| By Barbara Vergetis Lundin |  Comment |  Forward |  Twitter |  Facebook |  LinkedIn |
Southern Research Institute (SRI) and the U.S. Department of Energy
(DOE) have signed a jointly-funded cooperative agreement as part of the
DOE SunShot Initiative's new Concentrating Solar Power: Efficiently
Leveraging Equilibrium Mechanisms for Engineering New Thermochemical
Storage (CSP: ELEMENTS) funding program, which supports the development
of high-temperature thermochemical energy storage (TCES) systems that
enable concentrating solar power plants to produce electricity in the
evenings and even overnight when the sun is no longer shining.
CSP technology employs mirrors that concentrate reflected sunlight onto receivers containing heat transfer fluids. From there, the fluids are used to heat water, which, in turn, generates steam used to power turbines and produce electricity. By adding thermal storage, these facilities are able to operate at significantly higher capacity factors and produce approximately double the energy for the same size power facility. The production of electricity can also be shifted to occur at the same time as peak power demand, making the electricity much more valuable.
The SRI project will develop a TCES system that uses a low-cost calcium-based sorbent in a reversible closed-loop endothermic-exothermic chemical reaction cycle. The system stores energy during mid-day when sunlight is plentiful and releases energy when the sun is no longer shining, allowing for electricity to be produced in a more stable and consistent fashion. The TCES system is projected to cost about one-fourth as much as current state-of-the-art molten salt storage systems, and will be able to store the same amount of energy in a system about one-sixth the size.
"Utilizing these low-cost regenerative calcium-based sorbents, researched for carbon dioxide capture in coal-based power generation facilities, leverages existing knowledge bases and is an innovative transfer of technology," said Dr. Santosh Gangwal, principal investigator on the project. "Through rigorous material development, we can refine these sorbents to perform successfully in this environment throughout the entire 30 year life of a CSP plant."
Furthermore, while molten salt storage systems can only operate up to about 550 degrees Celsius, the TCES system can operate sustainably up to 900 degrees.
"As the next generation of CSP plants moves towards higher operating temperatures to achieve higher conversion efficiencies, a new generation of high-temperature storage needs to be developed to allow these facilities to continue to provide power in a cost-effective and dispatchable manner," said Ryan Melsert, co-principal investigator of the project.
For more:
- see this report
Related Article:
ARPA-E funds allocated to reduce methane emissions, develop thermal management systems
Read more about: concentrating solar power, DOE SunShot Initiative
CSP technology employs mirrors that concentrate reflected sunlight onto receivers containing heat transfer fluids. From there, the fluids are used to heat water, which, in turn, generates steam used to power turbines and produce electricity. By adding thermal storage, these facilities are able to operate at significantly higher capacity factors and produce approximately double the energy for the same size power facility. The production of electricity can also be shifted to occur at the same time as peak power demand, making the electricity much more valuable.
The SRI project will develop a TCES system that uses a low-cost calcium-based sorbent in a reversible closed-loop endothermic-exothermic chemical reaction cycle. The system stores energy during mid-day when sunlight is plentiful and releases energy when the sun is no longer shining, allowing for electricity to be produced in a more stable and consistent fashion. The TCES system is projected to cost about one-fourth as much as current state-of-the-art molten salt storage systems, and will be able to store the same amount of energy in a system about one-sixth the size.
"Utilizing these low-cost regenerative calcium-based sorbents, researched for carbon dioxide capture in coal-based power generation facilities, leverages existing knowledge bases and is an innovative transfer of technology," said Dr. Santosh Gangwal, principal investigator on the project. "Through rigorous material development, we can refine these sorbents to perform successfully in this environment throughout the entire 30 year life of a CSP plant."
Furthermore, while molten salt storage systems can only operate up to about 550 degrees Celsius, the TCES system can operate sustainably up to 900 degrees.
"As the next generation of CSP plants moves towards higher operating temperatures to achieve higher conversion efficiencies, a new generation of high-temperature storage needs to be developed to allow these facilities to continue to provide power in a cost-effective and dispatchable manner," said Ryan Melsert, co-principal investigator of the project.
For more:
- see this report
Related Article:
ARPA-E funds allocated to reduce methane emissions, develop thermal management systems
No comments:
Post a Comment