Solar Rotary Reactor for Continuous H2 Production Using Two-(3)

dy is to develop Endothermic Concentrated reaction the rotary-type solar furnace having dual solar heat reaction cells for the production of solar H2 hydrogen using the two-step water splitting Ar carrier gas cycle with reactive ceramics. CeO2 (oxygen Hydrogen releasing temperature of around 1673K) and generation Ni,Mn-ferrite (that of around 1473K) were Oxidized reactive reaction cell selected to be materials as reactive ceramics ceramics for the rotary-type solar furnace. Fig.1 Conceptual outline of the rotary-type solar furnace. 2. Experimental Methods 2.1. Preparation of reactive ceramics CeO2 purchased from RARE METALLIC Co., LTD. was used without further purification in the two-step water splitting reaction with the rotary-type solar furnace. Ni,Mn-ferrite (Ni0.5Mn0.5Fe2O4) was prepared by a solid state reaction at 1273 K.8 For a solid state preparation, required amounts of NiO, MnO and Fe2O3 was mixed with an agate mortar and heated in an electric furnace for 8h. The synthesized sample was characterized by an X-ray diffractometry. 2.2. Rotary-type solar furnace To achieve the two-step water splitting cycle using concentrated solar heat the rotary-type solar furnace was designed and built up with heat-stable materials. A schematic outline of the rotary-type solar furnace is demonstrated in Fig.2. The reactor was made of SUS304 Sealing gas (Ar) stainless steel with quartz Infrared image lamp windows for the irradiation of H2 O2 (Preliminary heater) concentrated solar beam from a Quartz glass solar simulator to the reactive H2O ceramics. The graphite packing Direct gas mass spectrometer material, Grafoil, was used as an airtight seal between the stainless steel vessel and the quartz glass. The inside of the reactor was Thermocouple covered with a ceramic block as Infrared image lamp Rotary cylinder (Solar simulator) an insulator. The infrared image Quartz glass Reactive ceramics lamps were used as a solar Sealing gas (Ar) simulator for heating the reactive ceramics up to the oxygen Hydrogen generation Oxygen releasing releasing temperature in the reaction cell reaction cell oxygen releasing reaction cell and Fig.2 Schematic outline of the rotary-type solar furnace preliminary heater for keeping the for two-step water splitting reaction. 2/6WHEC 16 / 13-16 June 2006 – Lyon France reaction temperature in the hydrogen generation reaction cell. Ar gas was passed through the oxygen releasing reaction cell for a carrier of evolved gaseous product. A steam was generated by dropping demineralized water with a micro pump (0.044mol min-1) in an electric furnace at 673K. The mixture of Ar gas (250cm3 min-1) and steam was made to flow through the hydrogen generation reaction cell for the water splitting reaction and a carrier of evolved hydrogen. The contents of H2 and O2 in evolved gases from the oxygen releasing reaction and the H2 generation reaction cells were determined by the direct gas mass spectrometer (BRUKER axs, MS9600). The cylindrical r