The future of solar fuels: when could they become competitive?
Solar energy driven processes with H2O and CO2 as basic feedstocks can produce “solar fuels” that could substitute their fossil based counterparts. This article summarizes the main findings of a techno-economic analysis of systems that can generate different types of fuels with renewable energy as starting point. These “renewable fuels” could potentially play a key role in future energy systems, both as a storage medium in the power sector and as an energy carrier in e.g. the transport sector, or deliver fundamental building blocks for the chemical industry. We determine whether, how, and when renewable fuels might become competitive alternatives for fossil fuels.
R. J. Detz, J. N. H. Reek and B. C. C. van der Zwaan
