Study of enhanced gasification of biochar by non-thermal concentrating solar power using novel high-flux solar simulator thermogravimetric analyzer system

Currently the thermal effect of light has received extensive attention in the field of concentrating solar power gasification, but the non-thermal effect of light has been neglected. In this study, a high-flux solar simulator was coupled with a thermogravimetric analyzer and the thermal effects of concentrating solar power were effectively controlled. The non-thermal effect of concentrating solar power on the gasification of char was studied for the first time. It was found that the non-thermal effect of concentrating solar power significantly reduced the gasification reaction temperature and activation energy of the samples. The reaction mechanism of non-thermal effect was proposed by analyzing the microstructure and chemical structure of the samples with equal conversion rate. The self-catalysis of graphite carbon under high radiation intensity promotes the pyrolysis of biomass carbon to form a highly active carbon chain structure to promote the gasification reaction. This study proves the importance of non-thermal effects in the field of concentrating solar power gasification research, and direct irradiation may have higher economic benefits than indirect irradiation. However, the quantitative description of this non-thermal effect needs further study.