Description du projet
Rapprocher les combustibles solaires liquides du marché
Alors que le concept d’utilisation de l’énergie solaire pour conduire des réactions chimiques qui produisent des carburants existe depuis des décennies, la technologie a encore du chemin à parcourir avant d’être rentable et évolutive pour les applications industrielles. Le projet Sun-To-X, financé par l’UE, utilisera d’abord l’énergie solaire et l’humidité ambiante pour produire de l’hydrogène. Ensuite, en utilisant l’énergie solaire concentrée, l’hydrogène sera mis en réaction pour former un combustible liquide non toxique et dense en énergie appelé Hydrosil pour une utilisation directe dans les secteurs des transports et de l’énergie, avec de l’eau pour seule émission. Son innovation révolutionnaire a le potentiel de supprimer de nombreux obstacles entravant le déploiement de combustibles liquides à zéro émission.
Objectif
The Sun-to-X project will contribute to European Commission targets for clean energy for all and circular economy by developing a system for the conversion of solar energy into storable chemical fuel. While the concept of solar-to-chemical fuels has been around for decades, the technology has been limited by the economic viability and scalability of the technology.
The Sun-to-X project focuses on using solar energy to produce a carbon-free, non-toxic, energy-dense, liquid fuel - Hydrosil, with very good long-term stability, which is applicable in the transport and energy sectors. We will firstly produce hydrogen as chemical intermediate through a photoelectrochemical device. This will then be converted to Hydrosil through a thermochemical reaction.
The novelty of our proposal lies in the following three key aspects:
1. Overcoming the known practical challenges of high-performance photoelectrochemical fuel production by using membrane photoelectrode assemblies which can operate with solar energy using only ambient humidity as the water supply
2. Developing reactors for and demonstrating the renewable production of Hydrosil for the first time, using a thermochemical process (using concentrated solar light)
3. Demonstrating a completely decarbonised energy cycle with liquid fuels
In addition, we will demonstrate the applicability of Hydrosil towards the transition to a circular economy, by using it for the valorisation of waste plastics.
Champ scientifique
- engineering and technologyenvironmental engineeringenergy and fuelsliquid fuels
- engineering and technologyenvironmental engineeringenergy and fuelsrenewable energysolar energy
- natural scienceschemical sciencesphysical chemistrythermochemistry
- social scienceseconomics and businesseconomicssustainable economy
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RIA - Research and Innovation actionCoordinateur
1140 Bruxelles / Brussel
Belgique