The business case that makes any type of energy storage work is that "off peak" power used to charge the system typically has a lower cost value than "on peak" power
Typically on the grid the off peak power is about a third the cost of on peak power. Also the round trip efficiency range that storage usually operates in is 30% system lost. Go here to see a competitive energy storage system. www.vrbpower.com (not pumped storage) The other value that storage has is that you have a generator that looses efficiency at less than full load you put excess power into storage and improve load factor and reduce run time on the generator. Also you can size the generator smaller than peak. This type of buffer is exactly the way a hybrid electric vehicle works. Another value is avoided cost in lines and substations. Using storage as a buffer allows you to improve load factor on distribution assets and avoid or defer upgrades Storage is more about capacity than energy. Microhydro is about energy. You need to have a different business case. For storage you do not want the most efficiency microhydro system you want the lowest first cost and the best round trip efficiency. This is not about energy generation effeciency it is about improved utilization of assets. Hydro generation is compeditive, MICRO hydro generation is compeditive. Hydro pumped storage is compeditive is MICRO hydro pumped storagr compeditive -----Original Message----- From: ReadFamily [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Tuesday, February 01, 2005 6:44 AM To: [email protected] Subject: [microhydro] Confused about potential energy. I was thinking about the pumped water storage idea and then started to think about the energy in the system. If there is a full tank at the top and an empty tank at the bottom then the potential energy in the system is mgh (mass of water x gravitational constant x height difference). So if you let the water flow from top tank to bottom tank through a simple pipe then the potential energy is gone. (assuming bottom tank is at height 0). Now put the water back into the top tank and this time put a turbine in the pipe. The water flows from the top tank to the bottom tank and power is generated by the turbine and extracted from the system. But the difference in potential energy in the system is the same. All the water from the top is now in the bottom. Where did the energy that was extracted from the system by the turbine come from? I'm sure that the answer is somewhere in the statement in the first case where the water flows through a simple pipe. The potential energy in the system has changed - so where did the energy go? I dont know. Dominic Read Georgia, USA. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Does your company feature in the microhydro business directory at http://microhydropower.net/directory ? If not, please register free of charge and be exposed to the microhydro community world wide! NOTE: The advertisements in this email are added by Yahoogroups who provides us with free email group services. The microhydro-group does not endorse products or support the advertisements in any way. More information on micro hydropower at http://microhydropower.net To unsubscribe: send empty message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- -- Yahoo! Groups Links a.. To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/microhydro/ b.. To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] c.. Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> Has someone you know been affected by illness or disease? Network for Good is THE place to support health awareness efforts! http://us.click.yahoo.com/RzSHvD/UOnJAA/79vVAA/FGYolB/TM --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> Does your company feature in the microhydro business directory at http://microhydropower.net/directory ? If not, please register free of charge and be exposed to the microhydro community world wide! NOTE: The advertisements in this email are added by Yahoogroups who provides us with free email group services. The microhydro-group does not endorse products or support the advertisements in any way. More information on micro hydropower at http://microhydropower.net To unsubscribe: send empty message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/microhydro/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
