Lifeboat Foundation

Move over, lithium ion: Vanadium flow batteries finally become competitive for grid-scale energy storage.

Environmentalists say desalination decimates ocean life, costs too much money and energy. But as Western states face an epic drought, regulators appear ready to approve a desalination plant in Huntington Beach, California.

#California #Desalination #Drought.

Continue reading “California approves desalination plant as western states face an epic drought | Latest news” »

American asked pilots to save fuel due to shortage at certain midsize airports.

Officials with battery maker Form Energy have announced the development of the Iron-Air 100-hour storage battery—a battery meant to store electricity created from renewable sources such as solar and wind. As part of their announcement, they note that their new battery is based on iron, not lithium, and thus is much less expensive to produce.

The team at Form Energy describe their new battery as a multi-day energy storage system—one that can feed electricity to the grid for approximately 100 hours at a cost that is significantly lower than lithium-ion batteries.

The basic idea behind the iron-air battery is that it takes in oxygen and then uses it to convert iron inside the battery to rust, later converting it back to iron again. Converting back and forth between iron and rust allows the energy that is stored in the battery to be stored longer than conventional batteries.

Boston startup Form Energy has secured $200 million Series D funding for the development of what is being called a breakthrough in energy storage. #solarenergy #solarpv #solar

Solar and wind power have variability in their productive hours, as multi-day weather events can impact output. Therefore, multi-day storage that is cost effective is important in grid reliability.

Boston startup Form Energy developed technology to address this need, revealing recently the chemistry behind their iron-air batteries. The company said its iron-air batteries can deliver renewables-sourced electricity for 100 hours at system costs competitive with conventional power plants. At full-scale production, Form Energy said the modules would deliver electricity at tenth the cost of lithium-ion batteries.

Continue reading “Multi-day iron-air batteries reach commercialization… at one tenth of the cost of lithium” »

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzuwCqCFjmk

Dubai uses drones to electrically charge clouds, causing tortential rains in one of the driest nations on Earth. Until now, such experiments had been done succeessfully from the ground only.

Info — Viral — Fun.
#Real #Dubai #makes #its #own #RAIN #to #tackle #122F #heat: #Drones #blast #clouds #with #electrical #charge #to #produce #downpours.
#The #rain #is #formed #using #drone #technology #that #gives #clouds #an #electric #shock #to #‘cajole #them’ #into #clumping #together #and #producing #precipitation.
The #UAE #is #one #of #the #most #arid #countries #on #Earth #and #the #technique #helps #to #increase #its #meagre #annual #rainfall #Video #shows #it #is #working #with #monsoon-like #downpours #across #the #country.
Dubai makes its own RAIN to tackle 122F heat: Drones blast clouds with electrical charge to produce downpours.
The rain is formed using drone technology that gives clouds an electric shock to ‘cajole them’ into clumping together and producing precipitation.
The UAE is one of the most arid countries on Earth and the technique helps to increase its meagre annual rainfall.
Video shows it is working with monsoon-like downpours across the country.
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Continue reading “Dubai makes its own RAIN to tackle 122F heat: Drones blast clouds with electrical charge to produce” »

As renewable forms of power like wind and solar continue to gain prominence, there will be a need for creative solutions when it comes to storing energy from sources that are intermittent by nature. One potential solution is known as a molten salt battery, which offers advantages that lithium batteries do not, but have their share of kinks to iron out, too. Scientists at Sandia National Laboratories have come up with a new design that addresses a number of these shortcomings, and demonstrated a working molten salt battery that can be constructed far more cheaply, while storing more energy, than currently available versions.

Storing vast amounts of energy in a cheap and efficient manner is the name of the game when it comes to powering whole cities with renewable energy, and despite its many strengths, this is where expensive lithium battery technology falls short. Molten salt batteries shape as a more cost-effective solution, which use electrodes kept in a molten state with the help of high temperatures. This is something that the Sandia scientists have been working to change.

“We’ve been working to bring the operating temperature of molten sodium batteries down as low as physically possible,” says Leo Small, the lead researcher on the project. “There’s a whole cascading cost savings that comes along with lowering the battery temperature. You can use less expensive materials. The batteries need less insulation and the wiring that connects all the batteries can be a lot thinner.”

Helion Energy said that its latest fusion generator prototype has exceeded 100 million degrees Celsius. The company has developed a unique pulsed fusion system.

According to the order page, the price in California starts at $1235, 890, and Tesla requires $5000 down. This doesn’t include taxes or annual maintenance. Prices do vary by state. Customers can order up to 1000 Megapacks, and if they do, the costs per unit decline with each additional Megapack order.

On its website, Tesla said that it took everything it knew about battery technology to enable the world’s largest energy projects. For these giga-scale projects, a 1 gigawatt-hour (GWh) project provides enough energy storage capacity to power every home in San Francisco for 6 hours.

For those ordering the Tesla Megapack, the earliest deliveries will occur in 2022, but not for all states. California, Nevada, and Texas have 2022 delivery estimates, while others, including my own state of Louisiana, have 2023 estimated delivery dates. The price of the Megapack for Louisiana is $1252, 810.