I don’t think there was any episode of the Road Runner TV show in which Wile E. Coyote didn’t try to drop a boulder on the Road Runner. Wile E. was never successful. There is, however, a company in Switzerland, Energy Vault, that has designed and built a prototype system that works on the same conservation of energy principle, converting potential energy of position into kinetic energy of motion.
The idea, which is not necessarily new, is to use excess energy to raise rather large blocks to a specified height, then when energy is needed, the blocks slowly fall turning a generator to produce electrical energy. It’s all about energy storage.
Currently, when someone talks about storing energy they are usually talking about lithium-ion batteries. However, a method that goes back to the beginning of the last century was pumped hydro. When power was plentiful, water was pumped from a lower reservoir to a higher reservoir. When needed, the water was released and was directed through a hydroelectric plant. Unfortunately, there are few places left on earth where that system could work.
A WIRED article about the project is a bit long, though I was easily drawn along with each new paragraph. I learned a great deal about the choices power companies are faced with, along with some interesting and challenging engineering associated with these gravity based systems. The article also includes the very profound perspective that we need to be thinking about long-term solutions to energy storage in contrast to short-term solutions. Enjoy. – Dr. Tom
