Thermal transport model of a sorbent particle undergoing calcination–carbonation cycling

A numerical model coupling transient radiative, convective, and conductive heat transfer, mass transfer, and chemical kinetics of heterogeneous solid–gas reactions has been developed for a semitransparent, nonuniform, and nonisothermal particle undergoing cyclic thermochemical transformations. The calcination–carbonation reaction pair for calcium oxide looping is selected as the model cycle because of its suitability for solar‐driven carbon dioxide capture. The analyzed system is a single, porous particle undergoing thermochemical cycling in an idealized, reactor‐like environment. The model is used to investigate two cases distinguished by the length of the calcination and carbonation periods. The calcination–carbonation process for a single particle is shown to become periodic after three cycles.