San Antonio-based CPS Energy is working on a project that, if successful, will help solve one of its trickiest problems in solar and wind energy production.

The public utility won a $3 million grant from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality to develop a commercial battery to store large amounts of solar and wind power during peak production, which generally isn’t when people need it the most.

Renewable energy production can be fickle and unpredictable since it relies on the weather. Peak usage in Texas, on the other hand, is almost always in the evenings when people get home and turn on the air conditioning. The trouble with using wind and solar energy is shifting the power produced during the day and at night to peak usage times.

A 1-megawatt storage battery that came online in August regulates the system’s frequency, or the amount of energy flowing through CPS’ grid. Regulating the frequency at 60 hertz helps keep equipment from getting damaged and prevents blackouts, aiding in stabilizing the grid as required by the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, or ERCOT.

The battery sits on the South Side of San Antonio at the 40-megawatt Alamo 1 solar farm owned by OCI Solar Power, sitting quietly next to a transformer station, making noise only when its heating and cooling units turn on.

“This will run 20 to 30 times a day in the summer, but in December we see up to 100 times of deployment of either regulation up or down a day,” Byungwook Lee, OCI’s energy storage systems manager, said during a site tour of the Alamo 1 facility.

The 1-megawatt battery, half the size of a tractor-trailer, is just a preview of CPS’ plans to build a separate 10-megawatt, $10 million lithium-ion battery bank for use during peak power surges. OCI owns the 1-megawatt battery, but CPS will own the 10-megawatt battery bank.

The battery bank will be installed at a 5-megawatt solar farm at a yet-to-be-determined site, said David Jungman, senior director of business and economic development for CPS. The batteries will be able to store and provide up to 10 megawatts of power for one hour, or 5 megawatts for two hours. One megawatt of energy can power between 400 and 900 homes for a year.

“The solar peak is not when the CPS peak is,” Jungman said in an interview. “The solar peak is probably more like when the sun is high noon or 1 o’clock, but what if we could shift that solar power from the solar peak to the CPS peak, from 5 to 7 p.m. when everybody’s going home and turning up their air conditioners?”

Utility-scale battery systems feature stacks of lithium-ion batteries placed within containers that can be as large as a tractor-trailer. Each unit offers a megawatt of power storage. Jungman said the 10 batteries combined will take up about an acre of space, a small amount compared to the 50-acre, 5-megawatt solar farm that will supply the battery system with power. CPS would then use a battery management system, or BMS, to control when the batteries would be used to supply the grid with electricity.

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A research team at Oregon State University is very excited over their new energy storage system, and not just because it is the world’s first hydronium-ion battery. They’re also excited because the new device provides a way forward to the next generation of grid scale stationary batteries that will enable the US grid to accommodate more solar and wind power.

So, A Proton Walked Into A Bar…

A hydronium ion (H3O+) is what happens when you add a proton to a water molecule. They have been the object of much study these days, partly because of their emerging importance in battery systems.

Here’s an explainer from our friends over at Quirky Science:

…the water molecule allows acids to ionize. This is possible because of the formation of the hydronium ion. This is of immense importance not only to the physical properties of the universe, but to life itself.

Okay so that’s a little over the top but QS provides a hint why energy storage researchers are so interested in hydronium:

While the hydronium ion contains the hydrogen ion in its structure, the hydronium ion itself is surrounded by yet more water molecules. This serves to spread the positive charge further, stabilizing the system to a greater extent. The number of molecules associated with a given hydronium ion can range from perhaps six to many more than a dozen.

First Energy Storage Device With Hydronium Ions

In the new energy storage breakthrough, the OSU team created a rechargeable battery with hydronium ions as the charge carriers.

The break with conventional energy storage devices is a big one. Until now, positively charged ions that are used in batteries have belonged to the metals family.

The electrode which stores the hydronium ions is made of PTCDA, short for perylenetetracarboxylic dianhydridem. That sounds exotic but it’s basically just a solid crystalline material with a lattice structure, in the class of organics (think: plastic, not metal).

OSU explains why PTCDA was selected for the new battery:

…PTCDA material has a lot of internal space between its molecule constituents so it provides an opportunity for storing big ions and good capacity.

The hydronium ions also migrate through the electrode structure with comparatively low “friction,” which translates to high power.

Here’s chemist Xiulei Ji of OSU enthusing over the potentials:

“This may provide a paradigm-shifting opportunity for more sustainable batteries…It doesn’t use lithium or sodium or potassium to carry the charge, and just uses acid as the electrolyte. There’s a huge natural abundance of acid so it’s highly renewable and sustainable.”

