Sand Powered Batteries for Heating Industries and Homes

[Ron Wagner + 706]

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2022/07/05/worlds-first-sand-powered-battery-ready-heat-homes/

 

World’s first sand-powered battery is ready to heat homes

Researchers say the Finnish innovation could help solve the problem of how to store renewable energy such as wind and solar

ByEmma Gatten, ENVIRONMENT EDITOR5 July 2022 • 5:11pm

 

A battery that uses sand to store heat for months and could help with the green energy transition has been unveiled in Finland

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A battery that uses sand to store heat for months and could help with the green energy transition has been unveiled in Finland in a world first.  

The sand battery will be used to provide heating to homes in the city of Kankaanpää in Western Finland, as well as its local swimming pool. 

Researchers say it could help solve the problem of how to store renewable energy such as wind and solar as it can be used when the sun is not shining or the wind is not blowing. 

The sand, which can reach temperatures of 600C, provides an alternative to lithium-ion batteries, which rely on expensive and relatively scarce metals and can only store a limited amount of energy. 

The sand battery will be used to provide heating to homes in the city of Kankaanpää

The initial version installed in Kankaanpää uses 100 tons of sand in a seven-metre-high steel container to store energy on a site at the local power plant which will provide district heating to around 100 homes in the area throughout the year.  

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Eventually, the researchers plan to scale up to create batteries around 100 times that size, which would be able to take advantage of sunny or windy periods to store up energy. 

“This innovation is a part of the smart and green energy transition,” said Markku Ylönen, the co-founder of Polar Night Energy, which came up with the sand battery. 

Other countries are working on similar sand battery projects, including the American National Renewable Energy Laboratory, but Polar Night Energy says it is the first fully operational commercial scale project. 

The sand battery during construction

Sand is the world’s second most used resource, and facing growing shortages, but Mr Ylonen said the battery storage would use “low value” and “sand like” substances, to allay concerns about running out of raw materials. 

The final major challenge for the project will be to use the energy in the sand to discharge electricity, rather than simply heat. 

Although it can be done, with current technology the process is inefficient and therefore too expensive to be done at scale. 

One of the best uses of the sand battery may be to provide energy for industrial processes that require a lot of heat, said Mr Ylonen.

Related Topics

• Finland, 
• Renewable energy

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18

 

[Tom Nolan + 2,443]

The following article contains a YouTube VIDEO which explains the mechanics...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tm7spMG0ch8

The world's first operational 'sand battery' can store energy for months

It's the first sand battery on a commercial scale.

https://interestingengineering.com/worlds-first-sand-battery

 

 

[Tom Nolan + 2,443]

Photos and more infor here in THE DAILY MAIL

World's first SAND BATTERY that can store renewable energy for months at a time could provide a cheap source of heat during the winter months

• A battery that stores heat energy in sand has been installed in western Finland
• Electricity from renewable sources is used to heat the sand to around 932°F
• The heat energy then warms water that can be circulated around local buildings
• It can store energy from sources that work intermittently, like wind and solar 

Have you ever been to the beach on a sunny day and burnt your feet on the hot sand?

While you may have just gone to put on your flip-flops, the capacity sand has to store heat has provided inspiration for a new kind of battery.

A team of engineers in western Finland have installed the world's first fully-functional 'sand battery', that can hold renewable energy for up to months at a time.

 

The Polar Night Energy plant is comprised of a tall silo that holds about 100 tonnes of builder's sand.

Energy from solar panels and wind turbines warms the sand up to 932°F (500°C) and generates hot air, which is circulated within the silo.

This 'green' energy can then be discharged when it is needed, for example in times of low heat and sunlight or when energy prices are too high in winter.

The researchers claim it could solve the problem of year-round supply of renewable energy for heating buildings – and could eventually be used to generate electricity.

ARTICLE - https://archive.ph/4MnZw

[markslawson + 1,057]

5 hours ago, Ron Wagner said:

Researchers say the Finnish innovation could help solve the problem of how to store renewable energy such as wind and solar

 

4 hours ago, Tom Nolan said:

Have you ever been to the beach on a sunny day and burnt your feet on the hot sand?

