Underground pumped storage hydropower (UPSH) and its interaction with the saturated subsurface medium: effects of the water exchanges on the environment and the plant efficiency

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Estanislao Pujades
Keyword(s):  
Alternative Energy ◽  
Storage System ◽  
Energy Storage System ◽  
Abandoned Mines ◽  
Open Pit ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Hydropower Plants ◽  
Underground Reservoir ◽  
Pumped Storage ◽  
Plant Efficiency

<p>Underground pumped storage hydropower (UPSH) is an alternative energy storage system (ESS) for flat regions, where conventional pumped storage hydropower plants cannot be constructed due to topographical limitations. UPSH plants consist in two reservoirs, the upper one is located at the surface or possibly underground (but at shallow depth) while the lower one is underground. Although the underground reservoir can be drilled, the use of abandoned mines (deep or open pit mines) as underground reservoir is a more efficient alternative that is also beneficial for local communities after the cessation of mining activities. Given that mines are rarely waterproofed, water exchanges between UPSH plants and the underground medium are expected. Water exchanges may have negative consequences for the environment, but also for the feasibility of UPSH plants. The impacts on the environment and the plant efficiency may have hydraulic (changes of the natural piezometric head distribution, effects in the hydraulic head difference between the two reservoirs, etc.) or hydrochemical nature (dissolution and/or precipitation of minerals in the aquifer and in the reservoirs, corrosion of facilities, modification of pH, etc.). At this stage, it is required a sound understanding of all the impacts produced by the water exchanges and evaluate under which circumstances they are mitigated. This assessment will allow ascertaining criteria for the selection of the best places to construct future UPSH plants.</p>

An overview about the interaction between the underground pumped storage hydropower (UPSH) and the saturated subsurface medium: effects of the water exchanges on the environment and the plant efficiency

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Estanislao Pujades
Keyword(s):  
Alternative Energy ◽  
Storage System ◽  
Energy Storage System ◽  
Abandoned Mines ◽  
Open Pit ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Hydropower Plants ◽  
Underground Reservoir ◽  
Pumped Storage ◽  
Plant Efficiency

<p>Underground pumped storage hydropower (UPSH) is an alternative energy storage system (ESS) for flat regions, where conventional pumped storage hydropower plants cannot be constructed due to topographical limitations. UPSH plants consist in two reservoirs, the upper one is located at the surface or possibly underground (but at shallow depth) while the lower one is underground. Although the underground reservoir can be drilled, the use of abandoned mines (deep or open pit mines) as underground reservoir is a more efficient alternative that is also beneficial for local communities after the cessation of mining activities. Given that mines are rarely waterproofed, water exchanges between UPSH plants and the underground medium are expected. Water exchanges may have negative consequences for the environment, but also for the feasibility of UPSH plants. The impacts on the environment and the plant efficiency may have hydraulic (changes of the natural piezometric head distribution, effects in the hydraulic head difference between the two reservoirs, etc.) or hydrochemical nature (dissolution and/or precipitation of minerals in the aquifer and in the reservoirs, corrosion of facilities, modification of pH, etc.). At this stage, it is required a sound understanding of all the impacts produced by the water exchanges and evaluate under which circumstances they are mitigated. This assessment will allow ascertaining criteria for the selection of the best places to construct future UPSH plants.</p>

scholarly journals Underground Pumped Storage Hydropower plants using open pit mines: how groundwater exchanges influence the efficiency?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Estanislao Pujades
Keyword(s):  
Porous Medium ◽  
Numerical Study ◽  
Open Pit Mine ◽  
Open Pit ◽  
Electricity Production ◽  
Hydropower Plants ◽  
Underground Reservoir ◽  
Potential Alternative ◽  
Pumped Storage ◽  
Different Characteristics

Underground Pumped Storage Hydropower (UPSH) is a potential alternative to manage electricity production in flat regions. UPSH plants will interact with the surrounding porous medium through exchanges of groundwater. These exchanges may impact the surrounding aquifers, but they may also influence the efficiency of the pumps and turbines because affecting the head difference between the reservoirs. Despite the relevance for an accurate efficiency assessment, the influence of the groundwater exchanges has not been previously addressed.A numerical study of a synthetic case is presented to highlight the importance of considering the groundwater exchanges with the surrounding porous medium. The general methodology is designed in order to be further applied in the decision making of future UPSH plants introducing each case specific complexity. The underground reservoir of a hypothetical UPSH plant, which consists in an open pit mine, is considered and modelled together with the surrounding porous medium. Several scenarios with different characteristics are simulated and their results are compared in terms of (1) head difference between the upper and lower reservoirs and (2) efficiency by considering the theoretical performance curves of a pump and a turbine. The results show that the efficiency is improved when the groundwater exchanges increase. Thus, the highest efficiencies will be reached when (1) the underground reservoir is located in a transmissive porous medium and (2) the walls of the open pit mine do not constrain the groundwater exchanges (they are not waterproofed). However, a compromise must be found because the characteristics that increase the efficiency also increase the environmental impacts. Meaningful and reliable results are computed in relation to the characteristics of the intermittent and expected stops of UPSH plants. The frequency of pumping and injection must be considered to properly configure the pumps and turbines of future UPSH plants. If not, pumps and turbines could operate far from their best efficiency conditions.

