Thermal battery developed by MIT researchers

MIT researchers develop new light responsive thermal battery material

MIT researchers have developed a new phase change material (PCM) that is triggered by pulses of light. Able to store and release thermal energy, this proof of concept new research could be used in the future as a light-triggered thermal battery for energy storage.

PCMs are common in the world of thermal storage, and the concept is simple. Input heat changes the phase of the material — melts the material from solid to liquid — and this causes the material to store energy. When the cooling PCM solidifies, the phase change — liquid to solid — releases the stored energy as heat. This is the same concept used for molten salt thermal storage applications.

The disadvantage of thermal storage PCMs is that controlling when they pass through their phase change temperature is difficult to control and requires large amounts of insulation. This new thermal storage chemistry uses a hybrid material that includes a light sensitive component: made by blending an organic compound that responds to pulses of light with fatty acids, this creates molecular “switches” that change shape in response to light.

By using pulses of ultraviolet light to turn on these molecular switches, the PCM will stay melted far below its original melting point. When exposed to another pulse of light, the phase change back to solid is triggered and the stored thermal energy is released.

This new thermal storage chemistry is still in the proof of concept phase and years away from commercial use. As it stands, there are no immediate plans to explore its usage in large-scale energy storage applications.Its current properties — the ability to store its stored thermal energy for approximately 10 hours before release — is still causing excitement.

Read the original article

If you want to know more about this and other topics directly from end users of energy storage technologies join us at one of these annual events: The Energy Storage World Forum (Grid Scale Applications), or The Residential Energy Storage Forum, or one of our Training Courses.

LATEST ARTICLES

Battery Storage for Commercial & Industry

Powerful battery storage offers many advantages in terms of saving electricity costs and a reliable power supply. With this technology, companies retain control of their energy supply and costs. The battery storage system is charged when energy is cheaply available and it supplies the stored electricity when prices are at their highest. With applications such…

Read More

Product Development: Embracing product safety and compliance

PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT: EMBRACING PRODUCT SAFETY AND COMPLIANCE Recent safety incidents on storage plants have raised concerns about the fire safety of battery storage systems. Such events are extremely rare compared to the cumulated global deployments of energy storage systems, which have reached more than 27 GWh by end of 2020 (Wood Mackenzie 2021). However, for…

Read More

Ultracapacitor UPS (U-UPS) for voltage dips and micro-interruptions

Power interruptions are the most frequent power supply problems with wide-ranging consequences for industry. The causes of these interruptions include short-circuits in the distribution grid, lightning strikes, the connection and disconnection of power plants as well as volatile energy producers such as wind and solar. Because technologies and production processes are becoming increasingly complex, the…

Read More

★REVIEWS

“Probably the most interactive and well organized storage event on the calendar.”

★★★★★

Sales Director, S&C

“Great topics, competent speakers, good networking: keep it like that.”

★★★★★

TLC & SCADA Manager, FRI-EL

“High scientific content, well targeted, perfect organization.”

★★★★★

Expert Technical & Governance, Elia

Excellent networking event. The sponsorship was well worth it.”

★★★★★

Manager, ATL

View More

x