When it comes to solar energy, storage is a big challenge. One approach is to store it in the form of heat, using molten salts, oils or beds of packed rock, but these methods can be expensive or can damage storage tanks. Researchers at the U of A have developed an alternative, which could increase energy production at solar power plants while decreasing costs.
Civil engineering professor Panneer Selvam and doctoral student Matt Strasser designed and tested a structured thermocline system that uses parallel concrete plates instead of packed rock inside a single storage tank. The plates were made from a special mixture of concrete developed by Micah Hale, associate professor of civil engineering. The system takes heat from solar panels and transfers it through steel pipes into the concrete, which absorbs the heat and stores it until it can be transferred to a generator. Modeling results showed this method has an efficiency of 93.9 percent, doesn’t damage the storage materials and would cost only $0.78 per kilowatthour.