r/Thatsactuallyverycool • u/BitschWack Wonder Apprentice • Aug 09 '23
video China commissions the world's first commercial gravity battery.
*"The principle of operation of a gravitational battery is much simpler than lithium-ion batteries. Basically, it's just a system of cranes that raise and lower concrete blocks.
The design include hoists that lift 30-ton composite blocks using an electric motor. The raised blocks are stacked on top of each other, which creates potential energy. At the moment when the consumer needs energy, the blocks fall under the influence of gravity, and the energy released in this process is collected and sent to where it required. The plant is capable of storing up to 100 MWh of energy and delivering 25 MW of power."*
146
u/Gardener_Of_Eden Aug 09 '23
Storing energy in gravitational potential energy is how pumped hydro storage works. Not only is this not really new, it isn't as efficient.
On the other hand, this might be feasible in areas with extremely hot climates.
22
u/BitschWack Wonder Apprentice Aug 09 '23
So this could be useful to China, specifically in the south?
42
u/broken-telephone Curious Observer Aug 09 '23
All across the globe when we are totally fucked by climate change. So like basically from next week onwards.
3
1
Aug 11 '23
Oh don’t worry, remember why it switched from “global warming” to climate change?
“You just don’t understand…it’s not hot, it’s -30 degrees when it shouldn’t be!!!”
5
u/Gardener_Of_Eden Aug 09 '23
Maybe. A straightforward economic evaluation would show whether or not it was viable in any given market. This might be a development/demonstration project merely to show the capability without regard for the economic impact.
1
u/ShitPostGuy Curious Observer Aug 09 '23
No. This is just another example of corruption. The money for this project will disappear before it gets built, or if it does get built it won’t get used because it’s not a good way to store energy.
This sort of thing happens all the time in China because it allows people to divert government money into construction companies they own, and the government doesn’t care because they base their GDP and other metrics on the amount of money spent on construction, not the money generated by the things after constructing them.
There’s entire cities with nobody living in them, including a copies of NYC’s financial district and historic Paris just built in random fields.
1
u/sir_psycho_sexy96 Curious Observer Aug 09 '23
Solar would make more sense, either panels or concentrated solar power.
This looks expensive and prone to failure
10
Aug 09 '23
[deleted]
3
u/sir_psycho_sexy96 Curious Observer Aug 09 '23
Ah that's fair I'm the dumbass. Clearly says battery.
Still doesn't seem like a great idea compared to all the other available solutions for energy storage.
-1
u/sir_psycho_sexy96 Curious Observer Aug 09 '23
Solar would make more sense, either panels or concentrated solar power.
This looks expensive and prone to failure.
5
u/Drevlin76 Curious Observer Aug 10 '23
This is a battery system for the excess of the solar generation during the day.
0
u/After_Basis1434 Curious Observer Aug 10 '23
Naw, theyd just import water, even with evap accounted, it makes zero sense.
1
2
u/RatkeA Curious Observer Aug 10 '23
HAP in Lithuania has coeficient of eficiency ~0.74. I expected to be it like 0.3
-2
u/Ok-Championship5029 Curious Observer Aug 10 '23
Any sort of "environmental" thing china builds doesn't really help the fact it's one of, if not THE worst pollution producers on the earth.
0
u/lizufyr Curious Observer Aug 10 '23
Last time I checked, their CO2 emissions per capita were pretty low. Their population is just huge.
3
u/Ok-Championship5029 Curious Observer Aug 10 '23
"The People's Republic of China is the world's leading annual emitter of greenhouse gases and mercury."
"China's particulate pollution is still almost four times the WHO guideline, making it the tenth most polluted country in the world."
"Air pollution in China caused about 1.4 million premature deaths in 2019"
"Evidence of air quality data misreporting in China: An impulse indicator saturation model comparison of local government-reported and U.S. embassy-reported PM2.5 concentrations (2015–2017)" - https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0249063
If I pull a piece of plastic out of the ocean, or out of a landfill, or of the side of the road, there's a good chance it'll say "made in china" on it.
