Energy Storage

SMA’s Home Solutions segment was particularly badly hit as the PV inverter manufacturer struggled to meet the demand due to the shortage of materials. The sales and results in the first half of 2022 were therefore significantly worse than in 2021. The company now wants to take “a series of measures to improve its long-term ability to deliver.”

A new study shows that hydrogen could be produced for as little as AUD 2.85 ($1.98) per kilogram, supporting Frontier Energy’s plans to make green hydrogen from a 500 MW solar project it is developing in Western Australia.

New research from Ireland shows that electrification could lead to more efficient utilization of renewable energy and the national transmission network.

Mitsubishi Power Americas and Magnum Development are set to begin construction on a 300 GWh underground storage facility in the US state of Utah. It will consist of two caverns with capacities of 150 GWh, to store hydrogen generated by an adjacent 840 MW hydrogen-capable gas turbine combined cycle power plant.

Wood Mackenzie said it expects the United States and China to represent 75% of global energy storage demand in a highly consolidated market.

Israeli researchers have developed a device that combines a reversible Si anode with halide cathodes and uses hybrid electrolytes to enable cell recharging. In the proposed system configuration, silicon is dissolved during the battery discharge process, and upon charging, elemental silicon is deposited.

Scientists in China evaluated the prospects for various approaches to integrating both solar generation and energy storage in a single device. Their work outlines several ways this could increase the efficiency of solar energy storage, and recommends that future research on this area should focus on integration of materials with the highest specific capacity for energy storage, alongside the dual function of solar energy harvesting.

Australian startup Hysata is seeking to commercialize a breakthrough made at the University of Wollongong which CEO Paul Barrett describes as a “brand new category of electrolyzer” with 95% system efficiency.

Peak solar production does not coincide with peak heating demand, and a team of researchers determined that meeting this demand with renewables alone will require massive deployment of renewables on top of existing fossil generation.

Scientists in Denmark have developed a storage technology that utilizes large underground water balloons and the pressure of the soil to activate a turbine to generate power. They are currently building a first 10 m x 10 m demonstrator to select critical technologies related to the membrane and to the construction of the “movable hill” that will form the terrain part of the battery.