Gravitricity Makes Hydrogen Play With FlexiStore
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on The Engineer.
This is the sub-heading.
Edinburgh-based energy storage firm Gravitricity is looking to green hydrogen, bringing a new underground storage solution to market.
The system is explained with a large graphic, showing an electrolyser, a FlexiStore and a hydrogen filling station, with this paragraph underneath.
Known as FlexiStore, the concept involves purpose-built, steel-lined shafts capable of holding up to 100 tonnes of compressed hydrogen at 220 bar – around 3.33GWh of energy, or enough to refuel over 1,000 HGVs, according to Gravitricity. Unlike naturally occurring underground storage like salt caverns, FlexiStores could be positioned anywhere, with the current plan to co-locate the storage as close as possible to renewable generation. Gravitricity says a single FlexiStore could serve a 460MW wind farm and that 1,000 units could meet the UK’s predicted hydrogen storage needs in 2050.
Note.
- The concept certainly solves the problem of storing hydrogen on a country-wide basis.
- I suspect, a machine could be designed and built to create the shafts.
- A 3.33 GWh store could supply 460 MW for nearly 33 hours. As a Control Engineer, that sounds a good balance for backing up a wind farm!
As ARUP has been involved in a feasibility study, I suspect there’s a fair chance that FlexiStores can be built.
Norway’s Answer To Wind Power Intermittency Lies Offshore – Study
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the first paragraph.
SINTEF has revealed in its recent study that there is no statistical covariation or systematic correlation in time between the occurrence of offshore wind conditions in southern and northern Norway, and adds that this knowledge will increase the commercial value of Norwegian offshore wind energy.
It does seem lucky for the Norwegians, that their wind farms appear to be able to supply a more constant amount of electricity, than many of those against wind farms would have you believe.
I hope that a reputable UK agency or university, is doing a similar analysis for UK wind farms.
World’s First Floating Offshore Wind Farm Celebrates Five Years Of Operation
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
Hywind Scotland, the first floating offshore wind farm in the world, has passed five years in operation since its commissioning in 2017.
And this is the first paragraph.
According to Equinor, Hywind Scotland is the world’s best-performing offshore wind farm, achieving a capacity factor of 54 per cent over its five years of operations.
Note.
- Hywind Scotland is a 30 MW wind farm with five turbines.
- The capacity faction is much higher than a windfarm with fixed foundations.
- The water depth is between 95 and120 metres.
- The wind farm is 30 km. off Peterhead.
There is at least 15 GW of floating wind farms being planned in UK waters before 2030.
Conclusion
The wind farm has made a good start for the first floating wind farm.
Danes Talk 62 MW Offshore Wind Turbines For North Sea Energy Island
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Offshore Energy.
The Danes may talk 62 MW, but that four times larger than one of the biggest today, that I wrote about in Vestas 15 MW Prototype Turbine Produces First Power.
This paragraph says a bit more about the 62 MW turbine.
According to the DEA’s framework document for the draft plan for the strategic environmental assessment (SEA), this could be a 500-metre-tall wind turbine with a rotor diameter of 480 metres and a capacity of up to 62 MW.
This turbine is bigger in terms of capacity, than than some whole farms.
Ofgem OKs Transmission Investments Needed For UK’s 2030 Offshore Wind Target
The title of this post, is the same as that, of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
Ofgem has approved the strategic electricity transmission reinforcements required to deliver the UK Government’s 50 GW offshore wind by 2030 target, set out as part of the regulator’s Accelerated Strategic Transmission Investment (ASTI) framework.
A map then shows the principle new transmission reinforcements.
These include two 2 GW subsea HVDC links from Peterhead to England, both of which will be taken forward as joint ventures with National Grid Electricity Transmission (NGET), a 2 GW subsea HVDC link from Spittal in Caithness, connecting to Peterhead, as well as a 1.8 GW subsea HVDC link from Arnish on the Western Isles to the Beauly area near Inverness.
