Multiphysics well-stirred reactor modeling of coal gasification under intense thermal radiation

Gasification of carbonaceous materials using concentrated solar radiation can be an efficient and cost-effective way of supporting the endothermic reactions. To understand the effect of concentrated solar energy on the gasification process, we applied a multiphysics constant-volume well-stirred reactor model. The model considers detailed gas-phase chemistry, devolatilization kinetics, particle-phase reactions, film diffusion, pore evolution, as well as full coupling between the two phases at multiple scales for mass, species, and energy exchange. Numerical simulations were conducted using an in-house code to understand the effects of concentrated solar energy flux on conversion time, syngas yield, solar-to-fuel conversion efficiency, and solar-to-chemical enthalpy conversion percentage.