Zirconia nanoparticles embedded spinel selective absorber coating for high performance in open atmospheric condition

•High selective and thermal stable absorber coatings developed by low cost method.•Embedded ZrO2 nanoparticles into a spinel matrix which lead to thermal stability.•A novel tandem absorber system has been developed with α/ε = 0.97/0.17 @500 °C.•The Layer was characterized by µXRD & XPS to confirm the spinel phase and ZrO2.•The absorber developed by a facile route demonstrates stability up to 700 °C in air.

Spectrally selective absorber coatings which have high thermal stable at temperatures ≥ 500 °C in open air atmosphere are more beneficial for all types of concentrated solar thermal power (CSP) applications. In order to achieve this, high crystalline zirconia nanoparticles are synthesized via Lyothermal process were embedded into a spinel matrix to form a novel composite solar selective absorber layer (Mn-Cu-Co-Ox-ZrO2). To enhance the absorption substantially, an ink-bottle type mesoporous MgF2 nanoparticles are synthesized via novel route have been deposited further. As a result, a novel tandem absorber system (Mn-Cu-Co-Ox-ZrO2/MgF2) has been developed with α/ε = 0.97/0.17 @500 °C. The composite layer comprises of tetragonal phase Zirconia particles which were uniformly distributed in the spinel matrix responsible for high optical performance and high thermal stability. These properties are thoroughly investigated by micro X-ray diffraction (µXRD), X-ray photoelectron spectrometer (XPS) and Elemental mapping by Energy filtered transmission electron microscope (EF-TEM) technique. This novel composite absorber layer developed by a facile route exhibits superior stability up to 700 °C ideally in the air makes a promising advancement for the cost-effective power generation by CSP systems.