This report shares lessons learnt during the design and construction of an electrically charged thermal energy storage system.
Report extract
Due to recent increases in the cost of gas for industrial and commercial process heating applications, cheaper alternatives are being sought by industry to reduce the associated costs. One such alternative leverages benefits from low-cost renewable energy generation, such as wind and solar photovoltaic, in combination with the ability to store this energy when in abundance, in a suitably ‘energy-dense’ and economically advantageous medium, such as quartzite rock.
Research has been conducted into the application of Electrically Charged Thermal Energy Storage (ECTES) systems for commercial and industrial heating applications. Research activities include the construction of an industrial scale prototype. The system consists of a quartzite rock filled stainless steel vessel. This figure shows the vessel once it had been installed inside a weatherproof housing, filled with rocks, but prior to sealing and completing the final layers of wall and roof insulation.