Gravity energy storage system suitable for meteorite crater environment

Abstract

A gravity energy storage system suitable for a meteorite crater environment comprises a gravity energy storage device, a motor drive / power generation device and an energy conversion and power supply device. The motor driving / generating device comprises a permanent magnet synchronous motor and a direct current motor; the energy conversion and power supply device comprises a first bidirectional power converter, a second bidirectional power converter and a boost converter, the second bidirectional power converter is electrically connected with the photovoltaic array through the boost converter and electrically connected with a power grid through the first bidirectional power converter, and the direct current motor is electrically connected with the photovoltaic array through the boost converter. And the first bidirectional power converter is electrically connected with a power grid. The natural elevation difference of the meteorite crater is utilized, rocks around and inside the meteorite crater serve as gravity energy storage loads, and storage and release of gravitational potential energy are achieved through lifting and lowering of a mine car or a cable car along a transportation channel. According to the system, a photovoltaic array and a power grid are used as dual-power input, and bidirectional conversion and grid-connected output of energy are realized through switching between a driving mode and a power generation mode by a bidirectional power converter and a motor, so that the dependence of a gravity energy storage system on an artificial structure and an external weight is reduced, and the adaptability of the system to a complex terrain environment is improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of energy storage technology, and more specifically to a gravity energy storage system suitable for meteorite crater environments. Background Technology

[0002] As a typical natural landform structure, meteorite craters have long been mainly used for basic research in geological evolution and planetary science, or for cultural tourism development in a few scenarios. Their application research in the field of energy system construction is relatively limited, and a mature engineering utilization model has not yet been formed, resulting in a large number of natural resources with stable terrain features and significant elevation differences not being effectively utilized.

[0003] Existing gravity energy storage technologies typically employ electric motors to store and release energy by lifting or lowering heavy objects. These technologies often rely on abandoned mines or deep well structures, or require the construction of tall towers, frame structures, and associated sliding rail systems. They have high requirements for site conditions and require significant investment in civil engineering and structural engineering, resulting in high initial construction costs and long construction periods, which limits their widespread application in complex terrains or remote areas.

[0004] Furthermore, with the continuous advancement of deep space exploration missions and the increasing demand for long-term residence and base construction on exoplanets such as the Moon and Mars, the need for stable and sustainable energy security systems is becoming increasingly prominent. The surfaces of exoplanets are generally covered with numerous impact craters of varying scales, providing natural conditions for storing gravitational potential energy using elevation differences. However, the application of existing gravity energy storage technologies in extraterrestrial environments still faces several limitations: on the one hand, the high cost of transporting materials in extraterrestrial environments, relying on specially manufactured or transported heavy loads, significantly increases system deployment costs; on the other hand, the scale and duration of energy storage are limited by the size of artificial mechanical structures and inherent system losses, making it difficult to meet the needs of extraterrestrial bases for long-term, large-capacity energy storage.

[0005] Meanwhile, exoplanets are mostly in near-vacuum environments, lacking an atmosphere. Eliminating air resistance places higher demands on the energy regulation precision, operational stability, and loss management of gravity energy storage systems under varying gravitational accelerations, large diurnal temperature variations, and undamped aerodynamic conditions. Furthermore, existing technologies are typically designed for single power sources, making it difficult to achieve efficient coupling and flexible scheduling with intermittent energy sources, primarily solar power.

[0006] Therefore, how to reduce the dependence of gravity energy storage systems on artificial structures and external materials while making full use of natural terrain resources such as meteorite craters, and how to improve their adaptability and operational reliability under different working conditions and gravity environments, remains a technical problem to be solved in the existing technology. Summary of the Invention

[0007] To address the aforementioned shortcomings of existing technologies, this invention proposes a gravity energy storage system suitable for meteorite crater environments. It utilizes the natural elevation difference and in-situ solid materials of the meteorite crater as carriers of gravitational potential energy, and achieves energy storage and release through multiple power inputs and motor drive / generation devices. This reduces the system's dependence on artificial structures and external materials, and improves the adaptability, operational stability, and energy utilization efficiency of the energy storage system.

