| Developers: | Institute of Engineering Thermophysics (IET) |
| Date of the premiere of the system: | October 2022 |
| Branches: | Power |
2022: Launch of Compressed Air Energy Storage Plant
On October 4, 2022, the largest compressed air energy storage station (CAES) was put into commercial operation. It is located in Zhangjiakou, a city in the northern Chinese province of Hebei.
According to the statement of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the project to create an "advanced" 100 MW compressed air energy storage in Zhangjiakou is a national experimental project for this technology, as well as the largest and most efficient CAES installation existing in the world. It is located in the Meowtan industrial cloud computing park and covers an area of 5.7 hectares.
The project was developed over four years by the Institute of Engineering Thermophysics (IET) and can generate more than 132 million kWh of electricity per year, which is enough to power about 40-60 thousand houses during peak hours. According to IET, it can also save 42 thousand tons of coal per year and reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 109 thousand tons. According to the Asia Times, China plans to largely use CAES, which should account for nearly a quarter of all energy storage in the country by 2030.
Other CAESs, such as the 110 MW McIntosh Plant, which has been operating since 1991 in the United States, Alabama, burn the air stored in it with natural gas for energy. A distinctive feature of the new CAES in Zhangjiakou is that it does not use fossil fuels, thanks to the use of technologies for supercritical storage of thermal energy, supercritical heat exchange, compression and expansion at high loads to increase the efficiency of the system. According to the China Energy Storage Alliance, the new plant can store and release up to 400 MWh at an estimated system efficiency of 70.4%.
This is a substantial achievement, as modern compressed air systems are only 40-52% efficient, and even the two larger Hydrostor CAES plants scheduled to open in California in 2026 are reported to have an efficiency of about 60%.
The academy argues that the low capital costs, long lifespan, safety and effectiveness of this concept, and sustainability position it as "one of the most promising technologies for large-scale energy storage."[1]
Notes
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