Glass Energy Storage

That renewable energy is the future of power production is crystal clear, but so too may be energy storage.

That renewable energy is the future of power production is crystal clear, but so too may be energy storage.
    
Researchers at Penn State’s Materials Research Institute are developing a thin and flexible glass, about one-tenth the thickness of display glass, capable of storing energy at high temperatures and could be used in high power applications.
    
In a paper titled “Flexible Glass for High Temperature Energy Storage Capacitors,” the researchers state they have been able demonstrate an “alkali-free glass with high permittivity, low dielectric loss, high energy density, and potential self-healing capabilities that significantly performs better for high temperature–high power capacitor applications prepared through a standard roll-to-roll process than currently used polymer films.”
    
10-micron thick glass from Nippon Electric Glass (NEG) was coated with high temperature polymers by the researchers; increasing energy density by 2.25 times and boosting self-healing capabilities.
   
Polymer capacitors usually require a separate cooling system, but the NEG glass has a high charge-discharge efficiency at temperatures of up to 180 Celsius – and recent experiments indicate even higher.
   
The researchers say the technology could be used in a variety of scenarios, including electric vehicle power electronics, wind turbines and grid connect solar.
  
Glass energy storage is just one of many novel battery-type technologies we’ve covered on Energy Matters. Energy storage research and development is becoming a huge industry given the importance it will play in a clean energy future. Here are some of the other technologies we’ve looked at; several of which have already been commercialized.
 
The Wood Battery
Greener lithium-ion batteries using plants
Lithium polysulfide
Sodium-ion
“Rust” battery
Zinc air
Iron phosphate
Lithium-air
Virus
Cavern
Molten salt 
Beltway 
Flywheel
Iron based flow
Vanadium based flow
Liquid metal
Silicon air 
 

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