What is Energy storage: Definition and 97 Discussions

Energy storage is the capture of energy produced at one time for use at a later time to reduce imbalances between energy demand and energy production.
A device that stores energy is generally called an accumulator or battery.
Energy comes in multiple forms including radiation, chemical, gravitational potential, electrical potential, electricity, elevated temperature, latent heat and kinetic.
Energy storage involves converting energy from forms that are difficult to store to more conveniently or economically storable forms.
Some technologies provide short-term energy storage, while others can endure for much longer.
Bulk energy storage is currently dominated by hydroelectric dams, both conventional as well as pumped. Grid energy storage is a collection of methods used for energy storage on a large scale within an electrical power grid.
Common examples of energy storage are the rechargeable battery, which stores chemical energy readily convertible to electricity to operate a mobile phone; the hydroelectric dam, which stores energy in a reservoir as gravitational potential energy; and ice storage tanks, which store ice frozen by cheaper energy at night to meet peak daytime demand for cooling.
Fossil fuels such as coal and gasoline store ancient energy derived from sunlight by organisms that later died, became buried and over time were then converted into these fuels.
Food (which is made by the same process as fossil fuels) is a form of energy stored in chemical form.

View More On Wikipedia.org
Recent contents Top users
  1. M

    I Energy and sand batteries (thermal energy storage)

    Hi, I'm new here, so apologies if this is covered somewhere else. I'm just playing with the notion of building a sand battery. Sand has a spec heat cap. of 830j/kg degrees K. If I want to heat 1000kg of sand up to 400 deg c, by my rough calculations that will require 332 000 Kj of energy, or...
  2. MajorJinxs

    I Question: To use or not to use? (heating bricks for energy storage)

    I have a Hicks hot water stove that has a Cast Iron fire box. I am looking for Clay bricks or Something like it to retain more heat to hold over night inside the fire box. But i am need help with the difference in materials as far as heat retention per brick for longer holding time. Hicks hot...
  3. shivajikobardan

    Unlocking the Potential of Electric Vehicle Energy Storage: Exploring V2G

    How can electric vehicle deliver energy to grid? This is the one of the few block diagrams that I could see in google. Do you have better one or can you explain this one? If I am not wrong. V2G is basically giving excess charge in your EV back to the grid.
  4. P

    I Compressed gas energy storage formula

    Hi, I’m looking for formula to find the energy stored in a compressed gas for non ideal gases, for example, argon. The formula should also include the thermal energy caused by compression. Thank you in advance.
  5. Danimal

    Potential Energy Storage: Investigating the Mechanics of a Heavy Weight Drop

    I read about a proposal for storing potential energy by hoisting heavy weights that can be dropped when needed to generate electric power. So using the numbers from a hydraulic turbine from Hoover dam, how heavy would a hanging weight have to be to generate 178,000 horsepower as it descended...
  6. dlgoff

    Generac PWRcell energy storage system

    I'm curious about the ads I've been seeing on TV about these Energy Storage Systems. Anyone have any knowledge about them? image from https://sunwatts.com/20-2-kwh-generac-pwrcell-energy-storage-system/ Thanks in advance
  7. T

    Calculating Transient Heat Transfer in Pipes with Thick Walls

    Hi Everyone, I am looking to find how much heat can be stored in a concrete pipe of roughly 0.3-0.4m diameter, and an internal diameter of 0.05m. Air will travel through the internal diameter at 500°C and 17.5bar which will provide the heat for the pipes. This system will then be reversed so...
  8. M

    Engineering Circuit theory: capacitor energy storage and discharging/charging times?

    This is not my homework. I took it upon myself to answer a textbook question for mental stimulation. I wanted to know if someone can verify if these were the correct values that needed to be solved for, process, and final answer, and if not, what needed to be considered. For the initial...
  9. Ameen1985

    Design a compressed air energy storage for a PV plant

    Summary:: Design compressed air energy storage for PV plant [Mentor Note -- Thread moved from a technical forum, so no Homework Template is shown] Hi All For a PV project of 5 kW, we will use a CAES. The preliminary design will consist of a compressor - 2 heat exchanger - Air receiver - air...
  10. nagyn

    Induction stovetop design: am I using these equations correctly?

