Gravity Weight Energy Storage With Buoyancy-Assisted Lifting
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing energy storage systems, such as pump storage stations and batteries, are not efficient or environmentally friendly for storing and converting excess electrical energy into potential energy for later use, particularly with renewable energy sources.
Innovation Solution
A system that utilizes weights to convert electrical energy into potential energy by lifting and lowering them along a height, with buoyancy modification using compressed air and water reservoirs to enhance efficiency, and a motor-generator assembly to convert this potential energy back into electrical energy as needed.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If pump storage stations are used to store electrical energy, then energy storage capacity is improved, but device complexity and environmental impact increase
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts the core energy storage function from complex pump storage infrastructure and implements it using simple weights, cables, and motor-generators. The system removes unnecessary components like large reservoirs, complex pumping mechanisms, and extensive civil engineering structures, retaining only the essential elements needed for potential energy storage and conversion.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention uses inexpensive, simple weights as the storage medium instead of requiring expensive, complex infrastructure. The weights are basic mechanical components that can be manufactured cheaply and replaced if needed, eliminating the need for costly pump storage facilities while achieving the same energy storage objective.
2Quantity of substance
If batteries are used to store electrical energy, then energy storage capacity is improved, but manufacturing cost and environmental contamination increase
Solution Approach 1:
The invention replaces expensive batteries with cheap mechanical weights that have no harmful environmental impact. The weights are simple physical objects made from non-toxic materials, eliminating the contamination issues associated with battery manufacturing, disposal, and recycling while providing equivalent energy storage capacity.
3Use of energy by moving object
If weights are lifted and lowered to store and release electrical energy, then energy storage and conversion is achieved, but energy loss during lifting occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The system employs periodic alternation between motor and generator modes, lifting weights during energy surplus periods and lowering them during energy deficit periods. This periodic operation allows the system to capture energy during weight descent, converting potential energy back to electrical energy through the generator, thereby recovering much of the energy that would otherwise be lost during the lifting phase.
Solution Approach 2:
The control system monitors grid energy conditions and automatically switches between charging (lifting) and discharging (lowering) modes. This feedback mechanism ensures optimal operation by lifting weights when energy is abundant and inexpensive, then recovering energy during weight descent when grid demand is high, minimizing net energy loss through intelligent timing and control of the periodic lift-lower cycle.
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
The system efficiently stores and converts electrical energy into potential energy, reducing energy consumption during lifting and increasing energy generation during lowering, with minimal environmental impact.
Implementation Method 1
the potential energy is determined by the formula E=mgh, wherein E is the energy, m is the mass of the weight, g is the acceleration of gravity, and h is the height of the displacement
Implementation Method 2
when it is required to supply energy to the grid, the energy generated by causing the weight to fall from that height is utilised to generate electrical energy
Implementation Method 3
this storage system is particularly useful when the weights are displaced being immersed in water, since it makes it possible to influence the buoyancy of the weights to improve the performance of the system
Data Source
AI summary
An energy storage system (1), which comprises a weight (2) hanging from a cable (3, 10) connected to a first rotation shaft (5) mechanically coupled to a second rotation shaft (6) of a motor-generator assembly (7) connected to the power grid. When there is a surplus of electrical energy in the grid, the motor-generator (7) consumes energy, operating as a motor to rotate the first shaft (5) in a winding direction of the cable (3, 10), whereas, when there is a shortage of electrical energy in the grid, the motor-generator (7) supplies energy, operating as a generator utilising the rotation of the first shaft (5) in an unwinding direction of the cable (3, 10) when the free fall of the weight (2) is allowed. When the weight (3) is displaced immersed in water, in addition a compressed-air system can be utilised to modify the buoyancy of the weight.