3 ms·

Industrial power usage should anyway be designed as a function of electricity cost. Old-school always-on use is just not cost efficient (and thus not future pro

• pjc50 3y ago
  There are certain use cases which kind of have to be always-on. Big freezers. Aluminium smelters. Venezuela's terribly administered grid shut down power to its aluminium industry. This cannot survive without power to keep the smelters warm; two hours was enough to destroy the industry. https://www.alcircle.com/news/blackout-in-venezuela-brings-down-the-curtain-on-venezuelan-aluminium-sector-with-the-closure-of-the-last-smelters-44439 https://www.alcircle.com/news/blackout-in-venezuela-brings-d...
  • WJW 3y ago
    Interestingly both of the use cases you mentioned are quite amenable to demand response. Big freezers can be set to a few degrees cooler and be switched off during peak electricity demand. In [1] the researchers even call them "ideal candidates for implementing demand response strategies". For aluminium smelters, you are correct in that they can't be turned off entirely (the cryolite will solidify) but it is often possible to reduce energy demand significantly by stopping the electrolysis reaction but still heating the mixture to keep it molten. Then later, when peak demand has passed you can switch on the electrolysis process again. [1] https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1237687 https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1237687