New (Flow) Battery Design Could Help Solar and Wind Energy Power the Grid

[OKIsItJustMe]

15. Or, put another way, it’s about 80% efficient

So, is that high? Is that low? (Compared to what?)

Is it a worse efficiency than a stationary battery? (Why?)

What other grid storage technologies are out there?
How efficient are they?
What is their energy density?
What is their power density?
How responsive are they to momentary fluctuations?
How much do they cost?


http://energy.gov/articles/smoothing-renewable-wind-energy-texas

[font face=Serif][font size=5]Smoothing Renewable Wind Energy in Texas[/font]

April 9, 2013 - 10:57am

The Notrees Wind Storage Demonstration Project is a 36-megawatt energy storage and power management system, which completed testing and became fully operational in December. It shows how energy storage can moderate the intermittent nature of wind by storing excess energy when the wind is blowing and making it available later to the electric grid to meet customer demand.

[font size=3]Last month, a small west Texas town was the site of an important first: The commissioning of North America's largest battery storage project at a wind farm. The Notrees Wind Storage Demonstration Project has implications that may eventually ripple across America, from moving us closer to realizing the potential of renewable energy to improving the reliability and efficiency of the electric grid and increasing our energy independence.

The Notrees Project is one of 16 energy storage demonstration projects supported by the Department under its Recovery Act-funded Smart Grid Energy Storage Demonstration Program. The project received $22 million from DOE, which was matched by $22 million from Duke Energy, for a total of $44 million. The system integration was performed by Xtreme Power.

…

The Notrees project is an important pilot project using storage to help stabilize the frequency of electricity provided to the Energy Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), which manages approximately 85 percent of the state’s electric load. The Notrees project is expected to help facilitate broader adoption of energy solutions by providing a model for industry to follow. Widespread adoption, in turn, should provide alternatives to fossil-fueled energy -- further reducing our dependence on foreign oil -- and additional resources to the grid, ultimately leading to a more stable electricity delivery system and lower cost.

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