…Redwood believes that by 2030, end-of-life batteries could supply more than 50 percent of the entire energy storage market. Instead of grinding up used batteries to reclaim the critical materials inside, put them to work storing electricity. There have been many experiments done that re-purpose used EV batteries which no longer can supply enough power to meet the need for rapid acceleration in an EV but still have up to 80 percent of their original energy storage capacity available…
…Traditional energy storage systems are high density and require heavy-duty cooling. To avoid this, Redwood’s team opted for an open-air, low-density system mounted on above-ground cable trays.
Spreading packs out in the open air helps avoid the need for active refrigeration, and stripping away moving parts like fans and filters minimizes potential reliability failures. Keeping the wiring above ground and limiting the size of each modular component minimizes the need for large equipment. As Sun explained, the result is a storage system that is faster to build, easier to inspect after storms, and cheaper to keep running over time…
They should make “grid modules” like that out of shipping containers - racks of batteries inside with solar panels on the roof. Maybe the panels could be on swing-out hinges to make them able to stow away more compactly for transport on top, and then fold out for more surface area after the module is installed on site
The point of going low density is to reduce cooling requirements. Cramming them into a shipping container is the exact opposite of that.
Where I live the larger problem is heating the battery in winter. Cooling needs to be done as well, but batteries don’t like the cold temperatures we get in winter.
Yeah, it really depends on the location. Both heating and cooling batteries are a problem where I live, and these batteries would need a lot more protection where I live.
I was assuming the walls would be removed, or not really be a shipping container but a steel frame that fit the dimensions and has the right connectors.
You can put louvered vents on a container.
Well that’s where they have to put them, because I said so. We are going to stack those fuckin’ containers FIFTEEN HIGH! It doesn’t matter, because we will have fans and vents in the doors.
And it is an option. It’s just completely orthogonal to what is being discussed here.