Rocks in the seabed off the UK coast could provide long-term storage locations for renewable energy production, according to new research.
Engineers and geoscientists from the Universities of Edinburgh and Strathclyde used mathematical models to assess the potential of compressed air energy storage (CAES).
The researchers found that porous rocks on the seabed could store about one and a half times the UK’s typical electricity demand for January and February months.
CAES-based techniques could use electricity generated by renewables to power a motor that generates compressed air.
This air could potentially be stored at high pressure in the pores found in sandstone, using a deep well drilled into the rock.
The pressurised air could later be released to drive a turbine to generate large amounts of electricity, at times when energy supplies are shorter.
The approach could help deliver steady and reliable supplies of energy from renewable sources – such as wind and tidal turbines.
However, the amount of energy produced by many renewable technologies varies depending on weather conditions.
There is a need for new processes that can store energy cheaply and reliably for months at a time, the researchers said.
A similar process storing air in deep salt caverns has been used at sites in Germany and the US.
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