[0008] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention adopts the following technical solution:

[0009] A gravity energy storage system suitable for meteorite crater environments includes a gravity energy storage system body, a first motor disposed on one side of the gravity energy storage system and a second bidirectional power converter connected thereto, and a second motor disposed on the other side of the gravity energy storage system, wherein:

[0010] The second bidirectional power converter is connected to the photovoltaic array via a boost converter and to the power grid via the first bidirectional power converter.

[0011] The second motor is connected to the photovoltaic array via a boost converter and to the power grid via a first bidirectional power converter.

[0012] Both the first motor and the second motor can switch between driving mode and power generation mode. During the charging phase, they drive the gravity energy storage system to lift the load, and during the discharging phase, they convert the gravitational potential energy of the load into electrical energy and output it.

[0013] Preferably, the first motor is a permanent magnet synchronous motor, and the second motor is a DC motor.

[0014] Preferably, the gravity energy storage system includes a mine car-type or cable car-type load transport device, which utilizes the natural rocks around and inside the meteorite crater as the gravity energy storage load.

[0015] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has at least the following beneficial effects:

[0016] By utilizing the natural elevation difference formed by meteorite craters as the basic condition for gravity energy storage, the construction of tall towers or deep well structures is avoided, thus reducing the construction cost and engineering complexity of the system.

[0017] By using the natural rocks around and inside the crater as a gravity energy storage carrier, the need for manufacturing and transporting special heavy objects is avoided, and the material costs during system deployment are reduced.

[0018] By using a dual-power complementary power supply structure of photovoltaic arrays and the power grid, the system's power supply continuity and operational stability are improved under conditions of renewable energy fluctuations.

[0019] By configuring different types of motors and corresponding bidirectional power converters, flexible switching between drive mode and power generation mode is achieved, improving the energy conversion efficiency and operational reliability of the system under different operating conditions. Attached Figure Description

[0020] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the overall system structure of the present invention;

[0021] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the system when a DC motor is used in this invention;

[0022] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the gravity energy storage system of the present invention;

[0023] Figure 4 This is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of the orbital gravity energy storage system of the present invention;

[0024] Figure 5 This is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of the cable car-type gravity energy storage of the present invention;

[0025] Figure 6 This invention relates to the energy storage and release process loss and variation law of the track-type gravity energy storage system under different vehicle masses;

[0026] Figure 7 The variation of motor energy conversion efficiency under different vehicle masses in the track-type gravity energy storage of this invention;

[0027] Figure 8 This invention relates to the energy storage and release process loss and variation law of the track-type gravity energy storage system under different slopes;

[0028] Figure 9 The variation of motor energy conversion efficiency under different slopes in the track-type gravity energy storage of this invention;

[0029] Figure 10 This invention relates to the energy storage and release process losses and variation patterns of the track-type gravity energy storage system under different friction coefficients.

[0030] Figure 11 The variation of motor energy conversion efficiency under different friction coefficients in the track-type gravity energy storage of this invention;

[0031] In the diagram: 1. Photovoltaic array; 2. Boost converter; 3. Power grid; 4. First bidirectional power converter; 5. Second bidirectional power converter; 601. First motor; 602. Second motor; 7. Gravity energy storage system; 701. Mine car; 702. Cable car; 703. Transport channel; 704. Rock. Detailed Implementation

[0032] The specific embodiments of the present invention will be further described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be understood that the specific embodiments described in this invention are only used to explain the technical solutions of the present invention, and do not constitute a limitation on the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0033] like Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, this embodiment provides a gravity energy storage system suitable for meteorite crater environments, comprising: a gravity energy storage system 7, a first motor 601 disposed on one side of the gravity energy storage system and a second bidirectional power converter 5 electrically connected thereto, and a second motor 602 disposed on the other side of the gravity energy storage system. The second bidirectional power converter 5 is connected to a photovoltaic array 1 via a boost converter 2 and to the power grid 3 via a first bidirectional power converter 4; similarly, the second motor 602 is connected to the photovoltaic array 1 via a boost converter 2 and to the power grid 3 via a first bidirectional power converter 4.

