An interdisciplinary review of energy storage for communities: Challenges and perspectives

Abstract

16Given the increasing penetration of renewable energy technologies as distributed generation 17 embedded in the consumption centres, there is growing interest in energy storage systems 18 located very close to consumers. These systems allow to increase the amount of renewable 19 energy generation consumed locally, they provide opportunities for demand-side 20 management and help to decarbonise the electricity, heating and transport sectors. 21In this paper, the authors present an interdisciplinary review of community energy storage 22 (CES) with a focus on its potential role and challenges as a key element within the wider 23 energy system. The discussion includes: the whole spectrum of applications and 24 technologies with a strong emphasis on end user applications; techno-economic, 25 environmental and social assessments of CES; and an outlook on CES from the customer, 26 utility company and policy-maker perspectives. Currently, in general only traditional thermal 27 storage with water tanks is economically viable. However, CES is expected to offer new 28 opportunities for the energy transition since the community scale introduces several 29 advantages for electrochemical technologies such as batteries. Technical and economic 30 benefits over energy storage in single dwellings are driven by enhanced performance due to 31 less spiky community demand profile and economies of scale respectively. In addition, CES 32 brings new opportunities for citizen participation within communities and helps to increase 33 awareness of energy consumption and environmental impacts. 34

Technical and economic comparison of grid supportive vanadium redox flow batteries for primary control reserve and community electricity storage in Germany

“…This strategy secures the best results with regard to the performance indicators curtailment loss ratio, self‐consumption ratio (SCR), and self‐supply ratio (SSR), as defined in a previous study . Although there are several studies concerning CES and their operation strategies in power grids, none of them quantifies the costs of an additional autonomous voltage control in addition to its primary purpose (maximising self‐consumption), especially for VRFB.…”

“…24,28 This strategy secures the best results with regard to the performance indicators curtailment loss ratio, self-consumption ratio (SCR), and self-supply ratio (SSR), as defined in a previous study. 24 Although there are several studies concerning CES and their operation strategies in power grids, 14,79 none of them quantifies the costs of an additional autonomous voltage control in addition to its primary purpose (maximising self-consumption), especially for VRFB. The methodology of the adaptive persistence forecast control strategy was adapted from the strategy initially designed for RES by Bergner et al and Weniger et al 80,81 as follows: This strategy aims on minimising the daily feed-in energy and thus maximising the self-sufficiency and the profit.…”

“…A previous study showed that CES have the potential to lower the levelised costs of electricity considerably compared to single households using residential photovoltaic storage systems (RES) (eg, 66 % reduction for a 60‐household community in the United Kingdom). Besides the economy of scale of CES, other advantages over residential storage solutions are: professional management, serving as catalyst for the engagement of citizens, and benefits for the distribution grid . Therefore, several studies examine CES as a potential alternative for residential photovoltaic (PV) storage systems in Germany .…”

“…Besides the economy of scale of CES, other advantages over residential storage solutions are: professional management, serving as catalyst for the engagement of citizens, and benefits for the distribution grid. 14 Therefore, several studies examine CES as a potential alternative for residential photovoltaic (PV) storage systems in Germany. [7][8][9] Nonetheless, CES projects are rare in Germany; as in this country, the regulatory framework and reimbursement scheme is not favourable.…”

Characterization of Storage Sizing for an Off-Grid House in the US and the Netherlands

“…However, the technology is constrained by weather conditions that influence energy generation. Due to this variation of energy production, energy-storage technologies (e.g., batteries) are an option worth considering for providing energy at times when it is needed but not supplied by renewable energy [1].…”