Thermal energy storage is temporary energy storage or removal of heat for use at a later date. Thermal energy storage that are common at this time is useful for ice storage move heat when needed. Ice is made at night when peak loads. This method is recommended and developed by the u.s. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy Efficiency program and Environmental Design to arouse the development of building design-capable high that is safe for the environment.
The advantage of making ice at night include: after passing the peak load electricity have lower fees so that cheaper, and energy to cool the ice on a cold night is faster and requires less energy, so the ice can be produced in an amount more. It can be said that in this way, a lot of energy from the power plant was saved while more energy is released from storage for some time.
Many renewable energy as a source of energy which cannot always be utilized because a limitation (solar energy, wind, etc.), but can be used to fill in the supply of energy while other sources of energy are stored for use on electric transmission network, or the energy source used to fill out the electrical system network when required. If the loss of energy when the distribution and costs can be set, then this type of energy can become a mainstay.
Solar energy, even though it currently cannot be used throughout the day, but currently have designed solar energy satellites are useful for capturing the energy of the Sun via satellite through outer space and didstribusikan to Earth in different ways so that the solar energy utilization can become longer with the amount of energy taken bigger (because the Sun's energy in space greater than solar energy that has touched the surface of the Earth).
Energy can be stored by pumping water up to a certain height and released into electrical energy when needed.
Pressurized air is a cheap energy storage method using electrical energy cheap while being not happening peak loads. Pressurized air can be stored in underground reservoirs. The pressurized air is then released when peak loads for supplying electric energy and can be heated using the heat removed by machines or electric generators to increase the pressure.
This point has developed a fuel that is made from Boron, is said to have no emissions and better than hydrogen fuel because it is more difficult to ignite by a little fire. Boron does not produce emissions due to actual results only in the form of boron oxide, but generates significant energy.
Silicone is also said to have the potential to be used as fuel. Pure silicone can easily catch fire spontaneously in the air, while in the Earth's crust, about 75% of the total mass of the Earth's crust in the form of Silicon oxide. In addition, the silicone can also easily react with other compounds and produce energy. The reaction of silicon with some type of other chemicals produce hydrogen.
Zinc has also been proposed to be a source of chemical energy. Reaction of zinc oxide and carbon free (e.g. biomass) with the help of sunlight will result in ZnO and carbon monoxide and energy of 84 kcal per mol. While the carbon monoxide produced can be burned to carbon dioxide to produce energy of 70 kcal per mol.
Carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, experimentally, has been converted into hydrocarbon fuel with the help of energy from other sources. In order to be useful in industry, energy used may be coming from the Sun, and in the future will appear artificial photosynthesis technology. Other alternatives for energy is electricity or heat from solar energy or nuclear.
Compared to hydrogen, almost all hydrocarbon fuels have the advantage of instant use with machinery and infrastructure available today. Generate synthetic hydrocarbon reduce the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere until the fuel burnt longer, so that the same amount of carbon dioxide back into the atmosphere.
Energy storage methods
Methane
Methane is the simplest hydrocarbon with the molecular formula CH4. Methane is more easily stored than hydrogen and the infrastructure and facilities of transportation available today. Methane can be generated by power plants through the process of with Sabatier is preceded by the electrolysis of water. The process is as follows:
2 H2O--> 2 H2 + O2
CO2 + 4 H2-CH4 + 2 H2O >
The methane produced is stored and will be used to generate electricity when needed. The water resulting from the production process can be used again for electrolysis, thereby reducing the need for clean water. Oxygen is generated in that process will be used for combustion of methane when the need for energy is required so that the combustion occurs will be more perfect and the resulting energy more efficiently.
The resulting carbon dioxide will go back into the Sabatier process and water vapor will be dikondensasikan to enter into the electrolysis. See the process, this is just a cycle that does not produce greenhouse gases at all in the process.
