Energy Storage for Low Carbon Grids

英国电力系统面临着前所未有的挑战。预计到2020年，英国35%至40%的电力需求将由可再生能源发电满足，比目前的水平增加一个数量级。根据英国气候变化委员会提出的目标，预计到2030年，电力部门将几乎完全脱碳，并将热力和运输部门纳入电力系统，从而大幅提高电力生产和需求水平。关键问题与英国低碳系统供需双方的根本变化所驱动的系统集成成本有关。我们迄今为止的分析表明，低碳电力的未来将导致传统发电、输电和配电资产的利用率大幅下降。大规模部署储能可以缓解这种利用率的下降，从而节省大量资金。在这种情况下，拟议的研究旨在（i）开发新的方法来评估一系列储能技术的经济和环境效益，这些技术可以提高系统运行效率并提高资产利用率;以及（ii）围绕4种储能技术进行创新：钠离子，氧化还原液流电池（RFB），超级电容器和热能存储（TES）。这些项目之所以被选中，是因为它们与电网规模存储应用的相关性，它们对变革性研究的潜力，我们在这些主题上强大且世界领先的研究记录，以及英国利用这些创新的机会。我们建议的核心是一个整体系统的方法，认识到需要电网专家与控制，转换器和存储专家合作，为一系列未来能源场景开发最佳解决方案和选项。如果我们要正确考虑网络对存储技术施加的约束，以及存储技术对网络施加的限制，这是必不可少的。我们的工作重点是与英国相关的未来能源情景，但我们开发的工具，方法和技术将具有广泛的应用。我们的工作将为广泛的利益相关者提供关于未来低碳电网中储能技术的开发和整合的战略见解和方向，并受到以下两方面的启发：（i）当前电网监管，市场运营，电网投资和控制实践阻碍了储能的作用被理解，其经济和环境价值被量化，以及（ii）开发和部署电网应用的成本效益储能解决方案的现有障碍。该计划的主要成果将是：适合英国应用的电网规模存储发展路线图;对适当支持英国存储部署的政策选项的分析;英国配电网络存储控制蓝图;与能源存储技术突破性创新相关的专利和高影响力论文;新的工具和技术，以分析存储到低碳电力网络的整合;和一个研究人员和博士生的正确的技能和经验，以支持在这一领域的未来研究，开发和部署所需的队列。

The UK electricity system faces challenges of unprecedented proportions. It is expected that 35 to 40% of the UK electricity demand will be met by renewable generation by 2020, an order of magnitude increase from the present levels. In the context of the targets proposed by the UK Climate Change Committee it is expected that the electricity sector would be almost entirely decarbonised by 2030 with significantly increased levels of electricity production and demand driven by the incorporation of heat and transport sectors into the electricity system. The key concerns are associated with system integration costs driven by radical changes on both the supply and the demand side of the UK low-carbon system. Our analysis to date suggests that a low-carbon electricity future would lead to a massive reduction in the utilisation of conventional electricity generation, transmission and distribution assets. The large-scale deployment of energy storage could mitigate this reduction in utilisation, producing significant savings. In this context, the proposed research aims at (i) developing novel approaches for evaluating the economic and environmental benefits of a range of energy storage technologies that could enhance efficiency of system operation and increase asset utilization; and (ii) innovation around 4 storage technologies; Na-ion, redox flow batteries (RFB), supercapacitors, and thermal energy storage (TES). These have been selected because of their relevance to grid-scale storage applications, their potential for transformative research, our strong and world-leading research track record on these topics and UK opportunities for exploitation of the innovations arising. At the heart of our proposal is a whole systems approach, recognising the need for electrical network experts to work with experts in control, converters and storage, to develop optimum solutions and options for a range of future energy scenarios. This is essential if we are to properly take into account constraints imposed by the network on the storage technologies, and in return limitations imposed by the storage technologies on the network. Our work places emphasis on future energy scenarios relevant to the UK, but the tools, methods and technologies we develop will have wide application.Our work will provide strategic insights and direction to a wide range of stakeholders regarding the development and integration of energy storage technologies in future low carbon electricity grids, and is inspired by both (i) limitations in current grid regulation, market operation, grid investment and control practices that prevent the role of energy storage being understood and its economic and environmental value quantified, and (ii) existing barriers to the development and deployment of cost effective energy storage solutions for grid application. Key outputs from this programme will be; a roadmap for the development of grid scale storage suited to application in the UK; an analysis of policy options that would appropriately support the deployment of storage in the UK; a blueprint for the control of storage in UK distribution networks; patents and high impact papers relating to breakthrough innovations in energy storage technologies; new tools and techniques to analyse the integration of storage into low carbon electrical networks; and a cohort of researchers and PhD students with the correct skills and experience needed to support the future research, development and deployment in this area.