Compressed Air Storage With Reheat for Stable Renewable Power
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing energy storage systems face challenges in balancing power reduction due to pressure loss in storage tanks and achieving efficiency, particularly with large and heavy tanks being difficult to construct and costly, and conventional air compressors losing significant energy as heat during compression.
Innovation Solution
The system employs a serpentine coil tank made of welded pipes for compressed air storage and advanced air compressors that use multiple stages with intercooling and heat exchangers to manage compression heat, utilizing refrigeration oil and water to maintain low exit temperatures and optimize energy storage and generation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If large volume storage tanks are constructed to increase energy storage capacity, then energy storage capacity is improved, but manufacturing cost and difficulty increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The storage system is divided into multiple modular tank units (first storage tank and second storage tank) that can be manufactured separately and then connected. This segmentation allows each tank to be of manageable size and weight, reducing manufacturing difficulty while achieving the required total storage capacity through parallel arrangement of multiple units.
2Quantity of substance
If compression ratio is increased to improve energy density, then energy storage capacity is improved, but power output decreases due to pressure loss
Solution Approach 1:
The compression system is divided into multiple compression stages with intermediate storage. The first compressor compresses air to an intermediate pressure and stores it in the first storage tank, then the second compressor further compresses the air to final high pressure in the second storage tank. This staged approach maintains higher pressure during compression while allowing efficient energy storage, and the stored high-pressure air can expand effectively through the turbine to maintain power output.
3Loss of energy
If compression stages are increased to reduce heat generation, then energy efficiency is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The compression process is segmented into multiple stages with intercooling between stages. The first compressor operates at a lower compression ratio with intermediate cooling, and the second compressor completes the compression to final pressure. This segmentation reduces the temperature rise in each compressor stage, improving overall energy efficiency while keeping each compression unit relatively simple and manageable.
Solution Approach 2:
The first storage tank acts as an intermediary between the two compression stages. It receives compressed air from the first compressor at intermediate pressure and delivers it to the second compressor. This intermediary storage allows the system to manage heat generation efficiently by providing cooling opportunities between stages without requiring complex direct cooling systems.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach allows for efficient energy storage and generation, achieving a 40% increase in power output by reheating compressed air with stored heat, reducing energy losses, and ensuring reliable power supply despite pressure drops, while also simplifying tank construction and reducing costs.
Implementation Method 1
compressed air stored in tank 32 to operate a generator (41)
Implementation Method 2
heat exchangers (5, 8) which are configured to remove heat from the compressed air to thermic oil that is stored in insulated tanks (13, 15) and to water which is stored in insulated tanks (16, 18)
Implementation Method 3
The compressed and stored air is reheated by the oil and water
Data Source
Figure 1
AI summary
Automatic wind and photovoltaic energy storage system for generation of uninterrupted electricity and energy autonomy, characterized in that it consists of wind machines (A) and photovoltaic generators (B) combined or independent which operate mechanically or electrically connected suitable compressors (Γ1, Γ2, Γ3, Γ4 ) that compress air at high pressure while simultaneously removing the heat generated by compression with small heat exchangers (E1, E2, E3, E4), by heating diathermic cooling oil and water stored in separate insulated tanks (H1, H2, H3, Z2) they drive it to an airtight tank-serpentine coil type tank (M), where it exits and after passing through the air flow distributor in each group of high pressure crosses the groups of heat exchangers (θ1,) in which the flow flows backwards cooling oil, where its thermal charge is transferred and heats the compressed air before entering the gas turbine and expands to a certain pressure lower and temperature lower the original T2. At this point the compressed air flows coming out of the turbine and reheats in the same way as in the first re-heat, that is, by crossing another set of heat exchangers (02) similar to the first one, but at a lower pressure and re-introducing at the same pressure it exited but at the same temperature as the original Ti. To expanding again to a given pressure corresponding to the next stage according to the thermodynamic analysis. The expansion continues with the intermediate reheats according to the specified stages of the thermodynamic analysis, until after the last reheat in the last stage, inject the quantity of water vapor (steam) stored in a separate insulated tank (Z2) into the flow of compressed air expanding the common fluid (compressed air plus steam) at the same pressure and temperature into the turbine (K), achieving approximately a 20% increase in the overall turbine(K) efficiency. The turbine is equipped, by means of a rotary shaft rotary controller, to be able to modulate the supply of compressed air to the turbine head (K). And since the mass flow rate of compressed air is directly proportional to the electricity produced, the generation of electricity produced is identical to the demand Automatic wind and photovoltaic energy storage system for generation of uninterrupted electricity and energy autonomy, characterized in that it consists of wind machines (A) and photovoltaic generators (B) combined or independent which operate mechanically or electrically connected suitable compressors ( IT, Γ2,Γ3,Γ4 ) that compress air at high pressure while simultaneously removing the heat generated by compression with small heat exchangers (E1, E2, E3, E4), by heating diathermic cooling oil and water stored in separate insulated tanks (H1, H2, H3, Z2) they drive it to an airtight tank-serpentine coil type tank (M), where it exits and after passing through the air flow distributor in each group of high pressure crosses the groups of heat exchangers (θ1,) in which the flow flows backwards cooling oil, where its thermal charge is transferred and heats the compressed air before entering the gas turbine and expands to a certain pressure lower and temperature lower the original T2. At this point the compressed air flows coming out of the turbine and reheats in the same way as in the first re-heat, that is, by crossing another set of heat exchangers (02) similar to the first one, but at a lower pressure and re-introducing at the same pressure it exited but at the same temperature as the original T1. To expanding again to a given pressure corresponding to the next stage according to the thermodynamic analysis. The expansion continues with the intermediate reheats according to the specified stages of the thermodynamic analysis, until after the last reheat in the last stage, inject the quantity of water vapor (steam) stored in a separate insulated tank (Z2) into the flow of compressed air expanding the common fluid (compressed air plus steam) at the same pressure and temperature into the turbine (K), achieving approximately a 20% increase in the overall turbine (K) efficiency. The turbine is equipped, by means of a rotary shaft rotary controller, to be able to modulate the supply of compressed air to the turbine head (K). And since the mass flow rate of compressed air is directly proportional to the electricity produced, the generation of electricity produced is identical to the demand since its axis of rotation is connected to the axis of the generator at the terminals of which the electricity is generated and the heat air generated exits will be used for district heating.