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New Technology Offers Hope for Cost-Effective Carbon Capture and Storage Systems

October 13, 2016

Academics at the University of Sheffield—a public research university in the UK—have begun two new carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects, searching for cheaper methods of capturing carbon dioxide (CO₂) from fossil-fueled power plants.

The work is being funded by the European Commission’s (EC’s) Horizon 2020 Low Carbon Energy program.

Solvents Could Be Game-Changing

The “ROLINCAP” project received €3.2 million to explore how new chemical solvents could be used in a “rotating packed bed” process, which is designed to accelerate chemical reactions. The method may allow CO₂ to be captured more efficiently, with smaller equipment than was previously required.

“Our European consortium will work with experts from South Korea to develop technologies for post-combustion carbon capture and storage. We will explore new solvents and new techniques for process intensification, which I hope will lead to cheaper, more efficient carbon capture,” said Meihong Wang, Professor of Energy Systems in the Department for Chemical and Biological Engineering.

Carbon Clean Solutions Ltd.…

New York City Sets Ambitious Citywide Energy Storage Target

September 30, 2016

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New York City is aiming to have 100 MWh of energy storage by 2020 under an unprecedented target set by Mayor Bill de Blasio on September 23.

The city’s first-ever energy storage deployment target will help reduce reliance on the grid by making variable sources of energy production, such as solar panels, usable for more of the day, Blasio said as he announced the target to celebrate Climate Week. “Energy storage also helps increase the City’s resiliency by providing backup energy when the grid is offline.”

The mayor on September 23 also called on the Department of Buildings to issue permits for more than 3,000 solar panel installations this year alone, bringing the citywide total to more than 8,000 installations in 2016.

“This solar growth puts the City on track to meet its OneNYC goals of installing 100 [MW] of solar power on public buildings and spurring the installation of 250 MW on private buildings by 2025,” his office said in a statement last week.…

In Push for Collaboration, Solar and Storage Industries Unveil “Smart Solar” Potential

July 17, 2016

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Pairing solar with energy storage will be integral to cement the future of both emerging sectors, said experts at the Intersolar North America’s annual event held this week in San Francisco.

The three-day event and exhibition was co-located with ees North America, a stand-alone event focused on energy storage technologies and services. But experts from the separate industry events underscored that the sectors’ futures are aligned and should grow in tandem, calling for the backing of a joint, “smart solar” sector.

Solar’s Unique Revenue Catch-22

The solar sector, in particular, has seen a number of hurdles that threaten its widespread adoption, the most cited of which are linked to its non-dispatchable nature.

Though solar penetration has soared, behind-the-meter applications have been hampered by ruthless net energy metering battles between regulators and electric utilities in at least 20 states. Utilities argue that net metering customers don’t pay their fair share of grid expenses, raising costs for non-solar ratepayers, whereas the solar sector says that utilities don’t fully account for distributed solar’s value to the grid, such as capacity value, transmission and distribution deferral, and line loss savings.…