Energy storage device uses technology from UT-Arlington

The Metroplex’s record snow this month snapped power lines and put more than 200,000 electricity customers in the dark for anywhere from a few hours to days.

There’s this about electricity in the modern power grid:  It’s either on or off, and if it’s off there’s not much that can be done because we cannot, after all, store electricity. Likewise we can’t easily store energy when it’s being produced cheaply for a time when it becomes more costly – for example during peak production periods.

Or can we?

University at Texas in Arlington electrical engineering professor Babak Fahimi not only knows that we can, he’s about to prove it with a multi-patented device called an Intelligent Power Controller, soon to be manufactured by ArcAngel Technologies Inc. of Plano.

It’s a simplification, but in essence the IPC stores power, enough to run a small business or large home for anything from a few hours to days, depending on how much capacity the customer wants. Though such a computerized smart system would have been handy during the recent cold-and-dark snow blackout, the idea is to substantially reduce electricity expense all the time.

It’s much more than a power-out backup only.

“One of the problems the power grid faces today is that the cost of production is too high,” Fahimi said from his university laboratory last week. “This is primarily because the production capacity has to be designed to accommodate peak power demand by customers.

“This peak demand changes according to the season, according to the region and the type of industries that are located in areas. So the system has to be overdesigned. That fact results in increased costs in both dollars and environmental impact,” he said.

Too, in this era of renewable green energy, a critical problem is that some sources of electricity are inconsistent. Solar panels don’t make electricity after the sun goes down. Wind generators don’t turn when there’s little or no wind. Further, power that is produced by some sources does not meet the technical requirements of the utility grid because voltage and frequency can vary.

“You need energy compatible with what is acceptable on the grid,” Fahimi said. “The IPC accepts energy from all kinds of sources, stores it and converts it to the grid specifications.”

For instance an IPC owner might have solar panels producing power that could be stored to supplement utility power. He  or she might want to use excess power stored in a hybrid or electric auto. Might want to load up with power late at night when the commercial grid is producing lower cost electricity.

UT-Arlington and Fahimi’s energy laboratory have been working on this issue for more than four years now, so the IPC is not one of those academic ideas destined to take place in the far future. Five prototypes will be installed at various locations in March. Fahimi said ArcAngel could begin commercial marketing of the devices by the end of this year.

The first potential customers will be those of the commercial variety because they typically have to pay higher electricity charges during peak usage periods. The IPCs will allow them to store energy purchased during off-peak times and then use it during peak periods. The devices also are computerized and capable of learning consumption patterns, as well as detecting problems, such as an ailing air conditioner that needs attention.

A 50-kilowatt IPC – enough to run a 2,000-square-foot house for as long as a day or more – is about the size of a triple-drawer file cabinet. Units can also be connected in a series to increase storage.

What do they cost?

“We’re building a 50-kilowatt in the lab for about $2,000,” Fahimi said. “But doctoral and master’s students are not the cheapest labor around. Once commercial construction begins they’ll no doubt become cheaper and cheaper.”

“The ultimate idea is to have a huge energy storage capacity spread in a decentralized way across the marketplace,” Fahimi said.

Fahimi sees a time in the not-distant-future when virtually every home will have a green IPC as standard equipment. He believes the devices will pay for themselves in two years or less. Perhaps much less given the economies of commercial manufacturing.

“I see the IPC as the energy equivalent of the TiVo,” he said. “We store our music and videos for the time when we need them. The IPC will make it possible to do the same thing with energy, helping out both our pocketbooks and the environment.”

okcarter@bizpress.net