22
Aug 09 '23 edited Aug 09 '23
[deleted]
3
1
u/EmbarrassedYoung7700 Curious Observer Aug 10 '23
Let's not forget the power loss and maintenance of all the moving parts.
13
u/Broad-Dragonfruit-34 Aug 09 '23
I’m missing something. Doesn’t it take more energy to raise the damned things than you’re getting back?
16
u/raz-0 Aug 09 '23
Yes. But the general premise is that your solar or wind is generating a surplus at peak and/or you overbuild relative to power draw and that covers your overhead to store for overnight or no wind.
2
u/RandomComputerFellow Curious Observer Aug 10 '23
So why not just pump water up a hill? Pumps are very efficient and water is much more easy to store and cheaper.
1
u/raz-0 Aug 10 '23
Because you want the battery in a place without a lot of water? Looking at precipitation maps, like half of china is 7cm or less of annual rainfall.
Even without low rainfall, large swaths of the planet have exceeded the capacity of the aquafer, so other uses have dibs on the rainfall already.
3
u/RandomComputerFellow Curious Observer Aug 10 '23
Lol, you think there is any place on this earth where it is easier to acquire the cement than water?
Just to put this in perspective: The existing hydroelectric gravity dam Three Gorges Dam in China, has an capacity of 40 billion metric tonnes of water. The worlds yearly cement production is at 4 billion metric tonnes. This is the global production, we can't dedicate all of it towards this gravity battery project.
By the way. These 4 billion tonnes of cement are responsible for 4% of our global CO2 production. Just in terms of CO2 using cement is stupid.
1
3
u/Sea_Goat7550 Aug 10 '23
Good question. As other answers have said in more detail, the main problem is that solar produces energy during the exact time that domestic users don’t need it - lights, cooking, tvs, kettles, washing machines, dishwashers all are used much more at night, when there is no solar power (even wind is less at night due to sun producing unequal heating which drives wind patterns)
1
u/ZivH08ioBbXQ2PGI Aug 09 '23
The short of it is that when things turn on, they need the energy right now. If the grid isn't able to provide that energy at the instant it's needed, bad things happen, whole grids collapse, etc. and it takes a long time to spin things back up.
There are all kinds of momentary blips in power generation, as we use more and more solar and wind power. If a cloud takes out generation for a big solar farm for 2 minutes, we need reserves available like this to keep things running in the interim. Think of it like a buffer. 4 minutes later, you might have excess again and start lifting those weights back up again.
1
u/lizufyr Curious Observer Aug 10 '23
That applies for every energy storage. It's not meant to generate power. It's meant to store the power you don't need right now so you can use it later.
51
u/Char7es Aug 09 '23
What a load of rubbish, Enegweiher pumped hydro facility is over 100 years old. This is just terrible cgi of a poorly thought , complicated system with lots of parts to break and wear out.
-15
u/BitschWack Wonder Apprentice Aug 09 '23
Seems like a few countries have adopted this, maybe they have figured it out.
15
u/Error83_NoUserName Curious Observer Aug 09 '23
100kg of concrete has exactly the same potential energy as 100kg of water... Physics is Physics. This is overcomplicating a simple problem.
Maybe in flat areas, or areas without water, but even then... Build a simple hydropower plant in a mountainous area and some high voltage lines. China has already some 1 000 000Vdc lines.
If you can pomp water 2000m up, it will hold 10x the energy then want it is only 200m up with the same footprint. That is true efficiency!
4
u/Scrapple_Joe Curious Observer Aug 09 '23
What about hot or dry areas where the water would evaporate and you'd lose all that energy?
Or if you had this idea and paid people a whole lot of money to pick your project.
1
1
u/VirinaB Aug 10 '23
How does water evaporate from sealed containers? 🤦
1
u/Scrapple_Joe Curious Observer Aug 10 '23
I thought they usually used a lake reservoir for pumped hydro
1
1
u/N95-TissuePizza Curious Observer Aug 09 '23
Can you provide a source on that statement, not cgi videos. If they have done it they would've the physical generators right.