    I've been told an effective induction stovetop needs to deliver about 1000W of power. I have magnet wire that can tolerate at most about 0.2A of current, and was planning on using a 60Hz wall outlet as my source (obviously I'll need to bring down the outlet current quite a bit). So the energy...
  11. M

    PHES model (pumped hydro energy storage)

    Hello! I am trying to model a small pumped hydro energy storage system, with two closed reservoirs (upper and lower). However, I am assuming here that I only know the volume of both reservoirs, the penstock diameter and length, the height difference between both reservoirs, and the turbine...
  12. TheSlovakEngineer

    Storing Energy as Heat in Vegetable Oil

    Hello, I am writing a blog article about storing solar energy as heat. Can someone credible check this? I calculated I need 185.4 liters of vegetable oil to substitute a 6.4kWh battery if I had the same energy conversion (Tesla says 90%) and energy loss over time (no idea about this value) as...
  13. M

    Superconducting Magnetic Energy Storage (SMES)

    I cam across SMES (Superconducting Magnetic Energy Storage) while researching superconducting and had a few questions I'm hoping to have answered. 1. I have read that SMES devices are primary used in the event for short interruptions in power, and aiding in efficiency in the power grid. Can a...
  14. R

    Does magnetic energy storage with iron cores result in greater energy recovery?

    Hi - On this forum, dgreenheck on May 20, 2013 touched on this area. I will post my question in this manner: Say one has a solenoid with a given number of turns; if the core is air, we know that if we run 10 amps through the circuit, the energy to charge a magnetic field to "B" Tesla is...
  15. L

    Exploring Energy Storage Combinations & Optimal Control Schemes

    I'm currently working on combining energy storage systems like flywheels and batteries to balance consumption/regeneration. I've been looking at using an optimal control scheme so that a cost function can be tailored to our wishes. I'm curious about what other people in this field have been...
  16. physea

    I Pneumatic/hydraulic energy storage

    Hello! Are there any systems that you can store rotational energy into pneumatic or hydraulic energy? Let's say we have a rotational shaft. How can I take energy from it and store it as pneumatic or hydraulic energy? And then re-use it?
  17. I

    Compressed Air Energy Storage System

    Homework Statement I have a CAES system that takes air at a pressure of 102.2kPa and temp of 24 degrees C. It is compressed to 85 bar adiabatically at a rate of 168 kg/s. I know that Cp = 1.005 kJ/kgK and Cv = 0.718 kJ/kgK. The question is - determine the amount of work consumed by the...
  18. R

    Mechanical energy to kinetic energy storage....?

    Can there be a system that utilizes mechanical energy to produce kinetic energy, but "storing" the mechanical energy to be used at a different time for kinetic energy? Like a bike where you pedal but don't move; that mechanical energy is waiting to be "released" by some mechanism *** exclude...
  19. John Morrell

    How are Superconducting Coils charged?

    Superconductors can be used to store energy in the form of magnetic fields, because the current in a superconductor can persist indefinitely. In fact, some large power grids are already using this as a way to regulate power flow in the grid. My question is how are the coils "charged"? How do we...
  20. John Morrell

    I Limits to Superconductor Energy Storage?

    I'm just starting to learn about the physics behind Faraday's laws and magnetic flux and it's gotten me thinking a lot about superconductors. I know that you can store energy in a superconductor in the form of magnetic fields since a current in a superconducting loop will persist indefinitely...
  21. T

    The latest developments in energy storage technology

    Hi all, I'm interested in the latest development in battery technology. as of now, from what I understand, the most advanced tech in energy storage (battery) is created by Tesla, the PowerWall. but, even that, can only store 14kWh per unit. my house consumption is about 10kWh per day. my...
  22. Z

    Automotive Calculation of energy storage system for PEV

    Hi, My teacher asked that i should design a efficient energy storage system for a plug-in electric vehicle. I have no idea how i can use some equations for designing this type of car. The requirements are in below; Test cycle range: 140 miles Test cycle energy: 260Wh/mile at the output of the...
  23. N

    Can Solar Power Be Used to Produce Fuel from Air for Nighttime Energy Storage?