The approval also implies 400 kV onshore reinforcements, between Beauly, Blackhillock, New Deer and Peterhead; between Beauly, Loch Buidhe and Spittal; and between Kintore, Tealing and Westfield; and uprating the existing Beauly to Denny line to enable 400 kV operation on both circuits.
All cables seem to lead to Peterhead.
Carbon Capture And Storage Projects Across Europe
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on rureporter,
Twenty separate projects are named in eleven different countries.
Some may believe carbon capture and storage is a waste of time and money, but there is a large amount of investment going into the technology.
Brown Seaweed Could Remove 550 Million Tons Of Carbon
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the Carbon Herald.
This may seem like a story that has arrived a few months early.
But the report does come from the respect Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology.
The research is detailed on this page on their web site, which is entitled Slime For The Climate, Delivered By Brown Algae.
It is introduced by this sub-heading.
In form of fucoidan, brown algae could remove up to 550 million tons of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere every year.
Which is followed by this paragraph.
Brown algae take up large amounts of carbon dioxide from the air and release parts of the carbon contained therein back into the environment in mucous form. This mucus is hard to break down for other ocean inhabitants, thus the carbon is removed from the atmosphere for a long time, as researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology in Bremen now show. They reveal that the algal mucus called fucoidan is particularly responsible for this carbon removal and estimate that brown algae could thus remove up to 550 million tons of carbon dioxide from the air every year – almost the amount of Germany’s entire annual greenhouse gas emissions.
Note that fucoidan has a Wikipedia entry.
The page says this about brown algae.
Brown algae are true wonder plants when it comes to absorbing carbon dioxide from the air.
It does seem to me that the Germans are on to something.
Vestas 15 MW Prototype Turbine Produces First Power
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the introductory paragraph.
Vestas’ V236-15.0 MW prototype wind turbine has produced its first kWh after being fully assembled at the Østerild National test centre for large wind turbines in Western Jutland, Denmark.
The first of the four wind farms in the Hornsea wind farm complex to be developed is Hornsea One.
- It has a capacity of 1218 MW.
- It is comprised of 174 Siemens SWT-7.0-154, which each have a generating capacity of 7 MW.
If 15 MW turbines could have been used on Hornsea One, it would have more than doubled the generating capacity to 2625 MW.
But obviously, larger turbines have longer blades, so they may need to be placed further apart.
In Vattenfall Boosts Capacity For Norfolk Offshore Wind Zone, I write about how Vattenfall are increasing the size of their Norfolk wind farms, by proposing to use larger turbines.
Conclusion
Turbines will get larger and 15 MW turbines will be commonplace.
A possible advantage is that you only need sixty-seven turbines for a GW, as opposed to a hundred 10 MW turbines, so there are possibilities to optimise the most profitable way to build a wind farm.
Neptune Energy, Ørsted And Goal7 Explore Powering Integrated Energy Hubs With Offshore Wind
The title of this post, is the same as that of this press release from Neptune Energy.
These four paragraphs outline the agreement.
Neptune Energy today announced it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Ørsted and Goal7 to explore powering new integrated energy hubs in the UK North Sea with offshore wind-generated electricity.
Integrated energy hubs have the potential to combine multiple energy systems, including existing oil and gas production assets, carbon storage and hydrogen production facilities. They could extend the life of producing fields and support the economic case for electrification with renewable energy, to keep carbon emissions low.
The agreement will see the companies examine the potential to supply renewable electricity from Ørsted’s Hornsea offshore windfarm projects to power future Neptune-operated hubs in the UK North Sea.
Goal7 will provide project management support and technical input.
Note.
- Neptune Energy has three oil and gas fields in the UK North Sea; Cygnus (operational), Isabella (exploration) and Seagull (development)
- Gas from Cygnus comes ashore at the Bacton Gas Terminal.
- Ørsted owns the Hornsea wind farm, which when fully developed will have a capacity of around 6.5 GW.
- Cygnus and Hornsea could be not much further than 50 km apart.
- Seagull and Isabella are further to the North and East of Aberdeen.
