In the city of Manchester, United Kingdom, construction has begun on the world’s largest liquid air battery for renewable energy storage conversion. This facility, which will be able to supply electricity to up to 200,000 homes, has the capacity to conserve energy for several weeks. It was first announced in 2020, the Highview Power plant, and has received financial support from the UK government, with a £10 million grant.
The construction of the liquid air coil
The plant began operations in mid-2022 and plays an important role in reducing carbon emissions. According to information from The Guardian, the technique employed consists of using surplus green energy to compress air into a liquid that is stored until it is needed. At times of high demand, this air is reconverted into gas and feeds a turbine, thus feeding green energy back into the power grid.
In addition, the inconsistent availability of energy sources such as wind and sun, vital to reducing emissions and combating climate change, makes it imperative to energy storage. This project in Manchester breaks the paradigm of traditional hydroelectric storage schemes, which rely on mountain reservoirs to store water.
This project, entitled “Liquid air battery, the solution to protect renewables”, The Guardian, highlights the company’s innovation in creating this battery, and its advantages over chemical batteries that can only store small amounts of energy for limited periods. The company’s CEO highlighted the versatility of liquid air technology, which can be deployed anywhere and whose main competitor is fossil fuels, not other storage technologies.
The company’s warehousing plant. Source: Highview Power
Finally, it is important to mention that Highview Power is expanding its technology in the United Kingdom, Europe and the United States. The Manchester project, being the first of its kind, sets a precedent in the field of renewable energies and raises great expectations about its future impact.
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Source:
The Guardian
Photo: Highview Power
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