The world need for electricity is increasing, and this makes it into energy solar ed wind increasingly essential (also considering the lower impact on the environment). As you know, the intermittent nature of clean energy sources versus fossil fuels continues to be a difficulty: this is why the need to store energy in power grids is becoming increasingly vital.
Among the storage systems, the main one is represented by batteries: problematic due to the current lack of materials and supply chains. Just think of that of lithium (I'm talking about it here), marred by the geopolitical situation. China is thinking about diversifying its efforts in this direction, and has thought ... about compressed air.
The largest compressed air energy storage plant in the world
Just last week, the world's largest compressed air energy storage system was connected to the Chinese power grid. It is located in the city of Dalian, and offers energy storage without the need for litigation and at relatively low cost.
The result took years of development by theChinese Academy of Sciences. Today, this first 100 MW plant is operational and will provide electricity to 40.000-60.000 households during peak consumption. The CAES compressed air power plant can generate more than 132 million kWh of electricity per year, reducing CO2 emissions by 109.000 tons per year.
How CAES works
A traditional compressed air energy storage system works when the demand for electricity is reduced: with renewables the air is compressed and stored in large storage caves. At peak electricity demand, compressed air is released from the storage caves and drives turbines for power generation.
The advantages of CAES: large storage capacity, low capital cost, long life, safety and environmental friendliness. It is recognized as one of the most promising technologies for large-scale energy storage. However, the application and promotion of the technology was conditioned by the presence of large storage caves.
China's 100 MW CAES project in Zhangjiakou uses an artificial air storage tank to improve energy storage density and reduce dependence on large storage caverns.
It is definitely something to keep an eye on.