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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. — NASA is currently working under an initiative to better utilize the energy that helps power the location’s facilities. This includes a large thermal energy storage tank that was recently installed.

In contrast to most home central air conditioning systems that use a refrigerant to cool air, large commercial buildings and office parks often use chilled water as a coolant to cool and dehumidify interior environments.

Kennedy Space Center‘s cooling system includes a large central chiller building that uses electricity to chill water that is then pumped to most of the buildings in the complex. The water returns to the chiller to be again cooled, a closed-loop process that constantly operates to provide a comfortable interior work area for employees.

As explained in a press briefing by KSC project manager Ismael Otero, the complex recently installed a large 2.8-million-gallon (10.6-million-liter) thermal energy storage tank outside the chiller building. This allows KSC to store water to be chilled during off-peak nighttime hours for use during the day when electricity costs are higher.

The 90-foot (27-meter) high tank has concrete walls that are up to 10 inches (25 centimeters) thick and is coated with a tough external foam membrane to minimize the warming effects of the hot Florida sun.

“The Thermal Energy Storage Tank Project, one of many at KSC aimed at improving energy and environmental efficiency, saves about a quarter of a million dollars annually in energy costs,” Otero said.

Furthermore, the project also earned a $1.5 million rebate from Florida Power & Light. That rebate, in turn, is funding other energy saving projects funds within the KSC complex. Most notably, according to Dan Clark of the NASA Sustainability Team, is an initiative to replace over a hundred external lights with amber LED lights, which has a wavelength invisible to sea turtles.

“Young sea turtles become disoriented by conventional nighttime lighting,” Clark said.

The new LED lights will contribute to maintaining an eco-friendly environment for these and other creatures that share KSC with NASA.

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At the back of the cramped room, Donald Sadoway, a silver-haired electrochemist in a trim black-striped suit and expensive-looking shoes, rummages through a plastic tub of parts like a kid in search of a particular Lego. He sets a pair of objects on the table, each about the size and shape of a can of soup with all the inherent drama of a paperweight.

No wonder it’s so hard to get anyone excited about batteries. But these paperweights — er, battery cells — could be the technology that revolutionizes our energy system.

Because batteries aren’t just boring. Frankly, they kinda suck. At best, the batteries that power our daily lives are merely invisible — easily drained reservoirs of power packed into smartphones and computers and cars. At worst, they are expensive, heavy, combustible, complicated to dispose of properly and prone to dying in the cold or oozing corrosive fluid. Even as the devices they power become slimmer and smarter, batteries are still waiting for their next upgrade. Computer processors famously double their capacity every two years; batteries may scrounge only a few percentage points of improvement in the same amount of time.

Nevertheless, the future will be battery-powered. It has to be. From electric cars to industrial-scale solar farms, batteries are the key to a cleaner, more efficient energy system — and the sooner we get there, the sooner we can stop contributing to potentially catastrophic climate change.

But the batteries we’ve got — mostly lithium-ion — aren’t good enough. There’s been some progress: The cost of storing energy has fallen by half over the last five years, and big companies are increasingly making marquee investments in the technology, like Tesla’s gigafactory. But in terms of wholesale economic transformation, lithium-ion batteries remain too expensive. They are powerful in our devices, but when you scale them up they are liable to overheat and even, occasionally, explode.

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SDG&E is showcasing its largest lithium-ion battery energy storage facility in partnership with AES Energy Storage, which will enhance regional energy reliability while maximizing renewable energy use.

The 30 MW energy storage facility is capable of storing up to 120 MW hours of energy, the energy equivalent of serving 20,000 customers for four hours.

Last year, the California Public Utility Commission (CPUC) directed Southern California investor-owned electric utilities to fast-track additional energy storage options to enhance regional energy reliability.

In response, SDG&E expedited ongoing negotiations and contracted with AES Energy Storage to build two projects for a total of 37.5 MW of lithium ion battery energy storage. In addition to the 30 MW facility built in Escondido, Calif., a smaller 7.5 MW installation was built in El Cajon.

“San Diego County is a community of leadership and innovation, so it is only fitting that this community should receive the benefit of this unique project,” said Scott Drury, SDG&E’s president. “For more than a decade, SDG&E has been at the forefront to deliver results consistent with state and local clean energy and carbon emission goals. These projects affirm our commitment to deliver clean energy to customers and to provide a more reliable power supply to our electric grid when it is most needed.”

