Solar Technology Laboratory
Solar Production of Lime |
| Contact: Anton Meier |
| Start: September 2000 |
| Partner: QualiCal |
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Funding: Swiss Federal Office of Energy |
DescriptionThe decomposition of limestone (mainly CaCO3) is the main endothermic step in the production of lime (CaO) and cement: CaCO3 -> CaO + CO2 The project aims at substituting concentrated solar energy in place of carbonaceous fuels as the heat source for the production of lime. The challenge is to develop a cost effective technology that is adapted to a specific location (e.g. in a developing world setting) and for a specific purpose (e.g. using lime as building material) that leads to local development and prosperity. The specific purpose of the project is to determine the economic feasibility of a 0.5 MW thermal input solar calcination plant for the production of lime. The question of feasibility will be addressed by first designing, constructing, and then experimentally evaluating the performance of a 5 to 10 kW thermal input solar reactor for effecting the calcination reaction. Such a solar reactor will operate at temperatures up to 1600 K. Experimental results obtained at the small scale will be extrapolated to 0.5 MW using, in part, a numerical model. Finally, the combination of experimental and numerical results along with current economic information on solar and lime production technology will be used to estimate the cost of the large-scale plant. In the course of the project, it will be decided whether or not a pilot plant for the solar production of lime should be built and tested in a specified country. more... |