Hot Energy Storage Event — the 5th Annual "Storage Week" in San Jose
After a quick cup of strong coffee, I’m off to the energy storage show, the 5th Annual “Storage Week” in San Jose. It’s only a bit over three hours from here, and it’s really worthwhile. I’ll post something from the show that I think is worth-while, and that won’t be hard; traditionally, I’ve found that there are some magnificent new concepts presented each year.
Renewable energy systems will never be practical without cost effective methods to store huge amounts of energy. Because of variable demand, cost effective storage systems would be beneficial for all methods of power generation.
Here is a link showing the demand for power in Texas and the amount of wind power available, by the hour. Notice that the amount of wind power available is lowest just when the demand for power is at its highest. One can easily see what would happen if we tried to depend on wind power during the summer.
http://www.ercot.com/content/gridinfo/generation/windintegration/2012/06/ERCOT%20Wind%20Integration%20Report%2006-26-12.pdf
Also note that the installed wind power capacity greatly exceeds the amount of wind power generated.