PACRIM S26: Materials for Solar Thermal Energy Conversion and Storage

Concentrated solar technology is expected to contribute significantly to a future sustainable, efficient, and diverse energy mix. Together with suitable thermal energy storage systems, concentrated solar energy may provide base load power. Moreover, concentrated solar energy can be used for high temperature process technology, e.g., for the production of fuels or chemicals. Material requirements in the field of concentrated solar energy are manifold. Besides thermal, thermomechanical and chemical stability, lifetime and environmental resistance, and appropriate functional properties (optical, chemical and thermal properties) must also be taken into account.

This symposium will focus on CSP-related materials in a broader sense. In particular, the following topics will be covered: absorber materials; mirrors and reflector coatings; heat transfer media; thermal and thermochemical energy storage materials; materials for solar fuels; materials-related aspects of solar process heat applications; structural and particulate materials for solar receivers and solar reactors; and materials and manufacturing of advanced CSP components.

Proposed sessions

• Absorber materials (light absorbing performance, selective coatings, robustness against thermal cycling, interactions with environmental effects, such as airborne mineral dust, vapor, salts, etc.)
• Innovative high temperature construction and isolation materials for solar receivers and solar reactors
• Mirrors and mirror coatings (reflectivity, stability against pitting and delamination, self-cleaning surfaces, lifetime prediction considering temperature swings, UV irradiation, rain, dust, etc.)
• Heat transfer media (molten salts, particles, molten metals, etc.) with improved stability and wider operating temperatures; reactions between heat transfer media and other components
• Novel materials for thermal energy storage systems (molten salt storage, phase change materials, materials for thermochemical storage systems)
• Materials for solar driven carbon capture and utilization (CCU) processes
• Materials for (solar) thermochemical processes to produce H₂, CO, NH₃ or synthetic hydrocarbon fuels (metal oxide-based redox materials, catalysts, sulfur-based cycles, Cu-Cl cycle, etc.).

Organizers

• Martin Schmücker, HRW University of Applied Sciences, Germany, martin.schmuecker@hs-ruhrwest.de
• Dileep Singh, Argonne National Laboratory, USA, dsingh@anl.gov
• Martin Roeb, German Aerospace Center (DLR), Institute of Solar Research, Germany
• Gözde Alkan, German Aerospace Center (DLR), Institute of Materials Research, Germany
• Tatsuya Kodama, Niigata University, Japan
• Wojciech Lipinski, Australian National University, Australia