By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent

By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent

Thanks to an aggressive utility (Duke Energy) and favorable laws, North Carolina has shot up the list of solar states in terms of overall capacity, at least according to the Solar Energy Industries Association's calculations. Other states have taken notice and are starting to emulate some of North Carolina's policies in an effort to catch up. Well now, the Tar Heel state is trying to lead again, this time on the subject of energy storage. And to that end, a group of experts just released a report for the state's General Assembly to use as it tries to regulate this new energy-related market segment. To wit:

A team of experts from NC State University and N.C. Central University has released a report detailing energy storage options that the North Carolina General Assembly (NCGA) can use to inform energy policy. The report has short- and long-term implications for both power grid and renewable energy development in North Carolina.

According to a press release from North Carolina State University, the report had been mandated by House Bill 589, which called for a report that would discuss how energy storage technologies would benefit the state as it moved into a more distributed energy future. The legislature demanded the study take into account factors ranging from immediate feasibility to potential job creation. At the end of the process, the team of 12 experts received input from a variety of stakeholders and recommended a menu of policy choices that fall into one of three categories: prepare, facilitate or accelerate energy storage adoption within the state. As one expert said in the release:

“Options within these three categories are not necessarily mutually exclusive,” says Christopher Galik, a member of the team and associate professor at NC State. “In fact, they could complement each other. Much would depend on the particular set of policies chosen, not to mention the details of how policies are designed and implemented.”

What's critical about this study is that it is one of the first outside of California to deal with energy storage head-on, and creates a framework for policymakers before the technology becomes widespread. An orderly deployment of energy storage should follow this report and lead to North Carolina being on the cutting edge of energy storage policymaking as the state moves forward in its own renewable revolution. More: Experts Lay Out Options For Future of Energy Storage in North Carolina

The Energy Show: By Barry Cinnamon

The Energy Show: By Barry Cinnamon

It’s depressing that lithium batteries get almost all of the focus in the energy storage industry. Lithium batteries have a number of advantages, including high energy density, good longevity, declining costs and established integration with electronics, vehicles and stationary energy storage. Although ideal for residential and commercial storage applications, lithium ion chemistries are not great for long term and high capacity energy storage — which are the characteristics that many utility storage installations require. Flow batteries have the potential to meet these utility storage application needs. Flow batteries use two tanks of liquid electrolyte, separated by a special membrane, that flows between the anode and the cathode within the battery cell. Energy is stored in this liquid electrolyte instead of as part of the electrode material in conventional batteries. The energy storage capacity of a flow battery is related to the amount of liquid electrolyte — bigger tanks provide greater storage capacity. The power output of a flow battery depends on the size of the anode and cathode electrodes in the battery cell. Since their storage capacity is limited mostly by the size of the electrolyte tanks, flow batteries are great for grid-scale storage. They are also finding applications when sited alongside PV systems. Since the battery can absorb power in excess of what the grid or inverter can handle, inverters can be smaller — resulting in lower equipment costs and greater efficiency. I heard about new flow battery technology from my friends at NexTracker. I was initially hesitant to learn about flow batteries – one could say I’m in a lithium rut waiting for the commercialization of dual lithium crystalline reactor technology for interstellar travel. But when I understood the real-world benefits of Avalon’s batteries when integrated with utility-scale tracker installations, I was convinced. So on this week’s show we’re going with the flow. Our guest is Matt Harper, Co-Founder and Chief Product Officer of Avalon. I hope you tune in to this week’s Energy Show as Matt explains the technology behind flow batteries, practical applications, availability of electrolytes, and Matt’s view of how flow batteries have the potential to meet our long duration energy storage needs.