Compressed air energy storage capacity of offshore saline aquifers using isothermal cycling

Jeffrey A. Bennett, Jeffrey P. Fitts and Andres F. Clarens

Applied Energy, 2022, vol. 325, issue C, No S0306261922011011

Abstract: Growth of intermittent offshore wind energy installations has led to a search for energy storage technologies able to provide temporal balancing of electricity generation and demand. Offshore compressed air energy storage (OCAES) is a proposed energy storage option that uses saline aquifers as storage reservoirs and isothermal thermodynamic cycles to inject and extract air. Here, we present a method to assess the round-trip efficiency of OCAES when considering the uncertainty of geophysical parameters and machinery performance and demonstrate it using the Baltimore Canyon Trough off the coast of the Mid-Atlantic United States. Our results show that OCAES round-trip efficiencies of 60–62 % could provide 8.1 TWh of storage in water depths less than 60 m. We also identify permeability and thickness as critical subsurface parameters, and show the need to develop isothermal cycles at commercial scales. At a projected capital cost of $61/kWh, isothermal OCAES compares well against current energy storage technologies.

Keywords: Isothermal compressed air energy storage; CAES; Geospatial potential; Round-trip efficiency projection; Thermal fluid process model; Monte Carlo sampling; Uncertainty analysis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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DOI: 10.1016/j.apenergy.2022.119830

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