Long-Term Durability and Reactivation of Thermochemical Heat Storage Driven by the CaO/Ca(OH) 2 Reversible Reaction

Abstract

Thermochemical heat storage is a promising technology for improving thermal energy efficiency. To investigate the durability of the CaO/Ca(OH)2 reaction and develop a reactivation method, repetitive charging/discharging operation of a packed bed reactor with a thick packed bed was conducted, and variations in the discharging behavior, final conversion, and reactant activity were investigated. Owing to the formation of a deactivated sintered reactant block, the discharging time halved and the final conversion ratio decreased by the 53rd discharging operation. To enhance durability, a reactivation method using high-pressure vapor was implemented during the 54th discharging operation. Following reactivation, the final conversion increased 15%, and the discharging time tripled when compared with the discharging operation before reactivation, confirming the success of this simple reactivation method.