Overview of Large-Scale Underground Energy Storage Technologies for Integration of Renewable Energies and Criteria for Reservoir Identification

doi:10.1016/j.est.2018.11.023

Journal of Energy Storage

Volume 21, February 2019, Pages 241-258

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.est.2018.11.023 Get rights and content

Highlights

•
Technologies for underground large-scale energy storage are summarized.
•
The underground reservoirs for large scale energy storage are described.
•
An extensive review of the criteria for site screening underground reservoirs is done.
•
Large-scale underground energy storage technologies and reservoir types are matched.
•
General criteria to all reservoir types are assessed.

Abstract

The increasing integration of renewable energies in the electricity grid is expected to contribute considerably towards the European Union goals of energy and GHG emissions reduction. However, it also brings new challenges for the grid. Large-scale energy storage can provide means for a better integration of renewable energy sources, balancing supply and demand, increasing energy security, enhancing a better management of the grid and also allowing convergence towards a low carbon economy.

One way to ensure large-scale energy storage is to use the storage capacity in underground reservoirs, since geological formations have the potential to store large volumes of fluids with minimal impact to environment and society. There are several technologies which can be viable options for underground energy storage, as well as several types of underground reservoirs can be considered.

The underground energy storage technologies for renewable energy integration addressed in this article are: Compressed Air Energy Storage (CAES); Underground Pumped Hydro Storage (UPHS); Underground Thermal Energy Storage (UTES); Underground Gas Storage (UGS) and Underground Hydrogen Storage (UHS), both connected to Power-to-gas (P2G) systems. For these different types of underground energy storage technologies there are several suitable geological reservoirs, namely: depleted hydrocarbon reservoirs, porous aquifers, salt formations, engineered rock caverns in host rocks and abandoned mines.

Specific site screening criteria are applicable to each of these reservoir types and technologies, determining the viability of the reservoir itself, and of the technology for that site. This paper presents a review of the criteria applied to identify suitable technology-reservoir couples.

Section snippets

INTRODUCTION

In order to mitigate climate change effects, the Paris Agreement target for the year of 2050 has a requirement for a net zero emission energy system [1]. The European Union has also defined the 2030 Climate Change and Energy strategy, which sets as targets a 40% reduction of greenhouse gas emissions compared to 1990, an increase of 27% of renewable energy usage and an improvement of 27% in energy efficiency [2].

Energy policies are aligned with the same purposes and they are promoting

PROSPECTS AND NEED FOR LARGE-SCALE ENERGY STORAGE

The growth of distributed generation in general and the increasing deployment of variable/intermittent renewable electricity generation technologies in the electricity system in particular, is changing the way electricity systems have to be operated and managed in the future [9].

Besides the centralized utilities (large-scale generation, transmission and distribution networks), nowadays there are also, decentralized or distributed energy resources.

Distributed Energy Resources (DERs) is a

UNDERGROUND ENERGY STORAGE TECHNOLOGIES

Long-term storage of fluids in underground formations has routinely been conducted by the hydrocarbon industry for several decades, with low quality formation water produced with oil being reinjected in saline formations to minimise environmental impacts, or in acid-gas injection techniques to reduce the H₂S and CO₂ stripping from natural gas. Besides that, underground energy storage technologies try to replicate the process of storage of hydrocarbons in nature, with minimal impact to

SITE SELECTION CRITERIA FOR UNDERGROUND RESERVOIRS

There has been a considerable amount of work done in characterizing the underground formations that are suitable as reservoirs for several energy related activities. Hydrocarbon production is an invaluable source of information for depleted fields, but conventional underground natural gas storage, geothermal energy production, geological storage of CO₂ and nuclear waste disposal, have also produced a vast range of data and experience for the site selection process, and for assessing the

DISCUSSION

The storage technologies are currently at different stages of development and present a wide range of Technology Readiness Level (TRL), from mature technologies with wide implementation, to just conceptual designs (Table 5).

Thus, as seen at Table 5, the technology with a higher TRL is UGS, being the most mature technology which is widely implemented in many locations around the world, such as Europe, USA or Canada, using salt caverns, aquifers and traps and depleted hydrocarbon fields as

CONCLUSIONS

This research was done under the scope of the Portuguese participation in the ESTMAP – Energy Storage Mapping and Planning project, and presents a review of several underground energy storage technologies for renewable energies integration and of specific criteria for selection of geological reservoirs.