The 400,000 batteries, similar to those in electric vehicles, were installed in nearly 20,000 modules and placed in 24 containers. The batteries will act like a sponge, soaking up and storing energy when it is abundant – when the sun is shining, the wind is blowing and energy use is low – and releasing it when energy resources are in high demand. This will provide reliable energy when customers need it most, and maximize the use of renewable resources such as solar and wind.

“SDG&E is a leader in providing clean, reliable power to their customers, and we’re honored that they chose Advancion energy storage to serve their needs,” said John Zahurancik, AES Energy Storage president. “These two projects, including the world’s largest advanced energy storage site, are the latest proof of energy storage’s capacity to scale up and solve our most pressing grid issues in a short period.”

Energy storage is playing a key role in SDG&E’s commitment to delivering clean, safe and reliable energy. By 2030, the company expects to develop or interconnect more than 330 MWs of energy storage on the system. These projects can help support the delivery of more renewables to customers and help strengthen SDG&E’s record as the most reliable utility in the West.

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The battery might be the least sexy piece of technology ever invented. The lack of glamour is especially conspicuous on the lower floors of MIT’s materials science department, where one lab devoted to building and testing the next world-changing energy storage device could easily be mistaken for a storage closet.

At the back of the cramped room, Donald Sadoway, a silver-haired electrochemist in a trim black-striped suit and expensive-looking shoes, rummages through a plastic tub of parts like a kid in search of a particular Lego. He sets a pair of objects on the table, each about the size and shape of a can of soup with all the inherent drama of a paperweight.

No wonder it’s so hard to get anyone excited about batteries. But these paperweights—er, battery cells—could be the technology that revolutionizes our energy system.

Because batteries aren’t just boring. Frankly, they kinda suck. At best, the batteries that power our daily lives are merely invisible—easily drained reservoirs of power packed into smartphones and computers and cars. At worst, they are expensive, heavy, combustible, complicated to dispose of properly, and prone to dying in the cold or oozing corrosive fluid. Even as the devices they power become slimmer and smarter, batteries are still waiting for their next upgrade. Computer processors famously double their capacity every two years; batteries may scrounge only a few percentage points of improvement in the same amount of time.

Nevertheless, the future will be battery-powered. It has to be. From electric cars to industrial-scale solar farms, batteries are the key to a cleaner, more efficient energy system—and the sooner we get there, the sooner we can stop contributing to potentially catastrophic climate change.

But the batteries we’ve got—mostly lithium-ion—aren’t good enough. There’s been some progress: The cost of storing energy has fallen by half over the last five years, and big companies are increasingly making marquee investments in the technology, like Tesla’s ‘gigafactory.’ But in terms of wholesale economic transformation, lithium-ion batteries remain too expensive. They are powerful in our devices, but when you scale them up they are liable to overheat and even, occasionally, explode.

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Carla Peterman, a commissioner with the California Public Utilities Commission, said that among the many takeaways for regulators from California’s experience with energy storage deployment is the importance of setting targets.

Peterman made her remarks at an Energy Storage Policy Forum in Washington, DC, which was hosted by the Energy Storage Association and held on Feb. 15.

She said that setting energy storage targets is important because such a move sends a signal to the market and to utilities.

“I think that’s been a real measure of success, that we’ve seen so much procurement happen outside of the target RFOs [requests for offers]” issued by the state’s investor-owned utilities, Peterman said in her remarks at the ESA event.

Start early

Another key takeaway that regulators should consider? Start early, said Peterman. “Getting buy in to the procurement framework takes time and actually getting the procurement done takes time,” she said.

Peterman also said that regulators should allow for flexibility as the market develops. The CPUC commissioner said that “this is a new area,” which means it is important to have regular reviews and “be willing to change course.”

A tremendous amount of growth

She said that from 2000 to 2013, California developed 25 megawatts of energy storage. “Since we’ve adopted targets for energy storage,” over the last three years, “we’ve now approved 630 megawatts of energy storage. That’s a tremendous amount of growth,” Peterman said.

“You’re looking at a 200 percent increase year over year in the last three years,” she said.

Peterman said that the state’s 1.325 gigawatt by 2020 storage target “is the cornerstone of our energy storage work.” As a part of that target, “we set up a broader procurement framework, which has been useful in terms of evaluating storage, and enabling us to procure storage even outside of that framework.”

