Pumped Heat Electric Storage with Brayton Cycle
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current grid-scale energy storage systems lack efficient and fast dispatch response times, and are often dependent on fossil fuels, which limits their ability to provide stable and sustainable energy storage solutions, especially with the integration of renewable energy sources like solar and wind.
Innovation Solution
The Pumped Heat Electric Storage (PHES) system utilizes a closed working-fluid loop with a Brayton cycle, incorporating a hot side and cold side with thermal reservoirs and heat exchangers to efficiently store and generate electricity, allowing for rapid switching between charge and generation modes, using thermal storage media like molten salts and methanol/water mixtures to achieve high roundtrip efficiency and reduce costs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Speed
If conventional energy storage systems are used, then energy storage capacity is achieved, but dispatch response time is slow
Solution Approach 1:
The system changes the physical state and parameters of the working fluid (temperature, pressure, phase) to enable rapid energy storage and retrieval. By using thermal energy storage with phase change materials and controlling fluid parameters through heat exchangers, the system achieves fast response times while maintaining stable energy storage capacity.
Solution Approach 2:
The system employs cyclic operation between charge and discharge modes, using periodic thermal cycles to store and release energy. The working fluid undergoes repeated heating and cooling cycles, allowing the system to rapidly switch between energy storage and generation modes while maintaining operational reliability.
2Reliability
If fossil fuel-based systems are used, then power generation reliability is maintained, but environmental sustainability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The system replaces chemical combustion processes with thermal energy storage and thermodynamic cycles. Instead of burning fossil fuels to generate power, the system uses stored thermal energy to drive heat exchangers and turbines, eliminating harmful emissions while maintaining reliable power generation through controlled thermal processes.
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates a closed-loop inert environment where the working fluid circulates continuously without combustion. This closed system prevents harmful emissions by containing all thermal processes within a controlled environment, using non-reactive working fluids that do not produce pollutants during energy conversion.
3Quantity of substance
If thermal energy storage is used, then energy storage capacity is increased, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system merges multiple functions into integrated components: heat exchangers serve both as thermal transfer devices and as part of the working fluid circulation system, while thermal storage tanks simultaneously store energy and regulate system pressure. This consolidation increases energy storage capacity while managing structural complexity through functional integration.
Solution Approach 2:
The working fluid serves multiple functions simultaneously: it stores thermal energy, transfers heat between components, drives the thermodynamic cycle for power generation, and regulates system pressure. This multi-functionality allows the system to achieve high energy storage capacity without proportionally increasing the number of separate components.
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
PHES systems provide dispatchable power generation with fast response times, increased grid stability, and the ability to store energy for extended periods, enabling efficient energy shifting and reducing the reliance on fossil fuels, while maintaining low operational costs and environmental impact.
Implementation Method 1
a heat exchanger may be employed to transfer heat between a thermal storage material and a working fluid
Implementation Method 2
at least one turbine... One or more motor/generators may be used to obtain work from the thermal energy in the system, preferably by generating electricity from mechanical energy received from the turbine
Implementation Method 3
at least one compressor
Implementation Method 4
The Pumped Heat Electric Storage (PHES) system utilizes a closed working-fluid loop with a Brayton cycle
Data Source
AI summary
The present disclosure provides pumped thermal energy storage systems that can be used to store and extract electrical energy. A pumped thermal energy storage system of the present disclosure can store energy by operating as a heat pump or refrigerator, whereby net work input can be used to transfer heat from the cold side to the hot side. A working fluid of the system is capable of efficient heat exchange with heat storage fluids on a hot side of the system and on a cold side of the system. The system can extract energy by operating as a heat engine transferring heat from the hot side to the cold side, which can result in net work output.