Non-Battery Storage

Matt Grace
Stuart Becker

Why Non-Battery Storage?

Batteries are composed of toxic materials, have
low power density, and arent very scalable.
Economics and the energy-demand curve
Peak loads are the greatest expense of
electricity generation (especially in CA)
Allows continuous harnessing of renewable
energy for later use

Produces energy potential during off-peak

hours and electricity during high demand

Energy-Demand Curve

Capacitors
Store charge in electric field

2+ conductor plates separated by a dielectric

Variety of uses to supplement normal energy sources

Maintain power during battery switch

Release large amounts of power on demand

Power conditioning and power factor correction

Supercapacitors

Bridge the gap between

batteries and capacitors
Three main types
o Double-layer
o Pseudocapacitors
o Hybrid combination
Thousands of uses
o Electric tools
o Public transport
o 2010 US sales
reached $400M
o No AC uses (polarity)

Supercapacitors

Graphene
supercapacitors may be
the future
o Extremely porous
o Biodegradable
o Still in lab
development
An electric vehicle sized
version could charge in
only 16 seconds
Cheap manufacturing
methods are in research
o DVD burner light

Pumped Hydroelectric
Bath County, VA
3000 MW plant
built in 1985
1,262 foot height
differential
Maximum 13.5
million gallons
per minute flow
75% efficient
Note: different from previously mentioned hydroelectric plant.
This is essentially a closed loop process with a net energy
loss.

Pumped Hydroelectric - Subsea

100-1000 MW
400-800 meter depth
In development, no
active plants

Offshore windprovides opportunity

for baseload
Offshore oil and gas
industry operation
potential

Compressed Air Energy Storage

(CAES)
Variety of scales
Utility size plants are
2-320 MW
Only commercially
viable option now is
underground storage
Typically use empty
salt mines, caverns
Three types: adiabatic, diabatic, and isothermal
Diabatic: 25-50% efficient, requires natural gas of similar
sized power plant

Compressed Air Energy Storage

(CAES)
Three utility plants

290 MW; Germany; 1978

110 MW; Alabama; 1991

2 MW; Texas; 2012

4+ others in progress
At 300 MW, capacity cost is
~$630/kW ($200M total)
Operating costs are between
50-300 $/kW-year
Electricity price is 36-109
cents/kWh

Compressed Air Energy Storage

(CAES)
New technologies being
tested and expanded
SustainX stores air in large
pipes w/ ship diesel engine

1.65 MW for >$10M

Isothermal process

Scalable, distributed

LightSail Energy

Steel tanks

General Compression

Wind turbine compressor

Thermal Energy Storage (TES)

Uses energy to heat or cool a thermal reservoir (well
insulated)
Store energy during off-peak energy demand, withdraw
energy during peak demand
Media of storage includes: water (high thermal
capacity), ice, salts, concrete, aquifer

Thermal Energy Storage (TES)

Closed loop system provides cool water for cooling during

the day and cools that water during off-peak times (at night).

Thermal Energy Storage (TES)

Available for commercial applications (DN Tanks)

Tanks are either buried or have installed insulation

Aesthetically appealing architecture

Capacity ranges from 50,000 to 105,000,000 gallons
Thermal efficiency rating ~ 90% (conservative)

Electrical Thermal Storage (ETS)

Alternative to conventional central heating systems

Heat high-density ceramic bricks during off-peak hours
Bricks radiate stored heat throughout the next day
Commercial and residential applications
Used mainly in Europe
Advantages

Disadvantages

Waste heat keeps

building warm at
night
Electrical draw at
non-peak hours
Off the natural gas
grid
Useful if you own PV
solar

Must pre-set
thermostat
Heating is prepaid
for - cant change
your plans
Electricity typically
more expensive than
gas

Radioisotope Thermoelectric
Generator (RTG)
Fuel source: decay of
plutonium-238 dioxide
Pu-238 provides heat
source for TEG
Electricity generated with
thermocouples
Two different metal plates
connected in junctions
Junctions at two different
temperatures

6 to 7% efficient
Produces 100-125 Watts
electrical power

Radioisotope Thermoelectric
Generator
Applications
NASA Spacecraft
Lighthouses (Russia)
Arctic data collection
facilities (US)

Advantages
No moving parts
No necessary
maintenance
Lifetime of 2-20 years
Can be operated
without any human
contact
Disadvantages
Safety with
radioactive fuel
Limited fuel supply

Other Forms of Non-Battery Storage

Magnetic Storage (inductor version of capacitor)

Rail Storage (rock version of hydroelectric)
Cryogenic storage (liquid air version of thermal)
Power-to-gas (electrolysis)
Flywheels
Springs

Comparisons

Comparisons

Questions
Which of these technologies do you see growing the
most in the following years?
Can you think of any applications currently dominated
by batteries that may be better off switching to a
different energy storage medium?
Do you think any of these technologies will help
renewable energy become more attractive?
What are possible reasons that we should stick with
traditional batteries over these technologies?

Sources: Books, Journal and

Newspaper Articles
ASCE - Task Committee on Pumped Storage. Hydroelectric Pumped Storage Technology : International Experience.
New York City: American Society of Civil Engineers, 1996. Print.
Barnes, Frank S., and Jonah G. Levine. "Chapter 3: Pumped Hydroelectric Energy Storage."Large Energy Storage
Systems Handbook. Boca Raton, FL: CRC, 2011. N. pag. Print.
Chatzivasileiadi, Aikaterini, Eleni Ampatzi, and Ian Knight. "Characteristics of Electrical Energy Storage
Technologies and Their Applications in Buildings." Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 25 (2013): 81430. Print.
Succar, Samir. "Chapter 5: Compressed Air Energy Storage." Large Energy Storage Systems Handbook. Boca
Raton, FL: CRC, 2011. 111-52. Print.

Sources: Websites
http://www.mpoweruk.com/alternatives.htm
http://batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/comparing_the_battery_with_other_power_sources
http://gizmodo.com/these-new-graphene-supercapacitors-could-finally-power-1463259679
http://subhydro.com/

http://cleantechnica.com/2013/05/21/energy-storage-on-the-bottom-of-the-ocean-new-pumpedhydroelectric-power-storage-design/
https://www.dom.com/about/stations/hydro/bath-county-pumped-storage-station.jsp
http://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/standard/physics/energy_matters/generation_of_electricity/revision/3/
http://www.nrel.gov/analysis/pdfs/drury_coopt_caes_050411.pdf
http://spectrum.ieee.org/energywise/energy/the-smarter-grid/compressed-air-energy-storagemakes-a-comeback
http://www.dntanks.com/storage-types/thermal-energy-storage/thermal-energy-storagetanks/#benefits
http://www.steffes.com/off-peak-heating/ets.html
http://www.thegreenage.co.uk/storage-heaters-still-place-home/
http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2013/02/are-graphene-micro-supercapacitors-an-evgamechanger/
http://construction.com/ce/articles/0803edit-5.asp
http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/rps/rtg.cfm
http://large.stanford.edu/courses/2013/ph241/jiang1/