Compressed gas energy storage system
AssigneeLightSail Energy, Inc.
InventorsDanielle A. Fong, Stephen E. Crane, Edwin P. Berlin, Jr., AmirHossein Pourmousa Abkenar
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Abstract
Embodiments of the present invention use compressed air to store and deliver electrical, mechanical, and/or thermal power with high round-trip efficiency. Various embodiments may be scalable for use in a variety of environments—from wind farms to power plants to motor vehicles. An energy storage system according to the present invention can operate as a stand-alone storage system that connects electrically to the grid, it can be tightly integrated with a wind turbine, and/or it can be co-located with a thermal power generation facility and operate with even higher efficiency by scavenging low-grade waste heat.
Claims22
An energy storage and recovery system comprising:
- a reversible compressor/expander in selective fluid communication with a compressed gas storage unit and comprising an element configured to introduce liquid to effect gas-liquid heat exchange with gas being compressed or expanded within the reversible compressor/expander;
- a gas-liquid separator configured to separate the liquid from a gas-liquid mixture received from the reversible compressor/expander;
- an insulated thermal storage unit in thermal communication with separated liquid;
- and
- a second insulated thermal storage unit configured to be in thermal communication with liquid separated by a second gas-liquid separator when the reversible compressor/expander is operating as a compressor.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.