Computational Assessment of a Novel Solar Calciner

A comprehensive computational study for the assessment of a horizontal solar calciner is presented. The heat and mass transfer models that have been developed give valuable insight and enlighten the fundamental principles that rule the solar-aided CaCO₃ decomposition. The obtained computational data are appropriately interpreted and serve as guidelines in order to establish the operational framework of the solar reactor. Additionally, this set of predictive models identifies the optimum values of the key parameters that boost the performance of the process. The models have been validated comparing the computational results with the experimental data and the calciner performance is evaluated, reaching 35.2% efficiency.