    Hi, I took part in discussions on various forums on viability of large-scale solar power as a primary energy source (on Earth), and on in-situ resource utilization (ISRU) for space missions. One idea discussed for Mars base was to produce CO and LOX from Mars CO2 atmosphere, obviating the need...
  24. anorlunda

    Energy Storage Trains: Novel Old-School Tech with Scalability

    It can be depressing to reject so many ideas for power generation or bulk storage of energy. That makes it refreshing to read today's news about a new method that IMO sounds 100% credible in their claims, and that has a potential scalability that could far exceed pumped hydro...
  25. A

    Superconducting Magnetic Energy Storage device size

    How large would a superconducting magnetic energy storage device be if it were to safely carry 100 kilowatt-hours of energy? How much cryogen (liquid nitrogen) would it consume per hour if the device were made from high-temperature superconducting materials (YBCO or similar).
  26. P

    How do inductors store energy as a magnetic field?

    My last lecture that I have had, was in inductors. My professor said that they resist changes in current, because they store energy inside the inductor as a magnetic field. I know that as soon as you shut off the energy between the inductor, it starts to dissipate, slowly, until it is completely...
  27. Luek

    Energy stored in a LC circuit

    Homework Statement Energy in the circuit remains constant. When the current is flowing, the energy stored is all stored in the inductor. When the current stops flowing, it is because all the energy is stored in the capacitor. Find the fraction of energy stored in the inductor when half of the...
  28. AEGIS

    Adiabatic or Isothermal? Compressed air energy storage

    Hi, I'm doing a high school physics project and am trying to figure out if a certain setup that I'm using is adiabatic or isothermal, in order to determine what equation I can use to calculate the work that my setup does-- the threads I've come across so far only explain the difference, but not...
  29. T

    Is there a purely resistive energy storage load?

    Hi, So is there a type of battery or ANYTHING that stores electric charge or potential that is purely real and does not look reactive in a circuit? Cheers
  30. D

    Flywheel for energy storage

    Hello, I have to design a high inertia flywheel for energy storage. The flywheel must be something like in the drawing I attached. The question is: how can I calculate the Inertia and the stored kinetic energy in this type of flywheel? Can I consider it like a classic "Rim , hub and spokes"...
  31. B

    Solar energy storage systems

    I have seen a lot of effort go into finding cheap, safe, high energy density phase change materials to store energy in the form of heat so power produced during the daytime may be delivered at night time. But I have an issue with storing energy in phase change materials. They rely on chemicals...
  32. Z

    What Is the Typical Energy Efficiency of a Neutron Source?

    Hi All, I have a basic question. I am still new to nuclear engineering so this maybe a stupid question, but what is the typical energy efficiency of a neutron source? (I.E. power of neutrons emitted/power input for neutron generation) I recognize that the efficiency can depend on the neutron...
  33. Evanish

    Some help on Compressed Air Energy Storage

    I was reading this article about different types of energy storage, and it gave this formula for compressed air. Joules = P0V0ln(P/P0) Where P0 = Atmospheric pressure 105 Pa V0 = Volume of air to be compressed in m3. P = Pressure in tank when compressed in Pa. Note: This formula is for...
  34. Z

    Superconducting magnetic energy storage, practical?

    Storing energy in a system means to raise the internal energy of it. A system could be in superconducting phase because the latter has correspondingly lower internal energy. How can energy be stored in a phase that has the lower energy? When energy is injected into the system, it would leave...
  35. M

    Can rechargeable batteries last for 3-4 years with 24h use at 5-15 volts?

    Any ideas about how to get normal size rechargeable batteries that would last longer than 1 year (at least 3-4 years of 24h use) 5 to 15 volts I thought of http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flow_battery but can they be that small and recharged fast enough ( at least a little faster than they...
  36. S

    What factors determine the energy storage capacity of compressed gases?

    What defines how much energy we could store in some gas by compressing it to a certain volume by applying a certain pressure? The compessability coefficient? Is there some gases which allow to store more energy than air? Which gas has the largest compressibility coefficient?
  37. Ryan_m_b

    Real life examples of spring energy storage

    Tonight I've had a deceptively simple question that I've found maddeningly difficult to get an answer to. What I'm looking for is a list of springs with information on how much they can be compressed and how much energy they store. E.g.: Steel spring from company A has dimensions X, Y, Z and...
  38. O

    Spelling Error in Energy Storage Findings?

