Microgrid experiment is part of global battery energy storage bid to boost electrification

ON a university campus in rural Missouri, a partnership project brokered by the Consortium for Battery Innovation between industry and academia is paving the way for homes to adopt green energy storage using advanced lead batteries.

As the race to find sustainable energy storage solutions that operate throughout the seasons continues, experiments such as Missouri university’s microgrid solar-powered homes are at the forefront.

Using advanced lead batteries two homes, both housing students, have been linked to a mini grid and sophisticated battery monitoring system to test their performance over a two-year period.

It’s just one of many energy storage projects –some large, some small –which are changing the way we look at generating and storing energy.

Market predictions vary, but by 2030 demand for energy storage is set to jump by up to six times the current rate, a trend similar to the uptake in solar which took place between 2000-2015.

The Consortium for Battery Innovation is spearheading this and other demonstration projects as engineers and academics test various storage options in the race to achieve greater electrification.

Later this year global leaders will report on progress against the Paris climate change targets when they meet in Poland at the COP24 conference in Katowice. As the United Nations and other bodies report, the rate of decarbonisation must accelerate if the world is to avoid the catastrophic impact of global warming.

Our challenge is to support the innovation leading to the next generation of advanced lead battery energy storage solutions in support of the wider decarbonisation agenda. Batteries which are self-sustaining by virtue of their recyclability and batteries which support efforts to halt damaging climate change.

That’s why as an industry we are partnering with universities, governments and research groups to pioneer advanced lead battery energy storage options and offer a choice using a technology which is reliable, proven and cost-effective.

For more information, download the case study here and view the video from the Missouri S&T EcoVillage.

By Dr Alistair Davidson