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Powering ahead with storage – one thermal block at a time

3/8/2022

5 min read

MGA Thermal CEO Erich Kisi set against black backdrop, holding grey coloured thermal energy storage blocks made with miscibility gap alloys Photo: MGA Thermal
MGA Thermal

Photo: MGA Thermal CEO Erich Kisi with thermal energy storage blocks made with miscibility gap alloys

There is considerable scope for new, long-duration thermal energy storage to help Australia’s electricity system accommodate larger quantities of new renewable generation. And this could be installed at existing coal-fired power stations, explains Erich Kisi, CEO of MGA Thermal.

The global energy supply is in disarray and, for many Australians, the recent chaos in the electricity market has been unsettling. It’s a complex situation, but one which doesn’t require a complex solution. The time has come for Australia to accelerate its transition away from fossil fuels and instead turn its attention to renewables and long-duration energy storage to escape the ongoing threat of blackouts and skyrocketing power prices.

 

Against the backdrop of coal-fired plant closures, the Australian Energy Market Operator (AMEO), responsible for the national electricity network, has already implemented emergency measures to ensure Australian homes can remain powered during periods of peak demand. It expects a nine-fold increase in renewable capacity by 2050 to meet Australia’s zero emissions targets.

 

The solution is clear; we know that renewable energy solutions will reduce reliance on fossil fuels, Australia’s emissions output and carbon footprint. Not only will renewable energy future-proof Australia’s national energy supply, but it will also act as the backbone for a stable power economy. However, renewable energy sources come with their limitations – especially when at the mercy of unreliable weather conditions. There’s a gap here that needs filling.

 

Powering ahead on renewables
As national grids make the transition to renewable energy, BloombergNEF predicts an average of 245 GWh of new long-term energy storage – including batteries, hydrogen and other storage solutions – is required every year globally to meet 2030 net zero targets.

 

Validating the future of renewables, Australia’s Energy Minister, Chris Bowen, has identified an increased investment in renewable resources as the answer to the crisis and to secure the reliability of the market. Luckily, Australia already has a multitude of innovative solutions to support its transition away from coal-fired power.

 

Often solutions are developed for energy storage, yet take too narrow a view of the complex and interconnected resource challenge. This typically results in further integration, storage or delivery issues, with unexpected consequences requiring attention further down the line. To be viable in the long term, energy solutions must be affordable and scalable, as well as safe for human health and the environment.

 

Developing systems to incorporate recycled materials that can be recovered at the end of life will prevent us from generating more waste while maximising the value of the resources we already have. In order to minimise the shock of change for both the communities and companies with which these systems are embedded, solutions must be able to guide a managed transition over time.

 

Undoubtedly, conventional storage technologies such as batteries play an important role in the renewable energy transition. However, a complementary, grid-scale dispatchable energy solution is also required to power a seamless transition to renewables nationally.


Conventional storage technologies such as batteries play an important role in the renewable energy transition – however, a complementary, grid-scale dispatchable energy solution is also required.

 

Securing (and storing) our energy
Around the world, there are more than 6,600 coal-fired power stations still operating, which need to be shut down in the coming two decades to slash global carbon emissions. Solutions like ours would make it possible to retrofit those power plants still in working order with renewable energy storage technology, transforming them into grid-scale storage units. This would allow for the development of low-cost baseload renewable energy without major disruption.

 

We know that emissions from coal-fired plants are the single largest source of global warming greenhouse gases from within the energy sector and close to the largest source overall. So re-purposing newer coal-fired power plants by replacing boilers with thermal storage would be a win-win to deliver clean baseload power in a transition period, while also helping to prevent job loss from power plant closures. Longer term, co-locating thermal storage and renewable generation would allow direct dispatch 24/7.

 

Our team of Newcastle-based scientists have pioneered purpose-invented materials called miscibility gap alloys (MGA), which are outwardly solid storage blocks and are capable of storing energy generated by renewable sources. MGA blocks work by absorbing and storing thermal energy made from renewably generated electricity, surplus energy from the grid or from industrial waste heat. This is then released to produce steam to run turbines or heat for use directly in industries such as green hydrogen production, food processing and agribusiness.

 

The modular blocks can be stacked into large assemblies and are able to store millions of kWh of energy in a cheaper, safer and longer-lasting way compared to other dispatchable solutions. For example, a stack of 1,000 blocks – about the size of a small car – stores enough energy to power more than 60 homes for 24 hours.

 

Creating a sustainable future means this solution is designed with material availability and resource recovery in mind. Therefore, at the end of life, the blocks can be recycled back into raw materials and recreated into new blocks for ongoing use to champion a truly circular economy.

 

The blocks in-situ
Thermal energy storage (TES) blocks made with MGA could unlock zero carbon energy storage for grid and industrial use to achieve grid-scale renewable energy. When situated in an area of high grid electricity fluctuation, TES installations could store a large amount of surplus electrical energy as heat. This method of energy storage is able to provide ancillary services to the electricity grid, thereby addressing national capacity and grid stability issues.

 

MGA Thermal is positioned to utilise existing valuable infrastructure in repurposed thermal power stations to facilitate penetration of high levels of renewable energy into the grid.

 

Industrial processes, including oil refining, steel-making, cardboard/paper manufacturing, and food production (plus many others) use and waste a large amount of heat. Thermal storage blocks contained at focal points of heat and energy loss can re-align the mismatch of energy flows and level out the fluctuations, feeding the once wasted energy back into the cycle.

 

The technology could also facilitate the electrification of heavy industries with intensive reliance on heat by capturing and storing intermittent renewable energy and dispatching it on demand for industrial processes. MGA is perfect for this job due to its very high energy density, meaning it can store a lot of energy in a small space, giving a very high round trip efficiency.

 

MGA Thermal in action
We announced the launch of the company’s manufacturing plant in Newcastle, Australia, in June this year. The launch of the new plant coincided with our milestone of reaching customer interest for 20 GWh of energy storage, the equivalent of powering 1.3mn homes.

 

The new equipment is in the process of being commissioned and will be capable of manufacturing more than 1,000 blocks, or 1 MWh of energy storage, per day by the end of this year. The initial run of blocks will be used to kick off our partnership with the Toshiba International Corporation and Graphite Energy to produce low-cost green hydrogen, thanks to an A$9.8mn ($6.8mn) grant from the Australian government’s Modern Manufacturing Initiative.

 

The partnership of Toshiba’s solid oxide electrolysis hydrogen technology and MGA Thermal’s blocks is intended to deliver long-term energy storage, low-cost hydrogen production and renewable electricity generation, to drive a successful future energy market.

 

It’s not a zero-sum game
Without reliable, sustainable and dispatchable power, we’re heading for a future of ongoing energy disruption, blackouts and surging electricity prices.

 

The future of renewables isn’t one in which renewable solutions are competing against one another, but rather complementing each other. In this way, our MGA blocks will not compete directly with lithium-ion batteries or similar alternatives – which offer a millisecond level response time and are an excellent solution to fill short spikes or dips in supply.

 

Where MGA’s solution comes into play is providing the high capacity, long-duration storage needed to fill the six to 16-hour gap in solar renewable supply over the evening – ultimately complementing established storage methods (batteries and pumped hydro) to provide grid-scale dispatchable energy and unlocking the transition to renewables.