Search Results for: batteries

Sodium Sulfur Batteries

Recent research progress in sodium ion batteries: (a) cathode, (b) anode, (c) electrolyte and (d) binder. Source: Hwang J (2017) Sodium-ion batteries: present and future. Chem. Soc. Review 46: 3529-3614  DOI: 10.1039/C6CS00776G Preface. If lithium were used for both EV … Continue reading

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Hibernating freeze-thaw molten salt batteries for seasonal energy storage

Preface.  A 100% renewable grid can’t happen without long-term energy storage. Today that’s done with natural gas (with a little help from hydropower in the 10 states that have most of it). Meanwhile nuclear and coal chug along at a … Continue reading

Posted in Battery - Utility Scale, CSP with thermal energy storage, Renewable Integration | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Why EV Batteries aren’t being recycled

Preface.  Talk to your typical capitalist / environmentalist and they will both agree that we will never run out of anything because we can recycle.  But we aren’t.  Especially since it’s cheaper to buy newly mined metals than to recycle … Continue reading

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Batteries use rare, declining, critical, & imported elements from unstable countries

Preface.  Since oil and other fossils are finite and emit carbon, the plan is to electrify society with batteries.  But doh!  Minerals used in batteries are finite too.  And dependent on fossil-fuels entirely in their life cycle, from mining trucks … Continue reading

Posted in Batteries, Mining, Peak Critical Elements, Peak Rare Earth Elements | Tagged , | 7 Comments

Electrify ships with batteries?

Preface. You’d need 100,000 metric tons of batteries taking 40% of cargo space to go from Asia to Europe in 31 days on an 18,000 TEU container ship, and it is hard to imagine how or how long it would … Continue reading

Posted in Ships and Barges, Transportation What To Do | Tagged , , , , , | 6 Comments

EV cars and utility scale energy storage batteries are not likely to materialize

Preface.  Clearly there’s not enough minerals and metals to shift from fossil fuels to electric vehicles and utility scale battery storage, due to peak critical elements, peak platinum group elements, peak precious elements, peak rare earth elements, and peak everything … Continue reading

Posted in Automobiles, Batteries, Battery - Utility Scale, Peak Lithium | Tagged , , , | 13 Comments

How safe are utility-scale energy storage batteries?

This 2 MW battery, installed by the Arizona Public Service electric company, exploded in April 2019 and sent eight firefighters and a policeman to the hospital (Cooper 2019). At least 23 South Korean lithium-ion facilities caught fire in a series … Continue reading

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Can Zinc batteries save the electric grid?

Preface: Right now, and as long as natural gas lasts, the electric grid will stay up since it is the main storage and way to balance unreliable wind and solar power. Hydropower can also play a major role in the … Continue reading

Posted in Batteries, Energy Storage, Lithium-ion | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Want to go off-grid? You might need hundreds of Tesla batteries

Preface. Although you may not be as far north as Victoria, British Columbia (48.4 latitude), you’d ideally want to be at 30 degrees or less latitude from the equator to even consider the expense of off-grid solar power.  And even … Continue reading

Posted in Batteries, Photovoltaic Solar | Tagged , , | 11 Comments

How are energy storage batteries coming along? U.S. House hearing 2015

[ My favorite quotes from this U.S. House of Representatives session: THOMAS MASSIE, KENTUCKY. I want to say this has been a very enlightening hearing, and it confirms my personal experience, which is batteries are not sexy. Buckets of acid … Continue reading

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