Called liquid-air energy storage (LAES) the plant uses renewable electricity to compress air to extreme densities until it turns to liquid.

The world’s largest demonstration plant for a new kind of renewable energy storage is up and running in the west of the China. Called liquid-air energy storage (LAES) the plant uses renewable electricity to compress air to extreme densities until it turns to liquid. It can then be rapidly released to power a turbine and discharge that green energy back into the grid.

  • artifex@piefed.zipEnglish
    7·
    21 hours ago

    There are a couple kinds of CAES. The best ones (“advanced” methods like adiabatic and isothermal) can have 70-80% roundtrip which is pretty good – and much better than the 40-60% that “conventional” CAES is good for. Like many other things it could definitely have its place in a heterogeneous mix.

    table of comparative efficiency of multiple kinds of energy storage. Li-ion is the best from a pure efficiency standpoint, at about 90%, with advanced CAES behind at around 75%)