than the traditional OFMR concentration of 9.61•10 −6 mol m −3 under the same conditions. Optimised monolith structure for improved photocatalytic performance was identified, showing that gas channel diameters between 1.5 and 2 mm enhance reaction efficiency [68].…”

“…As indicated in the literature [159], the reaction efficiency is directly related to the flow velocity within the reaction channels, leading to an unavoidable efficiency loss because of the side flow structure. Readapted from [68,160] and reproduced under the Creative Commons licence from [68].…”

“…Figure 25. Schematics of (a) a continuous reactor integrated with a reflector and (b) OFMR, (c) a map of concentrated irradiative flux and (d) melted optical fibres in a point concentrating system.Readapted from[68,160] and reproduced under the Creative Commons licence from[68].…”

A Method for Determination of the Transmission Efficiency of a Silica Optical Fiber Cable Using a Solar Power Tower

“…More recent research aims to produce various flux distributions in 2D and 3D space through corresponding optical fiber bundle arrangements [23]. However, contrary to high-temperature applications like those envisaged by Nakamura, most of the current studies deal with illumination and hybridization with PV systems (e.g., [24,25]) or even with photocatalytic wastewater treatment (e.g., [26]) or photocatalytic CO 2 reduction [27], and, to our knowledge, no experimental demonstration has been carried out yet assuming the bundle of optical fibers in the receiver position on top of a high-concentration central tower (as was envisaged by González et al [18]).…”