Keeping the lights on: Solving the intermittency shortcomings of renewable solar energy
The Science
More efficient, eco-friendly electricity generation with a “solar flow battery” combines a redox flow battery and a dye-sensitized solar cell, using compatible, water-based (aqueous) solvents. Solar energy is harvested and stored as chemical energy during the charging process. When it is time to recharge the battery, the amount of energy needed to is lower than conventional lithium-iodine batteries because dye molecules, exposed to the sun, donate electrons to the recharging process.
The Impact
Energy generation from a solar flow battery is more cost-effective, eco-friendly, and can achieve energy savings up to 20% compared to conventional lithium-iodine batteries. Solar flow batteries make renewable solar energy more practical for keeping the lights on and appliances running with stand-alone electricity generation and storage.
Summary
Last year, researchers at The Ohio State University demonstrated photo-assisted charging of a lithium-oxygen (Li-O2) battery; however, they used organic (carbon-based) solvents that limited its compatibility with aqueous redox flow batteries. Now, these researchers have built a solar flow battery that uses an eco-friendly, compatible solvent and requires a lower applied voltage to recharge the battery. In solar flow batteries, the proposed charging process links harvesting solar energy and storing it as chemical energy via the electrolyte. The aqueous electrolyte is in contact with the counter electrode of the battery and the dye-sensitized photo-electrode of the solar cell. To recharge the battery, it is exposed to sunlight. The sunlight causes the dye molecules in the electrolyte to donate electrons to the photo-electrode, reducing the amount of energy needed to recharge the battery. The applied voltage to recharge the solar flow battery is reduced to 2.9 Volts compared to over 3.6 Volts for conventional lithium-iodine batteries, resulting in an energy savings of up to 20%. The aqueous solar flow battery performs better and is more cost-effective and eco-friendly than those based on organic solvents. The aqueous solar flow battery could solve the intermittency shortcomings of renewable energy and keep the lights on and appliances running.
Read more: Eco-friendly Battery and Solar Cell All-in-One
The Latest on: Solar flow battery
[google_news title=”” keyword=”Solar flow battery” num_posts=”10″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”]
via Google News
The Latest on: Solar flow battery
- Community solar struggles in California could ripple nationallyon May 9, 2024 at 3:52 am
Unlike rooftop solar that serves one home, community solar projects flow from a moderate-sized solar array to ... That’s a way to incentivize battery storage, since it would allow power to be saved up ...
- Canadian Solar Inc.: Canadian Solar Reports First Quarter 2024 Results and Announces Appointment of Chief Financial Officeron May 9, 2024 at 3:39 am
Canadian Solar Inc. ("Canadian Solar" or the "Company") (NASDAQ: CSIQ) today announced financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2024. Highlights Solar ...
- Check out the ‘world’s first’ DC-to-DC solar-powered EV chargeron May 8, 2024 at 2:36 pm
California-based Enteligent is accepting pre-orders for what it claims is the world’s first DC-to-DC solar-powered EV charger.
- Powering homes exclusively with hydrogen, solar, batterieson May 7, 2024 at 9:10 am
Researchers in Spain has found that combining PV power generation with fuel cells and battery storage may help homes considerably reduce their levelized cost of energy. Their simulation reportedly ...
- Giant Batteries Are Transforming the Way the U.S. Uses Electricityon May 7, 2024 at 2:03 am
They’re delivering solar power after dark in California and helping to stabilize grids in other states. And the technology is expanding rapidly.
- Solar, battery manufacturing could help Net Zero become reality — but demand lags behindon May 6, 2024 at 10:21 am
The uptick is being driven by rising global investment in clean technology, which includes solar, wind, batteries, electrolyzers (crucial for green hydrogen), and heat pumps. Investment grew by more ...
- A Company Is Building a Giant Compressed-Air Battery in the Australian Outbackon May 4, 2024 at 4:00 am
Hydrostor, a leader in compressed air energy storage, aims to break ground on its first large-scale plant in New South Wales by the end of this year. It wants to follow that with an even bigger ...
- The intermittency of wind and solar power could be worse than originally thought, experts sayon May 2, 2024 at 2:12 pm
A 15-state region produced less than 10% of its potential 22 gigawatt wind output over an 82-hour period. For 42 hours straight within that period, the wind output was only 1.5% of the total.
- Best Solar Batteries of May 2024on May 2, 2024 at 12:35 pm
According to Tesla the Powerwall 3 is now available in the continental US, Hawaii and Puerto Rico, the powerful and cost-effective Powerwall 3 is proof that Tesla will continue to be a leader in home ...
- Can an electric car be charged with solar power? know howon April 29, 2024 at 6:00 am
Electric vehicles (EVs) have emerged as a promising solution to combat climate change and reduce dependence on fossil fuels. One intriguing ..|News Track ...
via Bing News