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Molten-Salt Battery Freezes Energy Over a Whole Season

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Scientists have been looking for solutions in gravity energy storage , thermal or geothermal storage , and also molten-salt batteries. A recent study from the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) looks at molten-salt batteries that can “freeze” their charge for months until required.

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Researchers propose new aluminum–sulfur battery with molten-salt electrolyte; low-cost, rechargeable, fire-resistant, recyclable

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An international team of researchers led by Quanguan Pang at Peking University and Donald Sadoway at MIT reports a bidirectional, rapidly charging aluminum–chalcogen battery operating with a molten-salt electrolyte composed of NaCl–KCl–AlCl 3. —Pang et al.

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PNNL: single-crystal nickel-rich cathode holds promise for next-generation Li-ion batteries

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Researchers are working on ways to store more energy in the cathode materials by increasing nickel content. Nickel offers relatively low cost, wide availability and low toxicity compared to other key battery materials, such as cobalt. Nickel-rich cathode materials have real potential to store more energy.

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ARPA-E awarding $30M to 12 hybrid solar projects; conversion and storage

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Under the FOCUS program, projects will develop advanced solar converters that turn sunlight into electricity for immediate use, while also producing heat that can be stored at low cost for later use as well as innovative storage systems that accept both heat and electricity from variable solar sources. Earlier post.).

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BASF announces winners of the open innovation contest on energy storage

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The winning concepts were: A molten air battery that uses a molten salt electrolyte at elevated temperature from Professor Stuart Licht at George Washington University. Sustainable technologies should make it possible to store power from the grid and feed power back into it.

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Convert Oil Wells to Solve the Solar Storage Problem

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The California-based Hyperlight Energy will be piloting an installation where they plan to use existing oil wells as solar thermal wellsprings, with the stored energy being converted back to clean electricity when required. Thermal energy storage is a known low-cost, low-risk approach for storing solar energy in the form of heat,” adds Codd.

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US DOE Awarding Up To $62M for Concentrating Solar Power Research and Development

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The US Department of Energy has selected 13 projects for investment of up to $62 million over five years to research, develop, and demonstrate Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) systems capable of providing low-cost electrical power. Using reflective mirrors, the sun’s radiation will heat a liquid salt within each receiver.

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