Photon is the energy source that drives solar thermochemistry. Photon-based radiative transfer in the reactor space is an essential mode of energy transfer. However, there often exists mismatch between the radiative and chemical fields in direct solar thermochemical processes, which can lead to ultra-high temperature gradients and high carbonization rates. While, the vicious cycle that exists between high temperature gradients and higher carbonization rates could severely limit the thermochemical efficiency. To improve the efficiency and reduce the temperature gradient and carbonization, inspired by the superior performance of diatom photosynthesis, a biomimetic radiation-regulated reactor is proposed. The paper establishes multi-field model of steam methane reforming, and analyzes the energy conversion processes at pore-scale. In numerical analyses, compared to the conventional reactor, the biomimetic reactor enhances the light forward scattering in fore-end and the backward scattering in rear-end, which increases the light absorption efficiency by 6.8% and reduces the temperature gradient by 41.3%. In experimental investigation, the methane conversion and the solar-fuel efficiency of the biomimetic reactor is 48.6% and 44.0%, which is increased by 11.5% and 10.7% respectively. It also demonstrates high efficiency and stability under long operating conditions. The biomimetic reactor provides a new strategy for industrial solar-driven methane conversion.

中文翻译：

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仿生低碳化高效的太阳能驱动热化学储能反应器设计灵感来自硅藻卓越的光合作用能力


光子是驱动太阳能热化学的能源。反应堆空间中基于光子的辐射传输是能量转移的一种基本模式。然而，在直接太阳能热化学过程中，辐射场和化学场之间经常存在失配，这可能导致超高的温度梯度和高碳化速率。同时，高温梯度和较高碳化速率之间存在的恶性循环可能会严重限制热化学效率。为了提高效率并减少温度梯度和碳化，受到硅藻光合作用优异性能的启发，提出了一种仿生辐射调节反应器。本文建立了蒸汽甲烷重整的多领域模型，并在孔隙尺度上分析了能量转换过程。数值分析中，与传统反应器相比，仿生反应器增强了前端的光前向散射和后端的后向散射，使光吸收效率提高了 6.8%，温度梯度降低了 41.3%。在实验研究中，仿生反应器的甲烷转化率和太阳能燃料效率分别为 48.6% 和 44.0%，分别提高了 11.5% 和 10.7%。它还在长时间运行条件下表现出高效率和稳定性。仿生反应器为工业太阳能驱动的甲烷转化提供了一种新策略。