L R AS Published on Sunday 17 May 2020 - n° 322 - Categories:other methods
A new gravity energy storage system
The young Scottish company Gravitricity proposes a new system: a 16 m high platform uses energy to raise a mass
in a shaft of 150 to 1,500 m. It discharges the electricity thus "stored" by freeing the mass to run an electric generator. The mass used can range from 500 to 5,000 tonnes. The discharged electricity could supply 30,000 households in the vicinity for two hours.
The installation can meet the demand for full power in less than a second (as fast as a lithium battery).
A pilot project will be built in October on an industrial site in Port of Leith (Scotland). Scheduled for completion in December, the 250 kW prototype will be connected to the port's power grid and its response speed for grid stabilisation will be assessed.
The pilot system will use two 25-tonne weights suspended by steel cables. The two-month test programme will confirm the modelling and provide valuable data for this first large-scale 4 MW project, which will be launched in 2021.
https://www.pv-magazine.com/2020/05/11/storing-wind-and-solar-with-new-gravity-based-system/
PV Magazine of 11 May
