Heat transfer in molten salts for alternative thermal energy technologies

用于替代热能技术的熔盐传热

• 批准号: RGPIN-2019-05845
• 负责人: TetreaultFriend, Melanie
• 金额: $ 1.97万
• 依托单位: McGill University
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Discovery Grants Program - Individual
• 财政年份: 2022
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2022-01-01 至 2023-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=760297
• 关键词: Heat; transfer; molten; salts; alternative

In our carbon-constrained world, developing efficient, safe, reliable, and inexpensive carbon-free energy technologies is the most pressing engineering challenge of our time. Major economies are increasingly investing in developing breakthrough clean energy technologies in order to increase the probability of mitigating catastrophic events resulting from greenhouse gas emissions. Carbon-free thermal energy sources using conversion technologies with high temperature heat transfer fluids (>400°C) are potential alternatives that could achieve high heat engine efficiencies. Molten salt energy technologies, in particular, are promising options that have recently demonstrated competitive levelized costs of electricity (LCOE). Molten salts have attracted significant interest in both the solar and nuclear communities for their high operating temperatures and heat capacities, low costs, and neutronics. Example applications include solar-thermal energy technologies with thermal energy storage, Generation IV nuclear reactors, and salt-cooled fusion reactors. My research group is committed to overcoming the remaining technical challenges in these alternative energy technologies that will enable their commercialization. The research program proposed for this Discovery Grant (DG) builds on my expertise in molten salts and recent breakthroughs in molten salt energy technologies. I have recently collaborated on commissioning the world's first direct absorption molten-salt volumetric solar receiver/storage system, which has attracted major potential investors. My thermal analyses and scientific discoveries have led to significant design modifications and performance enhancements. This research program will build on this recent progress and will focus on advancing our understanding of the mechanisms governing volumetric heat absorption and heat transfer in molten salts. Within this DG, we will carry out rigorous experimental research and develop innovative diagnostic techniques in molten salts. Discovering the underlying mechanisms will facilitate better predictions and improved analytical models for rapid and reliable design calculations. Optimized designs will improve decay heat removal in accident scenarios, enhance solar absorption, and will remove the need for auxiliary mixing mechanisms by relying solely on passive mixing for new groundbreaking solar-thermal and nuclear reactor technologies. This in turn will facilitate the licensing of Canada's next generation of advanced alternative energy technologies. This program will also offer exciting opportunities to train a diverse group of highly qualified and creative researchers. The four PhD, three MEng, and five UG students participating in this DG program will become experts in state-of-the-art experimental and computational heat transfer methods, will develop new cutting edge techniques, and will collaborate with other research groups. Through this program, these pioneers will become leaders in their fields.

在我们这个碳约束的世界里，开发高效、安全、可靠和廉价的无碳能源技术是我们这个时代最紧迫的工程挑战。主要经济体正越来越多地投资于开发突破性的清洁能源技术，以增加减轻温室气体排放造成的灾难性事件的可能性。使用高温传热流体（>400°C）转换技术的无碳热能源是可以实现高热机效率的潜在替代品。特别是熔盐能源技术，是最近证明具有竞争力的平准化电力成本（LCOE）的有前途的选择。熔盐由于其高的工作温度和热容量、低成本和中子学特性而引起了太阳能和核能界的极大兴趣。示例应用包括具有热能存储的太阳能-热能技术、第四代核反应堆和盐冷聚变反应堆。我的研究小组致力于克服这些替代能源技术中剩余的技术挑战，使其商业化。为这项发现补助金（DG）提出的研究计划建立在我在熔盐和熔盐能源技术最近突破的专业知识基础上。我最近合作调试了世界上第一个直接吸收熔盐体积太阳能接收器/存储系统，该系统吸引了主要的潜在投资者。我的热分析和科学发现导致了重大的设计修改和性能增强。这项研究计划将建立在这一最新进展的基础上，并将专注于推进我们对熔盐中体积吸热和传热机制的理解。在该DG内，我们将进行严格的实验研究，并开发熔盐的创新诊断技术。发现潜在的机制将有助于更好的预测和改进的分析模型，以进行快速可靠的设计计算。优化的设计将改善事故情况下的衰变热去除，增强太阳能吸收，并将消除对辅助混合机制的需要，仅依靠被动混合来实现新的突破性太阳能热和核反应堆技术。这反过来又将促进加拿大下一代先进替代能源技术的许可证发放。该计划还将提供令人兴奋的机会，培养一批高素质和创造性的研究人员。四名博士，三名工程硕士和五名UG学生参加这个DG计划将成为最先进的实验和计算传热方法的专家，将开发新的尖端技术，并将与其他研究小组合作。通过这项计划，这些先驱者将成为各自领域的领导者。