[0034] The first bidirectional power converter 4 and the second bidirectional power converter 5 can switch between rectification mode and inverter mode to realize bidirectional energy conversion between AC and DC power, so as to meet the different operating requirements of the system in the energy storage stage and the energy release stage.

[0035] Both the first motor 601 and the second motor 602 can switch between driving mode and power generation mode. During the charging phase, the motor is in driving mode to drive the load lifting in the gravity energy storage system 7; during the discharging phase, the motor is in power generation mode to convert the gravitational potential energy generated during the load release process into electrical energy.

[0036] like Figure 3 , Figure 4 and Figure 5 As shown, the gravity energy storage system 7 can select either a track-type or cable car-type energy storage structure based on the geometric scale and terrain features of the crater, so as to reduce construction costs and improve system operating efficiency while meeting energy storage needs.

[0037] The gravity energy storage system 7 includes a mine car 701 or cable car 702, a transport channel 703, and a rock 704 as a gravity load. The transport channel 703 consists of multiple sets of channel units arranged along the inner wall of the crater, with the bottom end of the lowest set of channels located at the bottom of the crater and its top extending to the top of the crater.

[0038] Because the crater has a bowl-shaped structure, the channels near the bottom are densely packed, while the spacing between channels gradually increases with height. Therefore, new channel groups are added between adjacent existing channels at different heights to improve the crater's space utilization and the overall energy storage capacity of the system.

[0039] In one specific embodiment of the present invention, when the system uses the first motor 601 as the driving and power generation unit, the charging process is as follows: the first bidirectional power converter 4 operates in rectification mode, the second bidirectional power converter 5 operates in inverter mode, and the first motor 601 is in driving mode. When the electrical energy output by the photovoltaic array 1 can meet the energy storage requirements, the system adopts a photovoltaic independent power supply mode. The DC power output by the photovoltaic array 1 is boosted by the boost converter 2 and input to the second bidirectional power converter 5 and converted into AC power, thereby driving the first motor 601 to drive the mine car 701 or cable car 702 to lift the rock 704 from the bottom of the meteorite crater to the top of the meteorite crater along the transport channel 703, realizing the storage of gravitational potential energy.

[0040] When the output power of photovoltaic array 1 is insufficient to meet the energy storage demand, the system adopts a photovoltaic and grid complementary power supply mode. By dispatching the AC power of grid 3, the AC power is converted into stable DC power by the first bidirectional power converter 4 to supplement the insufficient part, thereby ensuring the continuity and stability of the energy storage process.

[0041] During the discharge process, the first bidirectional power converter 4 operates in inverter mode, the second bidirectional power converter 5 operates in rectification mode, and the first motor 601 is in generator mode. The mine car 701 or cable car 702, under the influence of gravity from the rocks 704, is lowered from the top of the crater to the bottom along the transport channel 703, converting gravitational potential energy into electrical energy. This electrical energy is then converted by the second bidirectional power converter 5 and the first bidirectional power converter 4 and connected to the power grid 3, thus releasing the energy.

[0042] In another embodiment, when the system uses the second motor 602 as the drive and power generation unit, the first bidirectional power converter 4 operates in rectification mode during the charging process, while the second motor 602 is in drive mode. The DC power output from the photovoltaic array 1 is boosted by the boost converter 2 and directly drives the second motor 602, which in turn drives the mine car 701 or cable car 702 to lift the rock 704 from the bottom to the top of the crater. When the photovoltaic output is insufficient, the power is also supplemented through the power grid 3 via the first bidirectional power converter 4.

[0043] During the corresponding discharge process, the first bidirectional power converter 4 operates in inverter mode, the second motor 602 is in generator mode, and the mine car 701 or cable car 702 is lowered under the gravity of the rock 704, converting gravitational potential energy into electrical energy, which is then inverted by the first bidirectional power converter 4 and connected to the power grid 3.