7
u/Accomplished-Pie-576 Aug 09 '23
This is not very cool, this is very dumb.
Gravity storage works with one thing Only: WATER!
It is highly inefficient to moove solid objects and then to let gravity do the sole energy generation. the Input to Output ratio is crazy out of whack! Ontop of that, this concept is SIGNIFICANTLY more mechanically complex and has many many of moving parts!
On the other hand, pumping water up a hill/mountain side is significantly easier, storing that water was also easier. You can also let water accelerate a lot faster before you convert the energy with a turbine. Besides the Valves, Turbines and Pumps you dont have any other mooving parts.
This version of gravity storage has been debunked to hell and back. This is prime: "Silicon valley Tech bro" design. I.E. "Completely removed from reality, borderline practical, on only works in principe" design.
2
23
u/Ser_Fritschy Aug 09 '23
They should have asked someone who can run the numbers... no, no, not the marketing numbers, the physics 🙃
10
u/crappy-mods Curious Observer Aug 09 '23
Using water for this type of thing has worked better for over 100 years…
4
u/gunnnutty Curious Observer Aug 09 '23
Thats just hydro storage made complicated
2
u/RandomComputerFellow Curious Observer Aug 10 '23
This looks like something an child would invent for his school presentation. It looks cool as a concept but of course it is complete nonsense when you think for a second about it.
3
u/ShitPostGuy Curious Observer Aug 09 '23
I feel like this is a good time to point out for no particular reason that China calculates its GDP based on the amount of money its business spend, not the amount of money they make.
6
3
u/habachilles Curious Observer Aug 09 '23
Wouldn’t a water tower make more sense
1
Aug 10 '23
[removed] — view removed comment
1
u/odd_emann Aug 10 '23
When water is at a low level, it is kept there until it is pumped back to a higher level as a part of the recharging processes.
This can be done in the desert too
1
1
u/Bizom_st Curious Observer Aug 10 '23
Yes, yes it would. Adom Something made a nice 3min Video about it.
3
u/mothzilla Aug 09 '23
I thought this was a stupid idea but then I saw the snazzy graphics.
3
u/abiuconn Curious Observer Aug 10 '23
Wasn’t it Newton who said, “…all science is 70% snazzy graphics, 30% lame research. Catch ya later nerds” I might be paraphrasing.
3
u/Gryphontech Aug 09 '23
Isn't that just a hydro dam with extra steps?
3
u/brookegravitt Aug 09 '23
Yes. Yes it is. And how do you make concrete? Lots of rock plus lots of water. This is exactly hydro, but with extra steps.
4
u/Gryphontech Aug 09 '23
Big downside is all the co2 you create by producing concrete... plus the massive cost, seems like a bad idea overall
1
u/brookegravitt Aug 09 '23
The argument OP made was something like "but what about places where it's dry or there isn't water for Hydro" LOL. You have to bring the water to make the concrete, right? lol.
0
Aug 10 '23
[removed] — view removed comment
2
u/brookegravitt Aug 10 '23
The point being if you are moving water to make concrete….. just do hydro. Thus, this is like hydro, with extra steps and materials.
0
Aug 10 '23
[removed] — view removed comment
1
u/brookegravitt Aug 10 '23
You don’t understand how hydroelectric power works, obviously. Transmission lines carry electricity very long distances. The amount of water you need to make the concrete also has to be carried to build the structure, as well as the blocks. Everyone is telling you that this is a solved problem already. Storing potential energy in suspended blocks isn’t new, either. This is how gravity fed counterweights in certain types of gearing has worked for centuries. And how elevator counterweights work. What you’re seeing is a cool CGI concept. Come back and post an update when you see it widespread everywhere as a real, built solution though.
3
u/Squishymushshroom Curious Observer Aug 09 '23
I think people have no idea what the power consumption of China is and how much of a drop in the ocean 100MWh is.
Yearly ~ 7 1021 Wh (just electrical energy) This: 100 106 Wh
So if you want to supply all of china with that stored energy of these for just one day( cause nearly no renewables that day w/e) You just need to build 200 billion of these (2*1011)
Obviously its an unfair comparison but well, you need alot of em.
