Sichuan charging facility teaches compressed air energy storage

How can compressed air energy storage improve the stability of China's power grid?

The intermittent nature of renewable energy poses challenges to the stability of the existing power grid. Compressed Air Energy Storage (CAES) that stores energy in the form of high-pressure air has the potential to deal with the unstable supply of renewable energy at large scale in China.

What is compressed air energy storage (CAES)?

Compressed air energy storage (CAES) is an effective solution for balancing this mismatch and therefore is suitable for use in future electrical systems to achieve a high penetration of renewable energy generation.

What are the advantages of non-afterburning compressed air energy storage power generation?

The non-afterburning compressed air energy storage power generation technology possesses advantages such as large capacity, long life cycle, low cost, and fast response speed. The project makes full use of underground salt cavity resources with compressed air as the main medium.

Should China develop a CAES power plant based on underground air storage?

Based on China's current national conditions, several conclusions are drawn from this review. First, grid-level (100 MW and above) CAES power plants based on underground air storage are the first choice for developing CAES in China due to its mature technology and available geographical conditions.

How is air purified during charging?

During charging, the purified air is compressed via multistage compression, cooled by the stored cold energy, and recirculating cold air. The air then flows through a cryoturbine or Joule–Thomson throttling valve and becomes liquid air, which is stored in a cryogenic (Cyro) tank (∼78 K and near-ambient pressure).

What is a CAES energy storage system?

CAES is a relatively mature energy storage technology that stores electrical energy in the form of high-pressure air and then generates electricity through the expansion of high-pressure air when needed. It has many advantages such as high reliability, low energy storage cost, flexible layout, and negligible environmental impact .