- Ørsted has an interest in the Broadshore wind farm, which was numbered 8 in the ScotWind Leasing round.
These are my thoughts.
The Cygnus Gas Field And The Hornsea Wind Farm
This could be like one of those stories where boy meets the girl next door and they hit it off from the first day.
This page on the Neptune web site says this about the Cygnus gas field.
The biggest natural gas discovery in the southern North Sea in over 30 years is now the largest single producing gas field in the UK, typically exporting over 250 million standard cubic feet of gas daily. Cygnus contributes six per cent of UK gas demand, supplying energy to the equivalent of 1.5 million UK homes. It has a field life of over 20 years.
Two drilling centres target ten wells. Cygnus Alpha consists of three bridge-linked platforms: a wellhead drilling centre, a processing/utilities unit and living quarters/central control room. Cygnus Bravo, an unmanned satellite platform, is approximately seven kilometres northwest of Cygnus Alpha.
In 2022, we plan to drill two new production wells at Cygnus, with the first of these expected to come onstream in 4Q. The second well is due to be drilled in the fourth quarter and is expected onstream in the first quarter of 2023, with both wells helping to maintain production from the field and offset natural decline.
Gas is exported via a 55 km pipeline. Cygnus connects via the Esmond Transmission System (ETS) pipeline to the gas-treatment terminal at Bacton, Norfolk. Neptune Energy has a 25% minority interest in ETS.
Note.
- Cygnus with a twenty year life could be one of the ways that we bridge the gap until we have the two Cs (Hinckley Point and Sizewell) and a few tens of offshore wind gigawatts online.
- The two extra wells at Cygnus will help bridge the gap.
- The gas field has a pipeline to Bacton.
So what can the gas field and the wind farm, do for each other?
Hornsea Can Supply The Power Needs Of Cygnus
Typically, ten percent of the gas extracted from the wells connected to a gas platform, will be converted into electricity using one or more gas-turbine engines; which will then be used to power the platform.
So, if electricity from the Hornsea wind farm, is used to power the platform, there are two benefits.
- More gas will be sent through the pipeline to Bacton.
- Less carbon dioxide will be emitted in recovering the gas.
Effectively, electricity has been turned into gas.
Electricity Can Be Stored On The Sea-Bed
The Hornsea One wind farm has an area in the order of 150 square miles and it is only one wind farm of four, that make up the Hornsea wind farm.
I would argue that there is plenty of space between the turbines and the wells of the Cygnus gas field to install some form of zero-carbon underwater battery to store electricity.
But does this technology exist?
Not yet! But in UK Cleantech Consortium Awarded Funding For Energy Storage Technology Integrated With Floating Wind, I described a technique called Marine Pumped Hydro, which is being developed by the STORE Consortium.
- Energy is stored as pressurised water in 3D-printed hollow concrete spheres fitted with a hydraulic turbine and pump.
- The spheres sit on the sea-bed.
- This page on the STORE Consortium web site, describes the technology in detail.
- The technology is has all been used before, but not together.
I think it is excellent technology and the UK government has backed it with £150,000 of taxpayers’ money.
I also believe that Marine Pumped Hydro or something like it, could be the solution to the intermittency of wind farms.
Excess Electricity Can Be Converted Into Hydrogen
Any spare electricity from the wind farm can drive an electrolyser to convert it into hydrogen.
The electrolyser could be mounted on one of the Cygnus platforms, or it could even float.
The hydrogen produced would be blended with the gas and sent to Bacton.
Carbon Dioxide Can Be Stored In The Depleted Cygnus Gas Field
As the gas field empties of natural gas, the gas pipes to the Cygnus gas field can be reversed and used to bring carbon dioxide to the gas field to be stored.
The Cygnus gas field has gone full circle from providing gas to storing the same amount of carbon that the gas has produced in its use.
These are two paragraphs from the press release.
Neptune Energy’s Director of New Energy, Pierre Girard, said: “The development of integrated energy hubs is an important part of Neptune’s strategy to store more carbon than is emitted from our operations and the use of our sold products by 2030.
