Liquid Air Energy Storage (LAES)
Pumped Hydro Capability Wherever Required.
Highview are the leading designers and developers of Liquid Air Energy Storage (LAES) systems,
a large scale, long duration energy storage solution for utility and distributed power systems.
LAES can be used for supporting intermittent renewables, helping to manage peak demand and
also delivering security of supply.
Highview’s LAES system
Thermal store
comprises of three primary
Stage 2. Energy store
processes:
1.) Charging System
2.) Energy Store
3.) Power Recovery
Stage 1. Charging the system
Stage 3. Power recovery
Stage 1. Charging the system
Cold recycle
The charging system comprises an air liquefier, which uses
electrical energy to draw air from the surrounding
environment. During this stage, the air is cleaned and
cooled to subzero temperatures until the air liquefies. 700
of ambient air become 1 litre of liquid air.
Stage 2. Energy Store
The liquid air is stored in an insulated tank at low pressure,
which functions as the energy store. This equipment is
already globally deployed for bulk storage of liquid
nitrogen, oxygen and LNG. The tanks used within industry
have the potential to hold GWh of stored energy.
Stage 3. Power Recovery
When power is required, liquid air is drawn from the
tank(s) and pumped to high pressure. Stored heat from the
air liquefier is applied to the liquid air via heat exchangers
and an intermediate heat transfer fluid. This produces a
high-pressure gas, which is then used to drive a turbine.
Cold Recycle – During stage 3, very cold air is
exhausted and captured by our proprietary high-grade
cold store. This is used at a later time to enhance the
efficiency of the liquefaction process. Alternatively,
the system can integrate waste cold from industrial
processes such as LNG terminals.
Thermal store – The low boiling point of liquefied air
means the round trip efficiency of the system can be
improved with the introduction of above ambient
heat. Highview’s standard LAES system captures and
stores heat produced during the liquefaction process
(stage 1) and integrates this heat to the power
recovery process (stage 3). The system can also
integrate waste heat from industrial processes such as
thermal power generation or steel mills.
Liquid Air Energy Storage (LAES) Systems
From 2011-2014 Highview ran a fully operational
pilot plant (350kW/2.5MWh) hosted by SSE
(Scottish & Southern Energy) at Slough in
Greater London.
Pilot Plant
From June 2011 to the end of 2014, Highview operated
and tested a fully integrated (350kW/2.5MWh) pilot
plant. The plant was hosted by SSE (Scottish & Southern
Energy) at its Slough Heat & Power 80MW biomass plant
in Greater London. The plant successfully completed a full
testing regime, including performance testing for the US
PJM electricity market. In practical terms, the plant
underwent operating hours equivalent to more than
three years of UK Short Term Operating Reserve service.
The plant has now been relocated to the University of
Pre-commercial Demonstrator
Highview and project partners, energy from waste
management company Viridor, were awarded more
than £8 million in funding from the UK Government.
The funding is supporting the design, build and
testing of a new 5MW pre-commercial LAES
technology demonstrator alongside Viridor’s
Pilsworth landfill gas generation site in Bury, Greater
Manchester. In addition to providing energy
storage, the LAES plant will harvest low grade waste
heat from the GE Jenbacher landfill gas engines and
convert it to power.
Birmingham’s new Birmingham Centre for Cryogenic
Energy Storage for further testing and research, where it
was re-commissioned at the end of 2015.
The project will demonstrate LAES technology
providing a number of balancing services, including:
Reserve, secondary frequency response and Triad
avoidance (supporting the grid during the winter
peaks). The project is expected to be operational in
2016.
Supporting Partners
www.highview-power.com |+44 (0) 207 872 5800 | [email protected]
© Highview Enterprises Ltd 2016