A Californian company proposes using weighted electrically-driven rail vehicles on inclines to store energy. At times when the capacity of electricity supply exceeds demand the vehicles would be driven up inclined tracks, and when demand exceeds generation they are allowed to run down, generating electricity as they fall.
This link includes a video that shows a prototype vehicle (which appears to be built on a conventional locomotive chassis), an interview with a promoter, and an animation of a "farm" of these devices. There is a shortage of hard data, such as how much energy could be stored, for how long, and how steep the tracks are, etc., but a quick calculation shows that some thousands of these vehicles would be required for them to be useful. The control panel for this prototype has a power dial that appears to go up to only 20 kW. The promoter in the interview focuses instead on how the construction material can be recycled at end of life.
(Score: 2) by VLM on Tuesday July 03 2018, @04:45PM (1 child)
Well Sheeeeiiiiiiii....
Great minds thinking alike and all that.
(Score: 2) by qzm on Tuesday July 03 2018, @08:55PM
Because building a large watertight containment area is free.. Nice to know.
Just perhaps different situations call for different solutions?
Although this one is poorly designed. You would use more dumb weight cars.
And to the people comparing scale to dams.. This is competition to a tesla battery farm, not the hoover dam. Sigh.
Still.. Badly designed