Development of an Off‐Grid Solar‐Powered Autonomous Chemical Mini‐Plant for Producing Fine Chemicals

Photochemistry using inexhaustible solar energy is an eco‐friendly way to produce fine chemicals outside the typical laboratory or chemical plant environment. However, variations in solar irradiation conditions and the need for an external energy source to power electronic components limits the acce...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:ChemSusChem 2021-12, Vol.14 (24), p.5417-5423
Main Authors: Masson, Tom M., Zondag, Stefan D. A., Kuijpers, Koen P. L., Cambié, Dario, Debije, Michael G., Noël, Timothy
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Chemical industry
Chemicals
Control systems design
Electronic components
energy conversion
Fine chemicals
Flow velocity
Ground level
Irradiance
Irradiation
photocatalysis
Photochemistry
Photovoltaic cells
Reagents
Solar energy
solar mini-plant
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Summary:Photochemistry using inexhaustible solar energy is an eco‐friendly way to produce fine chemicals outside the typical laboratory or chemical plant environment. However, variations in solar irradiation conditions and the need for an external energy source to power electronic components limits the accessibility of this approach. In this work, a chemical solar‐driven “mini‐plant” centred around a scaled‐up luminescent solar concentrator photomicroreactor (LSC‐PM) was built. To account for the variations in solar irradiance at ground level and passing clouds, a responsive control system was designed that rapidly adapts the flow rate of the reagents to the light received by the reaction channels. Supplying the plant with solar panels, integrated into the module by placing it behind the LSC to utilize the transmitted fraction of the solar irradiation, allowed this setup to be self‐sufficient and fully operational off‐grid. Such a system can shine in isolated environments and in a distributed manufacturing world, allowing to decentralize the production of fine chemicals. Going off‐grid: An energy neutral scaled‐up luminescent solar concentrator photo‐microreactor (LSC‐PM) is used to perform solar photochemistry as an off‐grid chemical production platform. A control system ensures autonomous production of fine chemicals under fluctuating solar light irradiation and simulations provide insight for the implementation of the system around the world.
ISSN:1864-5631
1864-564X
DOI:10.1002/cssc.202102011