    Hello to all Experts in Adsorption Physics! Here is a research paper, stating that water adsorbed in a mineral called bentonite can store as much as 30 kJ/g. According our research and findings with such water based latent heat or phase change storage systems, there seem to be a fatal error...
  39. S

    Superconductive energy storage

    Article in Wikipedia states that specific energy of Superconducting magnetic energy storage is limited to 1 - 10 W·h/kg. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Superconducting_magnetic_energy_storage Do I understand it correct that the larger will be radius of SMES ring the less problem with Laurence...
  40. C

    Maximizing KE in flywheel energy storage system (KERPS)

    Homework Statement Describe and explain some of the design features of a flywheel in order for it to store maximum energy. Your answer should include consideration of the flywheel’s shape, the material from which it is made and its design for high angular speeds. Homework Equations...
  41. M

    Energy Balance of Isothermal Energy Storage Tank

    Homework Statement Using unsteady state energy balances, discuss why storing cold water will be better in a larger tank rather than a smaller one. Assume the initial state where the tank is full. The Attempt at a Solution I've tried to make this an algebraic exercise where I created...
  42. S

    Energy Storage in Flywheels

    Energy Storage in Flywheels: I am searching for resources on couple of topics 1) Types of frictions in energy storage flywheels -aerodynamic, rotational ... etc. and 2) Motor/Generator selection for energy storage flywheels. Any links or references will be appreciated.
  43. Mechatron

    Neodymium Magnets as energy storage?

    Neodymium magnets have an energy capacity of 512 kJ/m3 or 0,512 MJ / cubic liters. That's equivalent to 0.0085 kWh or 8.5 Wh each 1 dm^3. You could recharge an mp3 player for 34 hours, and then you'd have to throw away your magnet. That's still 468 times less than the capacity of a Lead-acid...
  44. S

    Maximizing Energy Efficiency with Flywheel Energy Storage

    hey everyone. Merry Christmas. I am going to design a mechanical system, flywheel energy storage. The general idea is 'collect all the tidy rotational movement and release the power once reach certain torque level. This is quite similar to Self-retracting tape measurer or scroll spring toy...
  45. Z

    Superconducting Capacitor for Energy Storage?

    Hi I was about to fall asleep last night and was thinking about breakdown voltage, when electrons are pulled from the surface of a conducting plate and form a channel that discharges a capacitor. This is called a vacuum arc, some other keywords are thermionic emission and work function...
  46. P

    Sphygmomonometers energy storage?

    So energy can only be converted... So when you squeeze the bulb on a blood pressure cuff, you are applying kinetic energy. Then the cuff fills with air and constricts the arm. Is the energy in the cuff then stored potential energy, or because it is actually applying the force to the arm, is it...
  47. R

    Is a fuel cell technically an energy storage device?

    I've heard fuel cells being called energy storage devices. However, unlike batteries, they only convert energy. They don't store anything unless you consider the brief moment of converting chemical energy to electrical energy storage time? Are there fuel cell types that store let's say hydrogen...
  48. P

    Overcoming the Roadblock of Energy Storage: A Look Into Sustainable Alternatives

    I view energy storage as the biggest road block to implementing sustainable alternative energies. I want to see this happen, so I'm thinking energy storage is what I should go into. I view it as very versatile, and also as a growing industry. I also think there are inevitable...
  49. M

    Magnets/ Magnetic fields energy storage?

    Very strong magnets like neodymium can create a very powerful force! I wonder the amount of energy supplied when there created to be magnetized, in a sense don't they store energy and it is converted"demagnetized" over time? It came from the electricity used to create that magnetic field...
  50. T

    Electromagnetics - parallel plate capacitor energy storage

    Electromagnetics -- parallel plate capacitor energy storage Homework Statement A parallel-plate capacitor 0.5m by 1.0m has a separation distance of 2cm and a voltage difference of 10V. Find the stored energy, assuming that ε=εo. If a 200-volt potential is applied in the capacitor, (a)...
Back
Top