NEW YORK-- An industry report says that a major obstacle to the widespread use of solar power is storage.
A new white paper published by the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) states because of the intermittent and highly variable
nature of solar and wind power, they require massive storage technology to make them steady and reliable parts of the nation's power grid.
In an effort to conserve oil and natural gas and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, industries are working toward electric power systems that draw more from renewable resources, and less from fossil fuels. However, the chemical engineers warn almost all of the
attention on renewable energy is being given to its generation -- not to actually storing this renewable energy, which is necessary for use on a
broad scale.
The solution, say Bernard Lee and David Gushee, the report's authors, who retired from Institute of Gas Technology and Congressional Research Service, respectively, is to develop and commercialize Massive Electricity Storage technology (MES). The authors say nuclear, natural gas or coal generated power uses generators running steadily and continuously to deliver power to consumers. However, if renewable power -- such as wind and solar -- is to move up from an incremental supplier to major supplier of power, it must be converted to dispatchable power for steady, continuous delivery to consumers.
MES can change this, according to the white paper, and make renewable energy more reliable. The report details the state of U.S. power systems, and what needs to be done with MES in terms of capital investment in order to integrate renewable energy into the grid. It recommends congressional funding and other actions that can be taken to develop MES. The chemical engineers conclude that, until the public and Congress join them in realizing the importance of MES, the nation won't be able to put renewable energy into practical, widespread use.
American Institute of Chemical Engineers
www.aiche.org
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