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As decarbonization policies are put in place, demand reduction or storage are key components to support the grid network.  Storage is a key component of grid interactive efficient buildings. Thermal storage and battery storage will both need to be employed to reduce the burden on the grid.  Thermal storage can provide a much more efficient way to use storage for heating cooling.  When more projects incorporate storage, burden on the grid and hence peak and off-peak rates can be stabilized allowing for true 24/7 net zero operation.

 

If buildings can provide more flexibility with regards to charging the storage, transportation, and other fuel sources for generating electricity like wind can be incorporated more easily into our energy systems

As buildings and campuses electrify using heat pumps, they have an opportunity to incorporate thermal storage. Thermal storage is a thermal battery that can reduce the burden on the grid and the need for electric batteries as we electrify our buildings and transportation systems. Thermal storage provides the benefit of energy reduction, peak load reduction, flexibility, resiliency and enhanced benefits of simultaneous heating and cooling hours. Grid interactive efficient buildings incorporate thermal storage as a key strategy.  Energy storage is a mature technology with 90-100% efficiency, 50+ years life cycle and the cheaper compared to electrical batteries.

Thermal Storage and Heat Pumps - a perfect Match!

Why use thermal Storage?

There are 5 main reasons thermal storage should be considered hand in hand with heat pumps-

  1. Thermal storage can reduce energy consumption due to its potential to leverage the simultaneous heating and cooling needs of buildings.

  2. Using thermal storage can reduce the use of heat rejection energy or water consumption,

  3. Thermal Storage makes building demand flexible allowing the use cheaper electricity source coming from sources like wind, production which rarely coincides with demand.

  4. Top 20% of the peak capacity is needed for less than 2%-5% of the year typically

  5. Energy Storage is a mature technology with 90-100% efficiency, 50+ years life cycle and the cheaper compared to electrical batteries.

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As we move into the era of decarbonization and shift heating demand onto the grid, it is essential to be mindful of the peak loads from large electric equipment like heat pumps.  If this is not done as part of the building design or mechanical systems supporting the building/s this will fall into the utilities problem agenda creating a larger need for chemical batteries which can be less efficient, delayed and potentially cause other resiliency issues especially as we also electrify the transportation system.

Resources

Existing Research

The following lists the guides put out by known organizations on pathways to decarbonize using grid interactive buildings and why this is important. These guides highlight the need for more thermal storage systems and how this would allow buildings to support the grid.

 

Technical leaders at mechanical manufacturers like Trane, Armstrong etc have presented webinars to spread the history of ice storage and the availability of the technology to incorporate these systems to support the agenda for grid interactive buildings. 

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