Experimental characterization and chemical kinetics study of chemical looping combustion

Abstract

Chemical looping combustion (CLC) is one of the most promising technologies to achieve carbon capture in fossil fuel power generation plants. A novel rotary-bed reactor concept was proposed by Zhao et. al. [1] in 2013. It is a compact gas fueled CLC reactor that could achieve high fuel conversion and carbon separation efficiencies. It is different from the widely applied and tested fluidized-bed reactor that employs metal oxides coated on particle shaped support materials as the reaction median. In the new reactor, the active metal oxidizes are coated on the surfaces of channel shaped structural material in the new reactor. Due to the different reaction mechanism, an alternative experimental platform with the capability of performing reaction kinetic analysis for disk or channel shaped samples was required needed. The sample selection, characterization and preparation methods are discussed, followed by the introduction of the experimental system design and initial calibration and tuning results. Preliminary oxidation kinetic studies are carried out using the real-time gas analysis system to obtain the concentration contours of the effluent gas species. Commercial 13 wt% copper(II) oxide particles prepared through impregnation method are used as the reaction median. The reactant gas used in the oxidation cycles is 8%, 13% and 21% oxygen in argon, operated at 700 - 800 *C; and 10% hydrogen in argon is used for the reducing cycles.