A White-Hot Molten Silicon “Sun” Could Power 100,000 Homes (1 Viewer)

[ThoughtEx.]

Based on their preliminary tests, the scientists project that a single TEGS-MPV storage tank would be able to store enough power that a community of 100,000 homes could rely solely on renewable energy sources and not face interruptions when the sun goes down or the wind stops blowing.

https://futurism.com/solar-energy-storage

And for those of you that think they know a lick spittle about the Science, here's the paper.

https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlehtml/2019/ee/c8ee02341g

Well, this is an interesting concept. Converting to heat, and using photovoltaics to generate energy. Still in the early stages, but the concept is sound.

It's a lot cheaper than hydropumps, and lithium batteries.

I'm surprised to be reading about this, this year. From what I hear tell from the denier duo here on DP, we are decades from inventing anything nearly so efficient...

 

[Lord of Planar]

https://futurism.com/solar-energy-storage

And for those of you that think they know a lick spittle about the Science, here's the paper.

https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlehtml/2019/ee/c8ee02341g

Well, this is an interesting concept. Converting to heat, and using photovoltaics to generate energy. Still in the early stages, but the concept is sound.

It's a lot cheaper than hydropumps, and lithium batteries.

I'm surprised to be reading about this, this year. From what I hear tell from the denier duo here on DP, we are decades from inventing anything nearly so efficient...

Now this type of innovation might actually work.

 

[jdog21]

https://futurism.com/solar-energy-storage

And for those of you that think they know a lick spittle about the Science, here's the paper.

https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlehtml/2019/ee/c8ee02341g

Well, this is an interesting concept. Converting to heat, and using photovoltaics to generate energy. Still in the early stages, but the concept is sound.

It's a lot cheaper than hydropumps, and lithium batteries.

I'm surprised to be reading about this, this year. From what I hear tell from the denier duo here on DP, we are decades from inventing anything nearly so efficient...

And the environmental impact of the waste would be?

 

[Xelor]

Based on their preliminary tests, the scientists project that a single TEGS-MPV storage tank would be able to store enough power that a community of 100,000 homes could rely solely on renewable energy sources and not face interruptions when the sun goes down or the wind stops blowing.

https://futurism.com/solar-energy-storage

And for those of you that think they know a lick spittle about the Science, here's the paper.

https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlehtml/2019/ee/c8ee02341g

Well, this is an interesting concept. Converting to heat, and using photovoltaics to generate energy. Still in the early stages, but the concept is sound.

It's a lot cheaper than hydropumps, and lithium batteries.

I'm surprised to be reading about this, this year. From what I hear tell from the denier duo here on DP, we are decades from inventing anything nearly so efficient...

Red:
I suppose it was only a matter of time before someone figured out how to build a better battery.

If a man has good corn or wood, or boards, or pigs, to sell, or can make better chairs or knives, crucibles or church organs, than anybody else, you will find a broad hard-beaten road to his house, though it be in the woods.
— Ralph Waldo Emerson​

 

[OrphanSlug]

Now this type of innovation might actually work.

It is encouraging to see efforts into dealing with this, to date dealing with inconsistency from solar energy meant dealing with traditional energy sources.

 

[Lord of Planar]

And the environmental impact of the waste would be?

The waste is a lump of silicon rock, or am I missing something?

 

[Lord of Planar]

It is encouraging to see efforts into dealing with this, to date dealing with inconsistency from solar energy meant dealing with traditional energy sources.

The could probably direct solar energy straight into the molten silicon to keep it hot as well. I think they could operate molten silicon in a vacuum and use a quartz window to shine it through. This would help keep the heat in.

 

[longview]

It is an interesting idea, but the roundtrip efficiency is low.
I am thinking hydrogen storage with fuel cell s may be a better long term,
and is already further down the development path.
https://www.sunfire.de/en/applications/hydrogen

 

[cabse5]

https://futurism.com/solar-energy-storage

And for those of you that think they know a lick spittle about the Science, here's the paper.

https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlehtml/2019/ee/c8ee02341g

Well, this is an interesting concept. Converting to heat, and using photovoltaics to generate energy. Still in the early stages, but the concept is sound.

It's a lot cheaper than hydropumps, and lithium batteries.

I'm surprised to be reading about this, this year. From what I hear tell from the denier duo here on DP, we are decades from inventing anything nearly so efficient...

So, when is this science gonna become a reality? Fifty years? Like total reliance on renewable energy?

 

[ThoughtEx.]

So, when is this science gonna become a reality? Fifty years? Like total reliance on renewable energy?

I didn't write the paper. How the **** should I know.

 

[longview]

So, when is this science gonna become a reality? Fifty years? Like total reliance on renewable energy?

Thermal storage is already a reality at many levels.
The university I used to work at had a tank of about 200,000 gallons of water, that they would freeze,
with nighttime lower electricity rates, and the thaw to cool the main building during the hot summer days.
To my knowledge the system has been operational for over 20 years.

 

[cabse5]

I didn't write the paper. How the **** should I know.

I'm wondering about the practicality of it all. Or will we have to wait for this new type of energy until cars become hovercrafts, for example.

 

[ThoughtEx.]

I'm wondering about the practicality of it all. Or will we have to wait for this new type of energy until cars become hovercrafts, for example.

Seems practical to me, but I'm not an engineer so...

