"Modern energy storage systems need to guarantee security of supply, performance and safety, have flexible management software and be manufactured and operated in the most sustainable and environmentally friendly way possible”, explains SMHYLES coordinator Edoardo G. Macchi, Head of Battery and Electrification Technologies Unit at the Fondazione Bruno Kessler in Trento, Italy.
Combining sustainable batteries with other storage systems
The central goal of the SMHYLES project is to develop and demonstrate such innovative, safe, and sustainable hybrid energy storage systems on an industrial scale. In SMHYLES, a water-based supercapacitor and either a redox flow battery or a salt battery are to be combined to create innovative hybrid energy storage systems.
The novel hybrid storage systems developed in SMHYLES should be able to store energy over a medium to long period of time and release it very quickly. At the same time, they will reduce the use of critical raw materials, be safe to use (as they are not easily flammable), cost-effective and recyclable. Compared to conventional solutions, these new storage systems are expected to have a 40 per cent lower carbon footprint, also thanks to novel recycling solutions, and a 20 per cent higher reliability and availability, which should make our renewables-based power grids more resilient.
Demonstrators in Portugal and Germany
The SMHYLES activities include the development, construction, deployment and demonstration of an aqueous hybrid energy storage system and a salt-based hybrid energy storage system, as well as an extension of the storage duration of an existing hybrid system. During the second half of the project, various use cases will be trialled for 12 months in the three pilot plants in Portugal and Germany:
- island grid (Portugal, Graciosa): Off-grid energy system with the installation of a nickel-carbon water-based supercapacitor and a salt battery supporting the island electric grid.
- industrial microgrid (Portugal, Maia): Further development of a vanadium redox flow battery and combination with a water-based supercapacitor, with the aim to increase the level of renewable energy source penetration in the energy mix, as well as the electric vehicle charging support.
- pilot plant expansion (Pfinztal, Baden-Württemberg, Germany): Capacity expansion of a redox flow battery and combination with a supercapacitor (from the EU project HyFlow) and a wind turbine; this should enable multi-day energy storage and increase grid reliability.