How disused coal mines and hydrogen hold key to alternative energy storage
ABritish Geological Survey project to source geothermal energy from a closed mine in Glasgow and plans to capture wind power mid-generation are some of the alternative energy storage ideas put forward at the ERA Vision 2018 Midlands energy conference.
With renewables like solar, wind and hydro on the rise, capturing excess power generated can be a tricky task – making the advent of alternative energy storage technologies crucial to a carbon-free future.
When demand drops, excess energy produced by PVs and turbines can go to waste, but scientists are looking at new ways of storing it that go beyond traditional batteries.
These include thermal, compressed air energy and pumped hydropower, which were some of the options discussed at the Energy Research Accelerator programme’s ERA Vision 2018 Midlands energy conference last week.
Energy storage alternatives for wind
Researchers at the University of Nottingham are looking into different ways of storing wind and hydrogen.
Until now, much of the focus for ensuring renewable energy is available on demand has been battery storage, but Professor Seamus Garvey believes this is a “hasty” solution that doesn’t consider other alternatives.
