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From the article: "the growing peak demand that comes at the end of the day, as the sun sets.". So the solar production of electricity peaks earlier than the en

From the article: "the growing peak demand that comes at the end of the day, as the sun sets.". So the solar production of electricity peaks earlier than the end-of-day consumption peak.

c12 8y ago
There is a company in Australia that have improved flow batteries technology to the point where it can be miniaturised down to the size of a fridge freezer (previously they were the size of shipping containers) ten shipping containers full of them are able to store 3.2 megawatt-hours of energy and discharge a megawatt of power for over three to four hours which is roughly enough to keep 500-600 average homes going for the afternoon during the end of day consumption peak. They are perfectly suited to be paired with solar/wind/etc where they can store up the days usage and discharge at a regular rate throughout the evening peak when generation is reduced. And as for reliability, unlike lithium-ion, flow batteries can last for 20+ years with unlimited cycles.
- robkop 8y ago
  I assume you are taking about red-flow? I head about them several years ago but haven't seen much since. Do they have the scale/ pricing to sell to the average consumer yet?
  - c12 8y ago
    I am indeed. I think they got some press coverage three or four years ago. I personally discovered them by watching a documentary on YouTube that featured their technology and discussed its future. I know that they recently raised some capital to invest in increasing sales. However I think a large proportion of their target market are grid scale and remote outposts for telecommunications/industrial applications. That could be because their residential solution still cant beat something like the Tesla powerwall on price. However, I believe when investing in something that you expect to have longevity in the 20-30 years range it's better to go with something a little more pricey that is proven to last that long without degrading of performance, so on that point the flow battery wins. It's like with solar panels, you can pay a premium upfront and get panels that will be producing the same output in ten years time like my parents did, or skimp on price and end up with a 30-40% reduction over the same time period like their neighbour.
aligibbs 8y ago
Sure, there is an evening peak when people get home and start cooking/turning on their homes etc- which can't really be offset with solar (without using storage, battery/hydro). Doesn't negate the fact that solar generation pretty much perfectly matches business usage.

From the article: "the growing peak demand that comes at the end of the day, as the sun sets.". So the solar production of electricity peaks earlier than the end-of-day consumption peak.

c12 8y ago

There is a company in Australia that have improved flow batteries technology to the point where it can be miniaturised down to the size of a fridge freezer (previously they were the size of shipping containers) ten shipping containers full of them are able to store 3.2 megawatt-hours of energy and discharge a megawatt of power for over three to four hours which is roughly enough to keep 500-600 average homes going for the afternoon during the end of day consumption peak. They are perfectly suited to be paired with solar/wind/etc where they can store up the days usage and discharge at a regular rate throughout the evening peak when generation is reduced. And as for reliability, unlike lithium-ion, flow batteries can last for 20+ years with unlimited cycles.

robkop 8y ago
I assume you are taking about red-flow? I head about them several years ago but haven't seen much since. Do they have the scale/ pricing to sell to the average consumer yet?
- c12 8y ago
  I am indeed. I think they got some press coverage three or four years ago. I personally discovered them by watching a documentary on YouTube that featured their technology and discussed its future. I know that they recently raised some capital to invest in increasing sales. However I think a large proportion of their target market are grid scale and remote outposts for telecommunications/industrial applications. That could be because their residential solution still cant beat something like the Tesla powerwall on price. However, I believe when investing in something that you expect to have longevity in the 20-30 years range it's better to go with something a little more pricey that is proven to last that long without degrading of performance, so on that point the flow battery wins. It's like with solar panels, you can pay a premium upfront and get panels that will be producing the same output in ten years time like my parents did, or skimp on price and end up with a 30-40% reduction over the same time period like their neighbour.

aligibbs 8y ago

Sure, there is an evening peak when people get home and start cooking/turning on their homes etc- which can't really be offset with solar (without using storage, battery/hydro). Doesn't negate the fact that solar generation pretty much perfectly matches business usage.