2
u/kielu Curious Observer Aug 09 '23
Someone made a detailed analysis of a similar solution. It will not be efficient. Energy used for construction and maintenance is too high.
2
u/Favar89 Aug 10 '23
I would highly suggest watching this short & funny youtube video, which talks about this type of technology:
The Energy Vault is a Dumb Idea, Here's Why
1
u/NetCaptain Aug 10 '23
Thanks for the link The problem is that Energy Vault is a listed company, and lots of investors are drawn to it based on their - empty - promises. Founders of the company make a shitton of money, whether it works or not. This is the erosive side effect of stupid capital
2
u/-PJFry- Curious Observer Aug 10 '23
I have read an article about this kind of storage but with a much smarter approach : old mines. Holes a ready, weigth is already there : the ground that was dug out, electrical connection is almost set up because mines used to consume lot of electrical power, and there are mines all over the world. Bonus : it will create jobs where there is no longer job.
6
u/Israeli_pride Curious Observer Aug 09 '23
Dumb af
0
u/BitschWack Wonder Apprentice Aug 09 '23
How so?
3
u/Israeli_pride Curious Observer Aug 09 '23
Greatly inefficient. Overly complex & expensive
-3
u/BitschWack Wonder Apprentice Aug 09 '23
It seems like a few countries have adopted the idea, so perhaps they have figured it out or improved it.
4
u/Israeli_pride Curious Observer Aug 09 '23
Not this implementation. Pumped water or rocks… this is a dumb way to do it
1
u/EvilMoSauron Curious Observer Aug 09 '23
Wow! Did China talk with Elon Musk about marketing pseudoscience garbage? Are they going to showcase the perpetual motion machine next?
2
u/BitschWack Wonder Apprentice Aug 09 '23
Why do you think it is nonsense ? Switzerland, Scotland and the Czech Republic have all shown interest. I believe that Switzerland actually has a working system.
5
u/EvilMoSauron Curious Observer Aug 09 '23
You can get more power and have less maintenance from a nuclear power plant.
0
u/Kazamz Aug 09 '23
The point is to store the energy produced that isn't used and use that when consumption is high. Nuclear power plants can't just be turned on and off. Solar panels produce whenever the sun shines.
Using energy to pull something in the air and then letting it down and producing energy again isn't pseudoscience. Its regenerative braking but vertical.
Versions where water is pumped up high and let down exist.
How this system compares remains to be seen.
2
u/trevhcs Curious Observer Aug 09 '23
You don't have to turn off a nuclear plant, you just turn it down to low and then up when needed extremely quickly by control rods.
Versions with water are called hydro electric as in been used for a long time. No need to reinvent the wheel.
1
u/EvilMoSauron Curious Observer Aug 09 '23
You're losing more energy than storing from friction, heat, breaking, and operating the thing.
Thermodynamics states that all energy tries to meet a balance of equilibrium. So, even storing power like batteries are on expiration timescale.
What this machine promises is lightening in a bottle that tries to promote a pause on energy decay because gravity is involved in the equation. In order to move a weighted object, a force greater than the object's mass needs to be produced, and the energy transferred from the force to the object to a generator is reduced and only makes a net negative on energy produced.
It's better to just use radioactive materials that will last for millions of years; use lasers to tickle atoms to produce more energy out than it took in; or invest in researching matter-antimatter reactors.
1
u/Candyvanmanstan Aug 09 '23 edited Aug 09 '23
Where is your source for these other countries? As far as I can see a Swiss startup is planning to build this thing in China. The Scottish one is a tiny 10 second drop proof of concept. The Czech one is not due to be finished until 2026 and all I could find was that it's "to be built in abandoned mines" but doesn't mention anything about what technology it is. Could just be pumped water for all we know.
1
u/ShitPostGuy Curious Observer Aug 09 '23
Does gravity work differently in China than elsewhere?