But it began with legislation, she pointed out, which “simply said, ‘PUC, look at this issue, consider setting targets, but if you do set targets, make sure that energy storage is viable and cost effective.’”

Peterman told the ESA gathering that as “you’re thinking about doing this work in other states, I can’t say enough how important the various stakeholder forums we had were in terms of deciding whether to develop targets.”

As the commission moved forward, it eventually proposed a target that includes targets for transmission-connected storage, distribution-connected storage and customer-side storage. There are biennial storage solicitations in California.

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The idea that giant batteries may someday revolutionize electrical grids has long enthralled clean-power advocates and environmentalists. Now it’s attracting bankers with the money to make it happen.

Lenders including Investec PLC, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. and Prudential Financial Inc. are looking to finance large-scale energy-storage projects from California to Germany, marking a coming-of-age moment for the fledgling industry. The systems help utilities solve a long-standing clean-power conundrum: managing the unpredictable output from wind and solar farms, and retaining electricity until it’s needed.

Battery costs have declined 40 percent since 2014 and regulators are mandating storage technology be added to the grid. That’s encouraging utilities to offer longer contracts and developers are expected build $2.5 billion in systems globally this year. These trends are changing the risk profile, giving lenders confidence in batteries in much the same way that power-purchase agreements opened banks’ doors years ago for wind and solar power.

“Having big money come in is the first step to widespread deployment,” Brad Meikle, a San Francisco-based analyst for Craig-Hallum Capital Group LLC, said in an interview.

That’s a shift from many of the storage projects we’ve seen to date as expensive components and unproven revenue potential made commercial lenders leery. Developers typically have financed systems from their own balance sheets, cobbling together revenue from short-term utility contracts or wholesale electricity markets.

“We see an opportunity in the space,” Ralph Cho, Investec’s co-head of power for North America in New York, said in an interview. “We’re attempting to be a first mover.”

Storage contracts to date in the U.S. and Canada rarely exceeded three years, said Bryan Urban, head of North American operations for the Yverdon-les-Bains, Switzerland-based storage developer Leclanche SA. Now utilities are signing agreements for three to seven years, and sometimes as long at 10 years, he said. And in the U.K., National Grid PLC is signing four-year contracts for storage services.

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The German home battery startup Sonnen is expanding its U.S. footprint with a significant investment in a new North American Innovation Center in Atlanta, Georgia.

Sonnen announced today that the InnovationHub will bring all of the company’s U.S. product development and manufacturing capabilities under one roof, allowing for new product innovation and the ability to rapidly scale up production capacity.

“Sonnen U.S. has experienced exponential sales growth over the past year, making the Sonnen InnovationHub a smart investment to capitalize upon the immense potential of the North American energy storage market,” said Christoph Ostermann, Sonnen Group CEO, in a statement. Bringing the company’s U.S. manufacturing and R&D teams into one facility will “enable us to better adapt to the future needs of the high-growth U.S. residential energy storage market.”

In an interview earlier this month, Ostermann said U.S. monthly sales had recently reached triple digits — growing threefold in December alone. Those sales lag well behind Sonnen’s home market in Germany, where the company has sold more than 15,000 battery storage systems to date, but they still position Sonnen as a leading residential storage company in the U.S.

The InnovationHub is no Tesla Gigafactory — but that’s by design, said Blake Richetta, vice president of Sonnen’s North American sales, and former sales manager at Tesla. While Sonnen is focused on scalability, the new factory is part of a concerted strategy to “grow smartly,” he said.

“We’re not going to make [the factory] so that it’s able to build thousands and thousands of units right away,” said Richetta. “It’s going to be what it needs to be to foster innovation and for our current level of production needs, and then we’re going to have an open-ended footprint to be able to grow.”

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It is not only the grid that is changing. Buildings are also changing how they use energy. Some are generating energy with wind or solar power and many are engaged in energy management programs.

All those functions increase the complexity of energy flows and require sophisticated technology to ensure reliability and efficiency.

The demonstration project is funded with about $1 million from the Department of Energy and corporate sponsors. The corporate partners in the project are FirstEnergy, Eaton, Siemens and Johnson Controls.

Simulated tests of energy control and flows will be conducted by the NASA Glenn Research Center.

The project aims to develop and showcase means of incorporating smart building technologies with conventional, solar and wind power while using batteries for backup power and to meet peak demand and store non-peak energy.

“What we’re doing is kind of preparing these campuses to be these living labs for these concepts,” Alexis Abramson, director of the Great Lakes Energy Institute at Case Western, told The Toledo Blade.

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