Month: August 2017

Why is energy storage pushed as needing an ROI

Posted on by Linda

Why is energy storage pushed as needing an ROI but water tanks are sold to help the environment.

It is interesting that many people looking at battery storage look on it as an investment with a ROI when this philosophy isn’t used for any other household appliances. Nobody ever asks what is the ROI of a fridge or a car.

When water shortages are an issue, people are encouraged to purchase water tanks to supplement water storage supplies, however there is never mention of ROI for these, possibly because if water tanks were purchased to reduce the cost of water rather than to protect the environment they would never pay for themselves. Continue reading “Why is energy storage pushed as needing an ROI” →

GridEdge and the FZSoNick battery

Posted on by Linda

GridEdge is a company that delivers both off grid and on grid energy supply to all levels of consumer demand. 

GridEdge has the Australian and New Zealand distributor rights to the FZSoNick sodium nickel chloride battery which has superior operating capabilities, compared to any other battery technology, currently available. The SoNick battery operates at a wider range of temperatures compared to other batteries and has the advantage of being a non-toxic, environmentally friendly battery that is much more compact, compared to many other batteries set up currently on the market or proposed in the near future. Continue reading “GridEdge and the FZSoNick battery” →

NASA robot catches fire

Posted on by Linda

On June 14, 2016, four researchers at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory were preparing to ship a waist-high, ape-like robot named RoboSimian off-site. The robot had been built to rescue people from dangerous situations that were to difficult for human rescuers. The scientists swapped one lithium-ion battery for a fresh one, then left for lunch to let the new power supply charge.

 

 

Unfortunately, the new lithium ion battery  malfunctioned and went into thermal runaway. Luckily the researchers were no longer in close proximity to the robot so no-one was hurt, although NASA have said there have been a number of these close calls.

A number of attempts were made to put out the fire but eventually the robot was wheeled outside and allowed to burn itself out.
Continue reading “NASA robot catches fire” →

Molten salt energy storage for South Australia

Posted on by Linda

South Australia approves 150 MW concentrated solar thermal plant

Although , using molten salt,  this is a different technological process to our SoNick, sodium nickel chloride batteries but adds credence to the benefits of using molten salt as a storage medium for batteries. Unlike the lithium batteries that are so popular at the moment molten salt batteries are non-toxic, cannot catch fire and go into thermal runaway and are recyclable at end of life with current processes not hopefully at some time in the future.
South Australia approves 150MW concentrated solar thermal plant

South Australia has made a commitment to concentrated solar thermal, the towering clean energy storage solution seen by many as a serious contender for utility-scale moderator as intermittent sources of energy replace coal and gas generation.

The Aurora Solar Energy Project located in Port Augusta, about 300km north of Adelaide, will incorporate eight hours of storage or 1,100 MWh, allowing it to operate like a conventional coal or gas power station. Continue reading “Molten salt energy storage for South Australia” →

Climate of the Nation 2017 Australian attitudes on climate change

Posted on by Linda

 

 

  1. Climate Change: The majority of Australians agree that climate change is occurring (71 %) and accept the scientific consensus that human activity is the main cause (57 %).
  2. Action: The majority of Australians want Australia to address climate change because they see strong economic, environmental and social benefits and opportunities in the shift to a clean economy (73 %).

Continue reading “Climate of the Nation 2017 Australian attitudes on climate change” →

Redflow welcomes safety-first fire rules for batteries

Posted on by Linda

 

Just like GridEdge’s sodium nickel chloride battery technology Redflow’s flow battery is well suited to Australia’s varying weather conditions and doesn’t have the fire risks that lithium ion batteries do.

Along with GridEdge and many other non-lithium battery companies Australian battery company Redflow Limited (ASX:RFX) has welcomed proposed new regulations that prioritise fire safety for the deployment of lithium-based batteries inside homes. Continue reading “Redflow welcomes safety-first fire rules for batteries” →

What is a Molten Salt Battery

Posted on by Linda

Molten Salt Battery

When it comes to green energy, the intermittent nature of renewable sources like wind, solar, and tidal power presents a difficult problem for the electrical grid management. Peak energy production often doesn’t correlate well with peak energy demand, necessitating a means of storing excess energy when consumption is low. As renewable energy sources become more prevalent, and the need to curb fossil fuel emissions continues to increase, finding a new grid energy storage solution has never been more important. It is the final piece of technology required to bring about wide scale adoption of renewable energy sources like solar panels and wind turbines.

  • What is a Molten Salt Battery?

Molten salt batteries, especially liquid metal batteries, are increasingly gaining interest from the energy community as a grid energy storage solution for renewable energy sources. Combining high energy and power densities, long life times, and low cost materials, they have the potential to meet the unique demands of grid scale energy storage. A molten salt battery is a class of battery that uses a molten salts electrolyte. The components of molten salt batteries are solid at room temperature, allowing them to be stored inactive for long periods time. During activation, the cathode, anode and electrolyte layers separate due to their relative densities and immiscibility. The molten salt layer in the middle serves as an electrolyte with a high ionic conductivity, and is the medium through which the ionic species travel as the battery charges and discharges.

  • Advantages of Molten Salt Batteries

Continue reading “What is a Molten Salt Battery” →

SoNick battery BMS or Battery Management System

Posted on by Linda

Some Energy storage batteries have a built-in BMS or Battery Management or Monitoring System to monitor how a battery operates and how it talks to the grid. This is an electronic system that manages a batteries function by protecting the battery from operating outside its “Safe Operating Area” both for the batteries health and to prevent any accidents that the battery could cause by malfunctioning.

The internal BMS monitors and controls all charging and safety aspects of the battery. The BMS will also keep you informed of the state of the battery so you can monitor the batteries health.

When integrated with other SoNick batteries the SoNick BMS synchronises the operation of the battery bank so that all batteries work together as one large battery. Continue reading “SoNick battery BMS or Battery Management System” →