Electrical Energy Storage
5 min read
plays a crucial role in our daily lives. However, producing and distributing electricity is a real challenge. To overcome these obstacles, a variety of storage techniques are used to conserve electricity and reuse it later. This educational video presents some of these methods.
Electrical energy storage
Electricity = the movement of electrons. This can't be stored. So we have to convert it into a different form to store its energy.
Example 1
Batteries
Example 2
Compressed air
(CAES). This is an alternative to batteries, consisting of tanks containing compressed air.
Example 3
Inertia wheels. They convert electrical energy into
, then convert it back into electrical energy when needed.
Example 4
Electricity can also be used to produce
that is stored in a
cell.
Another system: pumped storage. Here, the electricity is used to pump water from one reservoir to another, higher one.
When it is sent back down again, the water drives a turbine that generates electricity.
However, these solutions can be expensive or not efficient enough.
So scientists are working to improve them, since global demand is increasing and there is not enough production to meet needs.
Example: individual, “stationary” storage batteries. Used to supply individual households or neighborhoods, they store the electrical energy generated and offset the intermittent nature of renewable
production.
Summary:
- Several storage methods: Batteries/Compressed air energy storage/Inertia wheels/Hydrogen fuel cells/Pumped storage.
- They still need to be improved because: Often expensive/Sometimes inefficient/Increasing demand/Intermittency of production.
Energy Storage and transport
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