Modeling Solar Thermochemical Splitting of CO₂ Using Metal Oxide and a CR5

A two-dimensional, multi-physics computational model based on the finite-element method is developed for simulating the process of solar thermochemical splitting of carbon dioxide (CO₂) using ferrites (Fe₃O₄/FeO) and a counter-rotating-ring receiver/recuperator or CR5, in which carbon monoxide (CO) is produced from gaseous CO₂. The model takes into account heat transfer, gas-phase flow and multiple-species diffusion in open channels and through pores of the porous reactant layer, and redox chemical reactions at the gas/solid interfaces. Results (temperature distribution, velocity field, and species concentration contours) computed using the model in a case study are presented to illustrate model utility. The model is then employed to examine the effects of injection rates of CO₂ and argon neutral gas, respectively, on CO production rate and the extent of the product-species crossover.