While you may have just gone to put on your flip-flops, the capacity sand has to store heat has provided inspiration for a new kind of battery.

I saw that article. A version of that approach to storing energy has been around for many years in the concept known as Trombe Walls, as a passive design feature in homes. These sand facilities can help in storing renewable energy but it is limited to heating and you still have the problem of distributing the hot air through vents. Every cluster of homes or businesses would need its own sand facility. That may stil be alright, considering that it uses sand, but I would wonder about cost. Interesting idea, however..   

[notsonice + 1,255]

5 minutes ago, markslawson said:

 

I saw that article. A version of that approach to storing energy has been around for many years in the concept known as Trombe Walls, as a passive design feature in homes. These sand facilities can help in storing renewable energy but it is limited to heating and you still have the problem of distributing the hot air through vents. Every cluster of homes or businesses would need its own sand facility. That may stil be alright, considering that it uses sand, but I would wonder about cost. Interesting idea, however..   

These sand facilities can help in storing renewable energy but it is limited to heating and you still have the problem of distributing the hot air through vents./???? If you have ever lived our travelled to Sweden or Finland you will find many communities that use district hot water heating. in Finland half of all households have district heat....Mostly Hot water , some steam......No hot air at all. Many of the district plants are using waste heat or are fired with waste wood (biomass)The theory is to convert plants that are fired with oil or nat gas would be converted to sand piles that use excess wind generated electricity using  heat pumps to heat up  the sand piles. 

[markslawson + 1,057]

23 hours ago, notsonice said:

If you have ever lived our travelled to Sweden or Finland you will find many communities that use district hot water heating.

I was in fact aware of that arrangement in Denmark and not surprised that other Nordic countries do something similar but I don't see the reason for the question marks. Sure there are communities set up for such arrangements and so adding these sand batteries would not be such a problem as it might be in other areas - but what happens in France, the UK or the US where they definitely do not have communal heating ducts? As I noted in the original post its an interesting idea but it may have only limited utility.   

[KeyboardWarrior + 527]

These ideas are quite bizarre. What kind of heat capacity does sand have? 

Edited July 7, 2022 by KeyboardWarrior

[Jay McKinsey + 1,490]

47 minutes ago, markslawson said:

I was in fact aware of that arrangement in Denmark and not surprised that other Nordic countries do something similar but I don't see the reason for the question marks. Sure there are communities set up for such arrangements and so adding these sand batteries would not be such a problem as it might be in other areas - but what happens in France, the UK or the US where they definitely do not have communal heating ducts? As I noted in the original post its an interesting idea but it may have only limited utility.   

They will have limited geographical utility but the geography where they are useful is the epicenter of the energy crisis. 

[notsonice + 1,255]

1 hour ago, markslawson said:

I was in fact aware of that arrangement in Denmark and not surprised that other Nordic countries do something similar but I don't see the reason for the question marks. Sure there are communities set up for such arrangements and so adding these sand batteries would not be such a problem as it might be in other areas - but what happens in France, the UK or the US where they definitely do not have communal heating ducts? As I noted in the original post its an interesting idea but it may have only limited utility.   

you were posting heating ducts when they systems are hot water piped. Vast difference. Hot water heat is so much better than hot air and hot water does not require large ducts

[footeab@yahoo.com + 2,190]

4 hours ago, KeyboardWarrior said:

These ideas are quite bizarre. What kind of heat capacity does sand have? 

Its almost like these MORONS have never done geothermal before....  Sand is an insulator👍.  Want good heat conduction?  Use clay. Better yet, use salt.  Want good heat capacity?  Use salt.  Then use Gargantuan amounts of dry sand as the insulation.  I would not be surprised if this is what they are ACTUALLY doing and the article was  written by a complete IDIOT of epic proportions. 

[markslawson + 1,057]

22 hours ago, notsonice said:

you were posting heating ducts when they systems are hot water piped. Vast difference. Hot water heat is so much better than hot air and hot water does not require large ducts

Okay, fair enough, water not air but no, its not that much of a difference. Its still limited, as I said. Leave it with you.