A battery is a physical structure that stores energy for release later. There are many examples all around us. Take the ice cubes in the freezer for example that we store until we need to cool a beverage. Or a hot water bottle that keeps our feet warm all night in bed. Our homes absorb energy in the daytime. There is news from Britain of homes becoming batteries using concrete. Say what now?
Homes Becoming Batteries Using Concrete…But How?
Electricity storage is a limiting factor holding renewable energy back. Since, unlike power stations, solar wind and hydro cannot provide the continuous power we need at a set level. However once we have their energy stored, we can compete.
British scientists at Lancaster University’s engineering department have come up with the idea of homes becoming batteries using concrete. “We have a lot of buildings.” Professor Saafia told Tom Whipple writing for The Times. “If you could convert them into batteries it would pretty much solve a lot of our energy problems.” That way we could have all the renewable energy storage we need.
Did Elon Musk Miss the Point with Powerwall?
“The idea is to turn buildings and structures into batteries . To store electricity in the structure itself and release it at times of peak demand”, the professor explains.
Conventional batteries store energy by transferring ions from one terminal to another. However, potassium ions in a fly-ash additive mixed with concrete function as capacitors. The density is low, but the battery is large. Professor Saafi thinks that this is a rare event in Elon Musk’s career when he may not have thought out the box.
Because this new invention is literally a ‘power wall’ in its own right. We could not imagine homes becoming batteries using concrete previously. However, in the blinding light of science teamed with imagination, we affirm anything is possible.
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