[0044] Simulink simulation experiments were conducted on the above system. Under the conditions of a rated vehicle mass of 160 t, a rated slope of 7°, and a rated friction coefficient of 0.006, the system was operated in a photovoltaic independent power supply mode. Simulation results show that when the vehicle mass varies from 120 t to 200 t, the wind resistance loss remains basically constant at approximately 0.14 MJ, while the rolling friction loss increases linearly with increasing vehicle mass, and the motor energy conversion efficiency varies from 94% to 95%. When the slope varies from 3° to 11°, both rolling friction loss and wind resistance loss decrease with increasing slope, and the motor energy conversion efficiency varies from 88% to 97%. When the friction coefficient varies from 0.002 to 0.010, the rolling friction loss increases with increasing friction coefficient, while the wind resistance loss remains basically constant, and the motor energy conversion efficiency varies from 91% to 98%.

[0045] The above simulation results are only used to illustrate the operating characteristics of the system of the present invention under different working conditions, and do not constitute a limitation on the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0046] The above-described specific implementations can be partially adjusted by those skilled in the art in different ways without departing from the principles and purpose of the present invention. The scope of protection of the present invention is defined by the claims and is not limited to the above-described specific implementations. All implementation schemes within the scope of the claims are bound by the present invention.

Claims

1. A gravity energy storage system suitable for use in a crater environment, characterized in that, The application relates to a gravity energy storage device, a motor driving / generating device and an energy conversion and power supply device, wherein the motor driving / generating device comprises a permanent magnet synchronous motor and a direct current motor, the permanent magnet synchronous motor and the direct current motor can be switched between driving mode and generating mode respectively; the energy conversion and power supply device comprises a first bidirectional power converter, a second bidirectional power converter and a boost converter; the second bidirectional power converter is electrically connected with a photovoltaic array through the boost converter and is electrically connected with a power grid through the first bidirectional power converter; the direct current motor is electrically connected with the photovoltaic array through the boost converter and is electrically connected with the power grid through the first bidirectional power converter; the first bidirectional power converter and the second bidirectional power converter are used for switching between rectification mode and inversion mode to realize bidirectional energy conversion between alternating current and direct current; the gravity energy storage device utilizes the height difference of a meteorite crater to store and release gravity potential energy by lifting or lowering a load. During the charging process, the permanent magnet synchronous motor or the direct current motor is in driving mode, and the gravity energy storage device drives the load to be lifted along a transportation channel from the bottom of the meteorite crater to the top of the meteorite crater; during the discharging process, the permanent magnet synchronous motor or the direct current motor is in generating mode, and the gravity potential energy generated during the lowering of the load along the transportation channel is converted into electric energy.

2. The gravity energy storage system suitable for use in a crater environment of claim 1, wherein, The gravity energy storage device comprises a transportation channel and a load transportation unit arranged on the transportation channel, and the transportation channel is composed of multiple groups of channel units arranged along the inner wall of the meteorite crater, wherein the bottom end of the lowest group of channels is located at the bottom of the meteorite crater, and the top end extends to the top of the meteorite crater.

3. A gravity energy storage system suitable for use in a crater environment according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that, New channel groups are arranged between adjacent two channel units on different height planes of the meteorite crater to improve the space utilization rate of the meteorite crater and the energy storage capacity of the system.

4. The gravity energy storage system suitable for use in a crater environment of claim 3, wherein, When the permanent magnet synchronous motor is adopted, the application comprises a charging process and a discharging process, wherein during the charging process, the first bidirectional power converter works in rectification mode, the second bidirectional power converter works in inversion mode, and the permanent magnet synchronous motor is in driving mode; when the output electric energy of the photovoltaic array meets the energy storage requirement, a photovoltaic independent power supply mode is adopted; when the output electric energy of the photovoltaic array is insufficient, a photovoltaic and power grid complementary power supply mode is adopted; during the discharging process, the first bidirectional power converter works in inversion mode, the second bidirectional power converter works in rectification mode, and the permanent magnet synchronous motor is in generating mode, so that the gravity potential energy is converted into electric energy and is fed into the power grid.

5. A method of controlling gravitational energy storage based on the system of any of claims 1-4, characterized by, When the direct current motor is adopted, the first bidirectional power converter works in rectification mode during the charging process, and the direct current motor is in driving mode; the first bidirectional power converter works in inversion mode during the discharging process, and the direct current motor is in generating mode, so that the gravity potential energy is converted into electric energy and is fed into the power grid.

6. The method of gravity energy storage control of claim 5, wherein, ​

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