Uploaded April 2023 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
Heat is essential for many industrial processes. Unfortunately, its production accounts for over half of energy demand globally and it is mostly derived from fossil fuels. Industrial heat generation creates 20% of global carbon dioxide emissions.
Concentrating solar power, or CSP, offers a sustainable alternative that provides process heat at temperatures up to 1000 °C.
The EU-funded project, PreMa, investigates how to preheat manganese ores with sustainable energy sources. In particular, it looks at ways to preheat the ores with solar power. This will significantly reduce the carbon footprint of the manganese ferroalloy industry.
The PreMa CSP plant integrates a field of heliostats with a particle-based receiver mounted on a central tower. The heliostat field uses wireless communication. It is, therefore, not necessary to dig expensive trenches for cabling.
The heliostats reflect and focus the sunlight to the top of the solar tower, where small ceramic particles are heated by the concentrated sun. There, the innovative rotary receiver technology allows to control the generation of a high and constant particle temperature crucial for many heating applications.
The hot particles, which can reach temperatures up to 1000 °C, are conveyed to an insulated storage tank. This tank acts as a buffer able to compensate fluctuations in solar energy providing a constant heat supply to the pre-treatment process.
The heat stored within the particles is extracted with a novel particle-gas heat exchanger. Hot ceramic particles trickle down through the heat exchanger while cold air moves up and is heated. The particles fall slowly through the heat exchanger due to fixed porous structures obstructing their path. The longer they remain inside the heat exchanger, the more heat is transferred to the air, increasing the efficiency of the unit. The particles enter the heat exchanger at 900 °C and exit at 200 °C.
Ceramic particles make an excellent heat storage medium because it is easy to integrate into existing processes. Firstly, it enables simple but largely scalable storage solutions, providing the option of transporting insulated containers to the place where the heat is required. Therefore, there is no need to build a CSP plant adjacent to the factory. Secondly, locating a CSP plant away from a dusty factory keeps the heliostats cleaner for longer. Thirdly, the ceramic particles are extremely cheap, making the investment in this new technology for industry extremely interesting in ecological and economical terms.
The PreMa technology provides potential to many mineral processing industries in regions with high solar irradiation. CSP plants can produce heat cleaner and cheaper than existing alternatives such as resistive heating with electricity or the combustion of diesel and other fuel oils.
Heat is essential for many industrial processes. Unfortunately, its production accounts for over half of energy demand globally and it is mostly derived from fossil fuels. Industrial heat generation creates 20% of global carbon dioxide emissions.
Concentrating solar power, or CSP, offers a sustainable alternative that provides process heat at temperatures up to 1000 °C.
The EU-funded project, PreMa, investigates how to preheat manganese ores with sustainable energy sources. In particular, it looks at ways to preheat the ores with solar power. This will significantly reduce the carbon footprint of the manganese ferroalloy industry.
The PreMa CSP plant integrates a field of heliostats with a particle-based receiver mounted on a central tower. The heliostat field uses wireless communication. It is, therefore, not necessary to dig expensive trenches for cabling.
The heliostats reflect and focus the sunlight to the top of the solar tower, where small ceramic particles are heated by the concentrated sun. There, the innovative rotary receiver technology allows to control the generation of a high and constant particle temperature crucial for many heating applications.
The hot particles, which can reach temperatures up to 1000 °C, are conveyed to an insulated storage tank. This tank acts as a buffer able to compensate fluctuations in solar energy providing a constant heat supply to the pre-treatment process.
The heat stored within the particles is extracted with a novel particle-gas heat exchanger. Hot ceramic particles trickle down through the heat exchanger while cold air moves up and is heated. The particles fall slowly through the heat exchanger due to fixed porous structures obstructing their path. The longer they remain inside the heat exchanger, the more heat is transferred to the air, increasing the efficiency of the unit. The particles enter the heat exchanger at 900 °C and exit at 200 °C.
Ceramic particles make an excellent heat storage medium because it is easy to integrate into existing processes. Firstly, it enables simple but largely scalable storage solutions, providing the option of transporting insulated containers to the place where the heat is required. Therefore, there is no need to build a CSP plant adjacent to the factory. Secondly, locating a CSP plant away from a dusty factory keeps the heliostats cleaner for longer. Thirdly, the ceramic particles are extremely cheap, making the investment in this new technology for industry extremely interesting in ecological and economical terms.
The PreMa technology provides potential to many mineral processing industries in regions with high solar irradiation. CSP plants can produce heat cleaner and cheaper than existing alternatives such as resistive heating with electricity or the combustion of diesel and other fuel oils.
