Cryogenic energy storage air separation

What is cryogenic energy storage?

The concept of cryogenic energy storage (CES) is to store energy in the form of liquid gas and vaporize it when needed to drive a turbine. Although CES on an industrial scale is a relatively new approach, the technology is well known and essentially part of any air separation unit that utilizes cryogenic separation.

Does a cryogenic air separation unit reduce energy consumption?

Esfilar et al. (2018) thermodynamically assessed the novel integration of cryogenic air separation unit with coal co-gasification and biomass grounded on LNG vaporization. The configuration meaningfully reduced energy consumption with regard to the elimination of coolers and heaters.

Does cryogenic air separation destroy exergy?

Cornelissen and Hirs (1998) assessed cryogenic air separation processes from an exergy standpoint, indicating that major exergy destruction occurs in the liquefaction and compression units. Mehrpooya et al. (2020) evaluated argon recovery from a novel cryogenic air separation unit, combined with a transcritical CO 2 cycle and LNG regasification.

What are cryogenic technologies used for?

Cryogenic technologies are commonly used for industrial processes, such as air separation and natural gas liquefaction. Another recently proposed and tested cryogenic application is Liquid Air Energy Storage (LAES). This technology allows for large-scale long-duration storage of renewable energy in the power grid.

Can air separation and liquid nitrogen energy storage process be integrated?

This paper explored the potential for deep integration of these two process and proposed a novel air separation with liquid nitrogen energy storage process recovering waste heat and reusing storage media process.

How efficient is argon recovery from a cryogenic air separation unit?

Mehrpooya et al. (2020) evaluated argon recovery from a novel cryogenic air separation unit, combined with a transcritical CO 2 cycle and LNG regasification. They reported a 35% and 45% efficiency for the transcritical CO 2 cycle and gas turbine, respectively.