Fungible, Multiyear Solar Thermochemical Energy Storage Demonstrated via the Cobalt Oxide Cycle

We present a proof of concept demonstration of solar thermochemical energy storage on a multiple year time scale. The storage is fungible, and can take the form of process heat or hydrogen. We designed and fabricated a 4-kW solar rotary drum reactor to carry out the solar-driven charging step of solar thermochemical storage via metal oxide reduction- oxidation cycles. During the summer of 2019, the solar reactor was operated in the Valparaiso University solar furnace to effect the reduction of submillimeter cobalt oxide particles in air at approximately 1000°C. A particle collection system cooled the reduced particles rapidly enough to maintain conversions of 84–94% for feed rates of 2.9–60.8 g min−1. The solar-to-chemical storage efficiency, defined as the enthalpy of the reduction reaction at 1000°C divided by the solar energy input, reached 20%. Samples of the reduced cobalt oxide particles were stored in vials in air at room temperature for more than three years. The stored solar energy was released by reoxidizing samples in air in a benchtop reactor and by electrochemically reoxidizing samples to produce H2. Measurements of the oxygen uptake by the reduced metal oxide confirm its promise as a medium to store and dispatch solar energy over long durations. Linear sweep voltammetry and bulk electrolysis demonstrate the promise of H2 production at 0.55 V relative to the normal hydrogen electrode, 0.68 V below the 1.23 V potential required for conventional electrolysis.