2024-12-30
Flywheel energy storage is the technology of physical energy storage, which transforms electrical energy into mechanical energy through a high-speed rotating flywheel and releases it as electrical energy when needed. The flywheel energy storage system usually adopts the magnetic levitation technology, using the frictionless environment to make the flywheel rotate at high speed in the vacuum chamber for efficient energy storage and release. The main advantages of flywheel energy storage are its fast response speed, high efficiency, and large quantity of energy released in a very short time. Therefore, it can be applied to a wide range of application scenarios requiring frequent start-up and braking.
The principle of flywheel energy storage is to convert electrical energy into kinetic energy of the flywheel. It stores a lot of energy at high speeds, up to 20,000 revolutions per minute. In case of an electricity demand, the flywheel releases kinetic energy and converts it into an electrical supply load. This will, in turn, balance energy supply and demand, avoid the impact of instantaneous load fluctuations on the system, and improve energy utilization efficiency, thus reducing energy consumption.
Trains must travel frequently between different stations and face a more complex power supply environment in the intercity rail transit system. It can solve the problem of power shortage for running trains effectively, and in particular, flywheel energy storage technology can solve the problem of power supply shortages faced by moving trains, especially when the overhead contact line is absent or an emergency occurs. It could provide emergency power support for the safe and smooth operation of trains.
For instance, the flywheel energy storage system can absorb energy generated at every braking of the train while entering the platform, turning this energy into kinetic energy stored in the flywheel. In case acceleration or restart of the train is required, the flywheel will release energy for use by the train. By doing so, it's possible to reduce not only energy consumption but also to avoid instantaneous load fluctuations in a power supply system to assure smooth running of the train.
The urban rail transit, such as the subway, is a typical "heavy household" of electricity consumption. Especially in high frequency operation, the train needs to start and brake frequently. A lot of kinetic energy would be generated during the braking process of the trains in subway systems. If these kinetic energies are effectively recovered, energy consumptions can be significantly reduced. Flywheel energy storage system is used in subway to recover the energy generated by train braking and convert it into electrical energy, storing it for further use by the train.
Qingdao Metro Flywheel Energy Storage System
For example, the flywheel energy storage device adopted in Qingdao subway effectively reduced the traction energy consumption of subway. The results showed that a saving of 15% in traction energy consumption was recorded for the Flywheel Energy Storage Device. Thus, it is estimated that when both go into use, about 500,000 degrees of electricity will be saved yearly. By calculation, within the 30-year life cycle, a total of 15 million KWH can be saved, which is estimated to save about 10.65 million yuan in electric savings. In addition, the flywheel energy storage system also owns network voltage fluctuation suppression performance effectively, which improves the stability of a rail transit power supply system and improves the power quality with less load on the grid.
Wind power generation, as one of the typical intermittent power sources, would bring some unstable generation owing to the fluctuation of wind speed, and the effective energy storage technology is required for balancing the difference in the supply and demand of power. Thus, the flywheel energy storage technology has become an ideal energy storage solution in wind power generation systems due to the characteristics of fast response and high-efficiency energy conversion.
In strong winds, it can store excess energy in the wind farm by a flywheel energy storage device, which can release energy in time when the wind is weak and stabilize the power supply in the grid. In this process, the flywheel energy storage reduces the dependence on other forms of energy storage technologies and effectively improves wind power systems' operational effectiveness and stability. For instance, after the installation of a flywheel energy storage system, a wind farm increased its generating stability by more than 20% and reduced the pressure on the power grid at the same time.
Data centers should work for 24 hours continuously, so a stable power supply is very necessary. The flywheel energy storage can play an important role in the power supply of the data center. If there is any fluctuation or short-time power outage happening on the power grid, the flywheel energy storage will provide immediate power support to make sure continuous operation of the data center.
It also creates many added values: for instance, with flywheel energy storage technology, a huge data center can maintain regular operations in several seconds without any supply in the event of power cuts and thus avoids equipment damage or data loss due to power cuts. Besides that, the flywheel energy storage system will balance the demanding load effectively and provide supplemental power during peak load demand conditions by reducing dependence on backup diesel generators. With the adoption of flywheel energy storage technology, the power cost from the data center is bound to decrease effectively. On the other hand, this reduces instability and insecurity factors from the equipment.
As an effective method of storing physical energy, flywheel energy storage technology has come into wide use not only in transportation but also shows a broader application prospect in all walks of life with continuous development and optimization of this technology, thus contributing much to smarter and more sustainable energy management.
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