 

[Lord of Planar]

It is an interesting idea, but the roundtrip efficiency is low.
I am thinking hydrogen storage with fuel cell s may be a better long term,
and is already further down the development path.
https://www.sunfire.de/en/applications/hydrogen

This might not be as efficient, but fuel cells are still expensive per kW. They also have a limited life still. I suspect for large scale, the molten silicon is better. Besides, you would be able to channel the sun directly to the storage unit and bypass the conversion to electricity and heat.

 

[longview]

This might not be as efficient, but fuel cells are still expensive per kW. They also have a limited life still. I suspect for large scale, the molten silicon is better. Besides, you would be able to channel the sun directly to the storage unit and bypass the conversion to electricity and heat.

I think this molten silicon is still talking conversion from electricity to heat.

 

[Lord of Planar]

So, when is this science gonna become a reality? Fifty years? Like total reliance on renewable energy?

I suspect something like this could be ready sooner than the bureaucratic approval process takes.

 

[Lord of Planar]

I'm wondering about the practicality of it all. Or will we have to wait for this new type of energy until cars become hovercrafts, for example.

We are nowhere near anti-gravity yet. Unless such technology is classified.

 

[Tim the plumber]

https://futurism.com/solar-energy-storage

And for those of you that think they know a lick spittle about the Science, here's the paper.

https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlehtml/2019/ee/c8ee02341g

Well, this is an interesting concept. Converting to heat, and using photovoltaics to generate energy. Still in the early stages, but the concept is sound.

It's a lot cheaper than hydropumps, and lithium batteries.

I'm surprised to be reading about this, this year. From what I hear tell from the denier duo here on DP, we are decades from inventing anything nearly so efficient...

Had a glance, what is it?

Does it convert electricity to heat then use standard steam turbines to get the energy back out?

That would be in the 25% efficency range then...

 

[longview]

Had a glance, what is it?

Does it convert electricity to heat then use standard steam turbines to get the energy back out?

That would be in the 25% efficency range then...

The actual paper seems to dance around what the roundtrip efficiency (RTE) for this technology.
It appears that where they are going is that the technology, while poor efficiency would be cheap on a per Kwh basis,
and could be deployed almost anywhere.
The paper mentions that pumped hydroelectric storage (PHS) has high efficiency but limited application and high cost.

 

[Tim the plumber]

The actual paper seems to dance around what the roundtrip efficiency (RTE) for this technology.
It appears that where they are going is that the technology, while poor efficiency would be cheap on a per Kwh basis,
and could be deployed almost anywhere.
The paper mentions that pumped hydroelectric storage (PHS) has high efficiency but limited application and high cost.

Yes hydro is better at about 50%, maybe a little higher, but you need 2 large lakes close together at different heights. Generally all the sites that are suitable have been done.

 

[Visbek]

I'm surprised to be reading about this, this year. From what I hear tell from the denier duo here on DP, we are decades from inventing anything nearly so efficient...

I'm not surprised, but it takes a lot of work to get from "conceptual design" to "prototype" to "first working model" to "somewhat affordable production system" to "mature production version." E.g. MSR, which is an earlier version of this technology, was discussed in similarly breathless language not so long ago.

This is not to say there is any chicanery going on, only that one ought to be cautious about big promises in PR releases.

 

[Lord of Planar]

I'm not surprised, but it takes a lot of work to get from "conceptual design" to "prototype" to "first working model" to "somewhat affordable production system" to "mature production version." E.g. MSR, which is an earlier version of this technology, was discussed in similarly breathless language not so long ago.

This is not to say there is any chicanery going on, only that one ought to be cautious about big promises in PR releases.

The problem with most prototypes, is scaling up. In this case, the prototype will be less efficient than a larger version.

 

[Jack Hays]

https://futurism.com/solar-energy-storage

And for those of you that think they know a lick spittle about the Science, here's the paper.

https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlehtml/2019/ee/c8ee02341g

Well, this is an interesting concept. Converting to heat, and using photovoltaics to generate energy. Still in the early stages, but the concept is sound.

It's a lot cheaper than hydropumps, and lithium batteries.

I'm surprised to be reading about this, this year. From what I hear tell from the denier duo here on DP, we are decades from inventing anything nearly so efficient...

Worth following up.

 

[ThoughtEx.]

Had a glance, what is it?

Does it convert electricity to heat then use standard steam turbines to get the energy back out?

That would be in the 25% efficency range then...

No it uses photovoltaics, captures the light off the molten silicone. Which if I'm remembering correctly Boeing has a design with 40% efficiency. Average I believe is 35 %.

But the real draw is how cheap it is, we can lose a bit of efficiency if it still costs less to make up the difference than putting in a higher efficiency system.

If you can build 5 of these for the same price as a hydropump (which is also geo limited). Even at 25% efficiency you are serving more houses for the same price.

 

[Tim the plumber]

No it uses photovoltaics, captures the light off the molten silicone. Which if I'm remembering correctly Boeing has a design with 40% efficiency. Average I believe is 35 %.

But the real draw is how cheap it is, we can lose a bit of efficiency if it still costs less to make up the difference than putting in a higher efficiency system.

If you can build 5 of these for the same price as a hydropump (which is also geo limited). Even at 25% efficiency you are serving more houses for the same price.

If you are capturing light then the efficency of the whole is going to be vastly less than the efficency of the photo cells.

The heat will be lost far more from all the other ways it will escape.