Post by account_disabled on Feb 19, 2024 9:50:29 GMT 1
Energy storage based on phase change materials has had a breakthrough thanks to the work of the Berkeley Laboratory, opening the door to a future of walls capable of storing heat and electricity .
The potential of phase change materials to decarbonize buildings.
Could a hot (or cold) water tank be a battery? Yes, if that energy can be stored and used when needed to power, for example, a domestic heating system.
In reality, thermal storage technologies have been around for a long time, but their potential is often overlooked, especially in buildings.
Scientists at the Lawrence Berkeley Nationa Phone Number Listl Laboratory are working to give the sector a new opportunity by overcoming the limitations of traditional water-based thermal storage.
One of the most promising resources in this area of research are phase change materials, chemical compounds that absorb and release energy in the transition from the liquid to the solid phase, and vice versa. These elements have a number of potential applications in technology, from electrochemical batteries to high-tech textiles and large power plants. But an important space could also be found in the residential sector.
Invisible thermal and electrical storage.
In buildings, phase change materials could be added to walls or integrated directly into masonry, acting as a thermal battery for the structure.
In theory, the operation would be simple. At ambient temperatures above the melting point of the material, it would change phase and absorb heat. If not, I would release him
The problem is that these compounds generally only work in a precise temperature range. This means that two different materials would be needed for summer and winter, which would increase the cost of these systems. Berkeley Lab has devised a way to overcome this problem using what is called " dynamic tuning ."
In a new study, a team of Berkeley Laboratory researchers shows how they achieved dynamic adjustment of the material's temperature using ions. The result is a unique compound that combines thermal and electrical storage, so it can provide both heat and electricity.