They’re raising blocks weighing 27200kg. Potential energy is mass (in kg) times the acceleration of gravity on Earth (9.8m/s2) times hight in meters. In order to store 3 megawatt hours of power (the output of a single wind turbine after 1 hour) that block would need to be lifted 40,516 meters into the air. For reference, climbing mount Everest from base to summit is only 8,800 meters.
1
u/Alexei_StukovUED Aug 09 '23
No we have absolutely not shown any interest. Stop spreading your bullshit. You keep quoting crap yet offer zero sources. This is a stupid concept that nobody is paying attention to, and for all the right reasons.
0
u/Admirable_Ice2785 Curious Observer Aug 09 '23
Chinese propaganda is always funny. Remember “autonomus" tram without tracks?
1
u/BitschWack Wonder Apprentice Aug 09 '23 edited Aug 10 '23
This is being developed in at least three other countries, so I'm not sure that this can simply be chalked up to propaganda.
3
u/Admirable_Ice2785 Curious Observer Aug 09 '23
Proof?
0
u/BitschWack Wonder Apprentice Aug 10 '23
I've tried sharing links in response, but they get filtered because apparently the BBC or WEF websites are not approved domains.
1
u/Admirable_Ice2785 Curious Observer Aug 10 '23
So only your words instead of proof?
1
u/BitschWack Wonder Apprentice Aug 10 '23
Dude, do you know how to use the internet? Search terms you might find useful: in which countries are gravity batteries being used? Gravity batteries efficiency. The information is there. Jfc.
0
u/Admirable_Ice2785 Curious Observer Aug 10 '23
Burden of proof lays on your side not mine.
1
u/BitschWack Wonder Apprentice Aug 10 '23
I've given you the tools. Anything else is just wilful ignorance. Good day to you.
0
u/Admirable_Ice2785 Curious Observer Aug 10 '23
It's you who is claiming some bullshit and then saying google it 😂 are you 10?
1
u/BitschWack Wonder Apprentice Aug 10 '23
No, people like you expect to be spoonfed information that is easily available online and then spend their time trying to own people to feel good about themselves or for clout or whatever. I've actually provided excerpts from articles to those who act civilised and know how to have a conversation. Do some work or go back to the basement.
1
u/BitschWack Wonder Apprentice Aug 10 '23 edited Aug 10 '23
Right, guess I have to do the legwork. This article might be of interest.
Edit: thanks admins for approving the link.
1
1
u/Man1ndra98 Curious Observer Aug 09 '23
You’ve mentioned China in your context, had it been some other European countries, the comments would’ve been different. I’m not talking about the efficiency of this project, just in general.
1
u/BitschWack Wonder Apprentice Aug 09 '23
This is true. I replied to some comments mentioning that this is being developed in Europe too, but people just downvote. It's so silly.
2
u/i-hoatzin Aug 09 '23
Maybe if you share some links about it people didn't downvote you. I'd like to read about some of the projects you've mentioned but you've only appealed to the trust me bro, and that's a little annoying, you know? In other words, we're on reddit and one of the things we're supposed to do here is share documented content that we've found on the internet.
2
u/BitschWack Wonder Apprentice Aug 10 '23 edited Aug 10 '23
I've tried, but apparently the BBC and WEF websites are not approved domains on this sub.
Edit: an excerpt from Wikipedia; Energy Vault, a Swiss company founded in 2017, stores electricity using a crane that raises and lowers blocks of concrete.
Gravitricity, founded in 2011 by Peter Fraenkel, built a 15-meter 250-kilowatt gravity battery prototype near Edinburgh, Scotland that started trial operations and grid-connection in April 2021.
From the BBC; Gravitricity, an Edinburgh-based green engineering start-up, is working to make this a reality. In April last year, the group successfully trialled its first gravity battery prototype: a 15m (49ft) steel tower suspending a 50 tonne iron weight. Inch-by-inch, electric motors hoisted the massive metal box skyward before gradually releasing it back to earth, powering a series of electric generators with the downward drag.
And so, with enough funding, a subterranean prototype (most likely located in the Czech Republic) should be functioning by 2024. First, though, a series of challenges must be overcome.