“Neptune has submitted three applications under the recent Carbon Dioxide Appraisal and Storage Licensing Round, and securing the licences would enable us to develop future proposals for integrated energy hubs in the UK North Sea.
I can envisage a large gas-fired power-station with carbon capture being built in Norfolk, which will do the following.
- Take a supply of natural gas from the Cygnus gas field via the Bacton gas terminal.
- Convert the hydrogen in the gas into electricity.
- Convert the carbon in the gas into carbon dioxide.
- Store the carbon dioxide in the Cygnus gas field via Bacton.
- I also suspect, that if a Norfolk farmer, manufacturer or entrepreneur has a use for thousands of tonnes of carbon dioxide, they would be welcomed with open arms.
Would the ultra-greens of this world, accept this power station as zero-carbon?
The Isabella And Seagull Gas Fields And The Broadshore Wind Farm
Could a similar set of projects be applied to the Isabella and Seagull gas fields, using the Broadshore wind farm?
I don’t see why not and they could work with the Peterhead power stations.
National Grid Avoids Emissions At London Power Tunnels Substation With Green Grid Technology
The title of this post, is the same as that of this press release from National Grid.
These are the main bullet points.
- £1bn project to rewire London will see the replacement of ageing high-voltage electricity cables and expand network capacity to meet the increasing electricity demand
- A new substation at Bengeworth Road in Lambeth is at the heart of the project and will be built by Linxon using Hitachi Energy’s SF6 free gas insulated switchgear technology in a UK first
- The project forms part of National Grid’s ambition to have no SF6 in electrical assets by 2050
- National Grid is investing a total of £1.3bn every year in electricity network infrastructure needed to help the UK decarbonise and reach net zero emissions
I’ll now expand some of these points.
The London Power Tunnels
This is said about the London Power Tunnels.
National Grid’s London Power Tunnels (LPT) project is a seven-year, £1 billion project, to rewire South London via deep underground tunnels. This vital work to replace ageing high-voltage cables will expand capacity and help keep Londoners connected to secure and reliable electricity supplies.
Note.
- In total, there are 32.5km of 3m diameter tunnels.
- They stretch between Wimbledon and Crayford.
- As part of the project, a new tunnel access shaft, substation and headhouse is being built at Bengeworth Road, Lambeth to connect to our London Power Tunnels (LPT) route.
The London Power Tunnels have their own web site.
Sulphur Hexafluoride
This is said about Sulphur Hexafluoride.
Sulphur Hexafluoride (SF6 ) is used in the electricity industry in substations to prevent short circuits and to keep the network safe and reliable, but it has a high global warming potential. National Grid’s ambition is to reduce its SF6 emissions by 50% by 2030 and remove all SF6 gas from electrical assets by 2050.
Linxon is building Bengeworth Road substation for National Grid and to support the business in its transition to SF6 -free solutions, in a UK first, Hitachi Energy will deliver EconiQ™ 400-kilovolt (kV) gas-insulated switchgear (GIS) and gas-insulated lines (GIL) containing no SF6, to enable the transmission of energy over long distances. Installation is expected to begin in 2023, subject to prior approval of the substation by Lambeth Council.
In the Wikipedia entry for sulphur hexafluoride, this is said.
SF6 is 23,500 times more potent than CO2 as a greenhouse gas but exists in relatively minor concentrations in the atmosphere. Its concentration in Earth’s troposphere reached 10.63 parts per trillion (ppt) in 2021, rising at 0.39 ppt/year.[8] The increase over the prior 40 years was driven in large part by the expanding electric power sector, including fugitive emissions from banks of SF6 gas contained in its medium- and high-voltage switchgear. Uses in magnesium, aluminium, and electronics manufacturing also hastened atmospheric growth.
As I have a lot of experience of HF, my view is that we’re well shot of the SF6, but I’ll be 103, when National Grid eliminate it.
The Anonymous Widower 