Tag Archives: energy storage
The Possibilities of Graphene Micro Supercapacitors
Imagine plugging in your smartphone for thirty seconds and then continuing the rest of your day with a fully charged phone. Then imagine plugging in your electric vehicle for less time than it takes to fill up a standard gas tank before running a day’s worth of errands on that one charge. Today, researchers at UCLA may [...]
Can LightSail Energy Dominate Energy Storage?
LightSail Energy (LightSail) is a Berkeley, California, company that has developed compressed air energy storage technology which may be used for grid-scale storage. The company’s central innovation is the injection of a mist of water spray into a compressed air system so the spray rapidly absorbs the heat energy of compression and provides the energy [...]
CleanTech PatentEdge Launches First Online Green Patent Database
For over a year now I’ve had the pleasure of using a beta version of CleanTech PatentEdge, a powerful database of green technology patents and published applications. Now you can use it too! IP Checkups, the Berkeley patent analytics firm that created CleanTech PatentEdge, recently announced the official launch of the database. The only comprehensive online [...]
It’s All About Energy Storage
A new study from UK-based GlobaData reveals that energy storage innovation will be essential to the advancement of solar power generation. Unfortunately, the study also found that there is little renewable energy storage innovation and few firms focusing on it. “Currently, there are no effective storage systems for megawatt scale solar power plants,” said GlobalData [...]
Utility-Scale Energy Storage: How Soon?
Steven Berberich is the President and CEO of the California Independent System Operator — the entity that makes sure there is a balance of electrical generation supply to meet the power demands of 30 million Californians. The organization has a deep familiarity with baseload and synchronous generation sources. Berberich spoke at a recent energy storage [...]
Can Solar Panels Work at Night?
Some questions have definite answers. Others will always have possibilities. It has been acknowledged over the years that solar panels work best during the day when the sun is out and unobstructed. At nighttime and during the winter season, less sunlight reaches the panels and converts to energy. The good news is that there really [...]
In Focus: Tesla and SolarCity’s Home Energy Storage Play
Have electric carmaker Tesla and solar power installer and financier SolarCity cracked the financial code for backing up residential rooftop solar panels with household batteries? Over the past year or so, the two companies have been quietly installing Tesla’s lithium-ion batteries to back up SolarCity’s solar panels. That’s no secret — SolarCity advertises its home [...]
Energy Storage Market: Ready for Liftoff
As solar and wind technology gain market share in world of energy production, there will be an increasing need for quality energy storage, according to a report from Lux Research. That need will drive growth and innovation in the battery and energy storage realms, said report author Brian Warshay. While solar and winder energy generation [...]
Energy Storage: Liquid Nitrogen (LN2)
Energy storage: the ability to transport energy over distances and in a safe and easily used fashion. Chemically, physically, or by other means, it is a challenge of both efficiency and capacity. In our energy storage series we take a look at some of the real and proposed technologies for storing and moving energy. This [...]