Hyper-concentrating solar device reaches 1,000°C
American energy company Heliogen has successfully concentrated sunlight to achieve a temperature of over 1,000°C, high enough to be useful for critical industrial processes.
The process was completed at Heliogen’s commercial solar thermal facility in Lancaster, California, using advanced computer vision software to hyper-accurately align a large array of mirrors to reflect sunlight to a single target.
Whilst concentrating sunlight is not a new idea, Heliogen claims to be the first to commercially achieve temperatures over 1,000°C. Previous attempts at concentrating sunlight have reached only half of that.
Heliogen now hopes that its concentrated solar technology can be used to replace fossil fuels in critical industrial processes, including the production of cement, steel, and petrochemicals, dramatically reducing greenhouse gas emissions from these activities.
‘The world has a limited window to dramatically reduce greenhouse gas emissions,’ said Bill Gross, CEO and Founder of Heliogen. ‘We’ve made great strides in deploying clean energy in our electricity system. But electricity accounts for less than a quarter of global energy demand.’
The company is currently prioritising working with the cement industry, where its technology can replace fossil fuels used for the calcination process, where crushed limestone is heated and broken down into lime and carbon dioxide. This process is responsible for approximately 40% of the cement industry’s carbon footprint.
Heliogen also hopes that, with continued innovation, it will be able to reach temperatures over 1,500°C – hot enough to be useful in the creation of green hydrogen.