The current state of development and implementation of Underground Gas Storage, Underground Hydrogen Storage, Compressed Air Energy Storage, Underground Pumped Hydro Storage and Underground

Acknowledgements

The author Catarina R. Matos acknowledges the funding provided by the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) under the research grant SFRH/BD/117722/2016.

The authors Catarina R. Matos and Júlio F. Carneiro would like to acknowledge that this work has been partially supported by the Earth Sciences Institute (ICT), under contract with FCT (the Portuguese Science and Technology Foundation).

The author Patrícia P. Silva would like to acknowledge that this work has been partially

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Overview of Large-Scale Underground Energy Storage Technologies for Integration of Renewable Energies and Criteria for Reservoir Identification

Highlights

Abstract

Section snippets

INTRODUCTION

PROSPECTS AND NEED FOR LARGE-SCALE ENERGY STORAGE

UNDERGROUND ENERGY STORAGE TECHNOLOGIES

SITE SELECTION CRITERIA FOR UNDERGROUND RESERVOIRS

DISCUSSION

CONCLUSIONS

Acknowledgements

Energy

Applied Energy

Renewable Energy

Journal of CO₂ Utilization

Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews

International Journal of Hydrogen Energy

Applied Energy

Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews

Energy conversion and management

Applied Energy

Applied Energy

Energy Conversion and Management

Renewable & Sustainable Energy Reviews

Energy Procedia

Adoption of the Paris Agreement – Proposal by the President

2030 framework for climate and energy policies

Integration of Demand Side Management, Distributed Generation, Renewable Energy Sources and Energy Storages, State of the Art Report. Vol. 1, Main Report, International Energy Agency Demand-Side Management Programme

Key World Energy Statistics

Internet website of Energy Storage Association

Energy Geo-Storage − Analysis and Geomechanical Implications

KSCE Journal of Civil Engineering. Vol

Facilitating energy storage to allow high penetration of intermittent renewable energy, Report summarizing the current Status, Role and Costs of Energy Storage Technologies

Energy Storage: A Key for Decentralised Power, Power Quality and Clean Transport

The Future Role and Challenges of Energy Storage

Hybrid Energy Storage Systems for Renewable Energy Sources Integration in Microgrids: A Review. International Power Electronics Conference, 2010 Conference Proceedings

Large Energy Storage Systems Handbook

Electrical Energy Storage - White Paper

European Energy Storage Technology Development Roadmap towards 2030. European Association for Energy Storage and European Energy Research Alliance

ESTMAP Technical Support Document: Subsurface Data Specification. TNO, BRGM, ECOFYS, VITO, EC Project no.: ENER/C2/2014-640/S12.698827

Electricity Energy Storage Technology Options, a White Paper Primer on Applications, Costs, and Benefits

ESTMAP- Energy Storage Mapping and Planning. TNO, BRGM, ECOFYS, VITO, EC Project no.: ENER/C2/2014-640/S12.698827

Combined Heat and Power Basics. Internet website of Energy.Gov, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy

The Global Status of CCS - 2016 - Summary Report

Renewable energy storage in geological formations

Proc Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Part A: Journal of Power and Energy

Storage of Natural Gas

An appraisal of underground gas storage technologies and incidents, for the development of risk assessment methodology

RR605 Research Report, Prepared by the British Geological Survey for the Health and Safety Executive

Potencial de Armazenamento Subterrâneo em Cavidades Salinas de Gás Natural em Portugal. Master Thesis

Potencial de Armazenamento Subterrâneo de Gás Natural do Território Nacional. Rel/LC/AP/1/2009

Underground Storage, Factsheet of Mineral Planning. British Geological Survey

Natural Gas Background

Power-to-Gas Energy Storage is booming

Fuel cell electric vehicles and hydrogen infrastructure: status 2012

Energy Environ. Sci.

Power-to-Gas – Chemical storage of excess power

Large-scale electricity storage utilizing reversible solid oxide cells combined with underground storage of CO2 and CH4

Energy & Environmental Science

Power to Gas: Storage of electricity from wind power plants and photovoltaic power plants in the natural gas infrastructure. Contribution to the Facts about Energy

The Value of Underground Storage in Today's Natural Gas Industry. Energy Information Administration report DOE/EIA-0591(95)

Large-scale electricity storage utilizing reversible solid oxide cells combined with underground storage of CO₂ and CH₄