ETH researchers are using a new technology to generate very high temperatures

Researchers at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich (Ethereum) They developed a technology called a heat trap that absorbs sunlight and can thus achieve very high temperatures. according to Media release He was able to reach temperatures of more than a thousand degrees Celsius using this method. These high temperatures are required to produce cement, minerals and various chemicals in energy-intensive industrial processes. The team, led by Emiliano Casati, a scientist in the Energy Systems and Processes Engineering Group, and Aldo Steinfeld, a professor of renewable energy sources, developed this system, the key element of which is a quartz rod. If irradiated with intense light, it turns into heat with only a small heat loss. Previous experiments using heat traps reached temperatures of 170 degrees Celsius. Solar energy systems typically operate at temperatures up to 600°C.

The researchers' goal is to one day be able to use the method to decarbonize energy-intensive industries. “To combat climate change, we need to decarbonize energy in all areas,” Emiliano Casati was quoted as saying in the statement. “When you think of energy, you often think only of electricity, but we actually use about half of our energy in the form of heat.” Further analyzes are being planned, including an analysis of the economic feasibility of this technology. m/ib