Thermodynamic Characteristics of Compressed Air in Salt Caverns of CAES: Considering Air Injection for Brine Drainage

Shizhong Sun (), Bin Wu, Yonggao Yin, Liang Shao, Rui Li, Xiaofeng Jiang, Yu Sun, Xiaodong Huo and Chen Ling
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Shizhong Sun: China Energy Engineering Group, Jiangsu Power Design Institute Co., Ltd., Nanjing 211102, China
Bin Wu: China Energy Engineering Group, Jiangsu Power Design Institute Co., Ltd., Nanjing 211102, China
Yonggao Yin: School of Energy and Environment, Southeast University, Nanjing 210096, China
Liang Shao: China Energy Engineering Group, Jiangsu Power Design Institute Co., Ltd., Nanjing 211102, China
Rui Li: China Energy Engineering Group, Jiangsu Power Design Institute Co., Ltd., Nanjing 211102, China
Xiaofeng Jiang: China Energy Engineering Group, Jiangsu Power Design Institute Co., Ltd., Nanjing 211102, China
Yu Sun: China Energy Engineering Group, Jiangsu Power Design Institute Co., Ltd., Nanjing 211102, China
Xiaodong Huo: China Energy Engineering Group, Jiangsu Power Design Institute Co., Ltd., Nanjing 211102, China
Chen Ling: China Energy Engineering Group, Jiangsu Power Design Institute Co., Ltd., Nanjing 211102, China

Energies, 2025, vol. 18, issue 14, 1-23

Abstract: The air injection for brine drainage affects the thermodynamic characteristics of salt caverns in the operation of compressed air energy storage (CAES). This study develops a thermodynamic model to predict temperature and pressure variations during brine drainage and operational cycles, validated against Huntorf plant data. Results demonstrate that increasing the air injection flow rate from 80 to 120 kg/s reduces the brine drainage initiation time by up to 47.3% and lowers the terminal brine drainage pressure by 0.62 MPa, while raising the maximum air temperature by 4.9 K. Similarly, expanding the brine drainage pipeline cross-sectional area from 2.99 m 2 to 9.57 m 2 reduces the total drainage time by 33.7%. Crucially, these parameters determine the initial pressure and temperature at the completion of brine drainage, which subsequently shape the pressure bounds of the operational cycles, with variations reaching 691.5 kPa, and the peak temperature fluctuations, with differences of up to 4.9 K during the first cycle. This research offers insights into optimizing the design and operation of the CAES system with salt cavern air storage.

Keywords: compressed air energy storage; salt cavern air storage; brine drainage; thermodynamic characteristics (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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