High-Temperature Combined Sensible/Latent-Heat Storage Based on Novel Materials for Electricity Storage Using Advanced Adiabatic Compressed Air Energy Storage (AA-CAES)

The overall objectives of the joint project are twofold: To demonstrate a combined sensible/latent-heat storage at an industrially relevant scale for use in advanced adiabatic compressed air energy storage (AA-CAES) and to assess the environmental and economic potential of AA-CAES as an alternative to pumped hydro energy storage (PHES) for electricity storage in Switzerland. The TA group will contribute research in the areas of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and Life Cycle Costing (LCC) that is closely integrated in the three sub-projects. The LCA in the present project will investigate all materials and elements needed for the construction, operation, maintenance and dismantling of the AA-CAES installation. By reacting on the ongoing research of the project partners, the environmental impacts of different choices will be investigated. Further, the AA-CAES will be compared to other energy storage technologies, mainly pumped hydro energy storage. LCC is a well-established methodology, but in the present case it is its application to the compressed air storage technology in question that is of interest. The primary question is the life cycle or net present value cost of the AA-CAES storage technology as developed and designed in the other tasks, based on the system boundaries, technical performance, and intended application. This economic evaluation will be based on the full range of capital and operating costs, power and energy (storage) sizing, efficiency losses and electricity market values for the time shifted energy. The AA-CAES technology will be compared to other to other competing storage technologies providing comparable service within the Swiss context, including siting availability, costs, storage demand and the penetration of renewables.

Article in Swiss Engineering STZ:
Barbato, M., Becattini, V., Binder, S., Burgherr, P., Haselbacher, A., Haussener, S., Mutel, C., Roncolato, J., Schenler, W., Steinfeld, A., Zanganeh, G. (2017) Druckluftspeicher in den Alpen. Swiss Engineering STZ, Energie August 2017, 6-9

SRF 10vor10:Energie speichern mit Druckluft

News in energate-messenger.ch: Forscherteam zieht positives Zwischenfazit zu Druckluftspeichern 

Summary Reports:

• Electricity storage via adiabatic air compression

• Electricity can be stored in mountain tunnels – using a compressed air battery

• Mountain Tunnels Store Compressed Air and Heat

The AA-CAES project has completed. For more information, please refer to here.