In a valley in southern Switzerland, the striking steel and concrete prototype from Energy Vault, another leader in the gravity battery space, stands more than 20 stories tall.
Hope this is useful.
2
u/i-hoatzin Aug 10 '23
Yeah. I figured out the link issue. I tried to leave you one and the automoderator deleted my comment too. Very odd and annoying stuff. Thanks for the details in your comment bro.
It seems to me that the energy storage solution shown in the video is not energy optimal at all. Moving the blocks that way takes a lot of energy. I think it would be inefficient and difficult to maintain.
Take a look at a Chilean project that I think will be successful. You can use the following keywords to find it on the internet:
Valhalla+ energy+ Chile.
2
u/BitschWack Wonder Apprentice Aug 10 '23
Thank you kindly. I'll check it out. There are a few types of gravity batteries (most of which I discovered today) and some definitely seem more efficient than others.
2
u/i-hoatzin Aug 10 '23
Any time bro.
It certainly is quite a theme. It strikes me that there are not more projects that take advantage of that potential, especially those who can use water to make the solution viable. I suppose that the issue of the availability of water and sunlight throughout the year complicates the issue and reduces possibilities in many places.
The power that wields the oil industry should also have a lot of influence on the fate of projects.
1
1
u/BitschWack Wonder Apprentice Aug 10 '23 edited Aug 10 '23
I guess you're right. At the same time, I am tired of doing research to appease people who are too lazy to do it themselves. But for you, my friend, there is this article from last year that might be interesting.
1
u/BitschWack Wonder Apprentice Aug 10 '23
It seems lazy to have to provide people with information they could easily find online, but here is an article you might find interesting.
1
0
u/RoyalRien Curious Observer Aug 09 '23
How do you make sure they don’t hit the ground and break into a million pieces
1
Aug 10 '23
[removed] — view removed comment
1
u/RoyalRien Curious Observer Aug 10 '23
And how do you make them go down very slowly without spending valuable energy?
0
0
0
u/RandomComputerFellow Curious Observer Aug 10 '23
I am really surprised that this idea doesn't come from Elon Musk. It sounds exactly as something he would invent. It's overcomplicated, super inefficient, way too expensive and an overall stupid concept. Exactly how he likes his inventions.
1
1
u/InitialIndication999 Curious Observer Aug 09 '23
Is bad the first thing I think it's how dangerous it is to work there 😅
1
u/markrudling Aug 09 '23
Debunked
Op, everyone is trying to show you this is not a good idea, but you continue to say the same things. What's your agenda
1
1
u/woolcoat Aug 09 '23
Why would China do this when they have grid-scale sodium batteries coming online https://www.energy-storage.news/world-first-grid-scale-sodium-ion-battery-project-in-china-enters-commercial-operation/
1
1
1
1
1
u/Brave_Promise_6980 Curious Observer Aug 10 '23
They would be better off using a loop railroad to go up and down a hill,
Simpler, easier to build and maintain unlimited store capacity, no water used in operation
1
u/Craig_Brown1095 Curious Observer Aug 10 '23
Two lakes at different heights and a pumping station achieve this at a fraction of the cost.
1
u/EmbarrassedYoung7700 Curious Observer Aug 10 '23
Maintanence📈📈📈📈📈📈. Why don't they just use fusion power at this point?
1
u/OG1Wiggum Curious Observer Aug 10 '23
Cool idea. But it will collapse and cause a massive disaster.
1
•
u/AutoModerator Aug 09 '23
Upvoting + Crossposting reminder!
Like this content or appreciate it being posted? Upvote it and show it some love! Crosspost it to other relevant Subs.
Welcome to r/ThatsActuallyVeryCool! Please remember to subscribe and make sure to read the rules.
This subreddit centers around sharing solely 'cool' content, fostering a civil and respectful atmosphere, disallowing product sales, discouraging downers and complaints, prohibits sealioning, misleading, or spreading of misinformation. Please ensure to read the full set of rules and promptly report users engaging in any of these behaviors.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.