Energy storage a boost for renewables

Engineers and scientists think they have paved the way for the massive installation of renewable energies with a breakthrough in electrical charge storage.

One atom thin graphene could be ideal for electrical charge storage

A US team have used of a one-atom thick graphene as a new carbon-based material for storing electrical charge in ultracapacitor devices. The researchers think their breakthrough could eventually double the capacity of existing ultracapacitors, which are manufactured using an entirely different form of carbon.

“Through such a device, electrical charge can be rapidly stored on the graphene sheets, and released from them as well for the delivery of electrical current and, thus, electrical power,” said Rod Ruoff, a mechanical engineering professor and a physical chemist at The University of Texas at Austin. “There are reasons to think that the ability to store electrical charge can be about double that of current commercially used materials. We are working to see if that prediction will be borne out in the laboratory.”

Two main methods exist to store electrical energy: in rechargeable batteries and in ultracapacitors which are becoming increasingly commercialized but are not yet as popularly known. An ultracapacitor can be used in a wide range of energy capture and storage applications and are used either by themselves as the primary power source or in combination with batteries or fuel cells.

An improved method for storage of electrical energy is one of the main challenges preventing the substantial installation of renewable energies such as wind and solar power.

“Electrical energy storage becomes a critical component when very large quantities of renewable electrical energy are being generated,” said Ruoff. Adding: “Storage is vital for times when the wind doesn't blow or the sun doesn't shine. During those times, the stored electrical energy can be delivered through the electrical grid as needed.”