On solar thermal processing and retorting of oil shale

The general concept and a recent paper on solar oil shale retorting are critically reviewed. It is concluded that a recent paper by Berber and Fletcher (Energy 13. 13, 1988) contains erroneously high oil yields and provides no new valid information related to solar oil shale process design or economic evaluation. A brief examination of solar retorting indicates that it makes little sense. A few guidelines are presented concerning what kind of research might be useful to make a more rigorous evaluation.