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Syngas production from H 2 O and CO 2 over Zn particles in a packed‐bed reactor
Author(s) -
Stamatiou Anastasia,
Loutzenhiser Peter G.,
Steinfeld Aldo
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
aiche journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.958
H-Index - 167
eISSN - 1547-5905
pISSN - 0001-1541
DOI - 10.1002/aic.12580
Subject(s) - syngas , exothermic reaction , packed bed , endothermic process , inert gas , inert , chemical engineering , thermal decomposition , reactivity (psychology) , thermochemical cycle , decomposition , chemistry , redox , materials science , catalysis , inorganic chemistry , organic chemistry , adsorption , hydrogen production , medicine , alternative medicine , pathology , engineering
The solar thermochemical production of H 2 and CO (syngas) from H 2 O and CO 2 is examined via a two‐step cycle based on Zn/ZnO redox reactions. The first, endothermic step is the thermolysis of the ZnO driven by concentrated solar energy. The second, nonsolar step is the exothermic reaction of Zn with a mixture of H 2 O and CO 2 yielding syngas and ZnO; the latter is recycled to the first step. A series of experimental runs of the second step was carried out in a packed‐bed reactor where ZnO particles provided an effective inert support for preventing sintering and enabling simple and complete recycling to the first, solar step. Experimentation was performed for Zn mass fractions in the range of 33–67 wt % Zn‐ZnO, and inlet gas concentrations in the range 0–75% H 2 O–CO 2 , yielding molar Zn‐to‐ZnO conversions up to 91%. A 25 wt % Zn‐ZnO sample mixture produced from the solar thermolysis of ZnO was tested in the same reactor setup and exhibited high reactivity and conversions up to 96%. © 2011 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 2012