scholarly journals Underground Pumped-Storage Hydropower (UPSH) at the Martelange Mine (Belgium): Underground Reservoir Hydraulics

Energies ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (14) ◽  
pp. 3512 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vasileios Kitsikoudis ◽  
Pierre Archambeau ◽  
Benjamin Dewals ◽  
Estanislao Pujades ◽  
Philippe Orban ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Level ◽  
Renewable Energy Sources ◽  
Storage System ◽  
Cross Sectional Area ◽  
Abandoned Mines ◽  
Sectional Area ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Underground Reservoir ◽  
Total Cross Sectional Area ◽  
Pumped Storage

The intermittent nature of most renewable energy sources requires their coupling with an energy storage system, with pumped storage hydropower (PSH) being one popular option. However, PSH cannot always be constructed due to topographic, environmental, and societal constraints, among others. Underground pumped storage hydropower (UPSH) has recently gained popularity as a viable alternative and may utilize abandoned mines for the construction of the lower reservoir in the underground. Such underground mines may have complex geometries and the injection/pumping of large volumes of water with high discharge could lead to uneven water level distribution over the underground reservoir subparts. This can temporarily influence the head difference between the upper and lower reservoirs of the UPSH, thus affecting the efficiency of the plant or inducing structural stability problems. The present study considers an abandoned slate mine in Martelange in Southeast Belgium as the lower, underground, reservoir of an UPSH plant and analyzes its hydraulic behavior. The abandoned slate mine consists of nine large chambers with a total volume of about 550,000 m3, whereas the maximum pumping and turbining discharges are 22.2 m3/s. The chambers have different size and they are interconnected with small galleries with limited discharge capacity that may hinder the flow exchange between adjacent chambers. The objective of this study is to quantify the effect of the connecting galleries cross-section and the chambers adequate aeration on the water level variations in the underground reservoir, considering a possible operation scenario build upon current electricity prices and using an original hydraulic modelling approach. The results highlight the importance of adequate ventilation of the chambers in order to reach the same equilibrium water level across all communicating chambers. For fully aerated chambers, the connecting galleries should have a total cross-sectional area of at least 15 m2 to allow water flow through them without significant restrictions and maintain similar water level at all times. Partially aerated chambers do not attain the same water level because of the entrapped air; however, the maximum water level differences between adjacent chambers remain relatively invariant when the total cross-sectional area of the connecting galleries is greater than 8 m2. The variation of hydraulic roughness of the connecting galleries affects the water exchange through small connecting galleries but is not very influential on water moving through galleries with large cross-sections.

scholarly journals An Optimized Methodology for a Hybrid Photo-Voltaic and Energy Storage System Connected to a Low-Voltage Grid

Electronics ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 176 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarvar Hussain Nengroo ◽  
Muhammad Umair Ali ◽  
Amad Zafar ◽  
Sadam Hussain ◽  
Tahir Murtaza ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cost Function ◽  
Alternative Energy ◽  
Low Voltage ◽  
Renewable Energy Sources ◽  
Storage System ◽  
Energy Storage System ◽  
Energy Sources ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Alternative Energy Sources ◽  
Energy Needs

The growing human population and the increasing energy needs have produced a serious energy crisis, which has stimulated researchers to look for alternative energy sources. The diffusion of small-scale renewable distributed generations (DG) with micro-grids can be a promising solution to meet the environmental obligations. The uncertainty and sporadic nature of renewable energy sources (RES) is the main obstacle to their use as autonomous energy sources. In order to overcome this, a storage system is required. This paper proposes an optimized strategy for a hybrid photovoltaic (PV) and battery storage system (BSS) connected to a low-voltage grid. In this study, a cost function is formulated to minimize the net cost of electricity purchased from the grid. The charging and discharging of the battery are operated optimally to minimize the defined cost function. Half-hourly electricity consumer load data and solar irradiance data collected from the United Kingdom (UK) for a whole year are utilized in the proposed methodology. Five cases are discussed for a comparative cost analysis of the electricity imported and exported. The proposed scheme provides a techno-economic analysis of the combination of a BSS with a low-voltage grid, benefitting from the feed-in tariff (FIT) scheme.

scholarly journals Analysis of a Microgrid under Transient Conditions Using Voltage and Frequency Controller

2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 ◽  
pp. 1-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
Monika Jain ◽  
Sushma Gupta ◽  
Deepika Masand ◽  
Gayatri Agnihotri
Keyword(s):  
Neutral Current ◽  
Storage System ◽  
Energy Storage System ◽  
Current Control ◽  
Transient Conditions ◽  
Harmonic Elimination ◽  
Hydropower Plants ◽  
Micro Grid ◽  
Load Leveling ◽  
Battery Energy

This paper presents an investigation of voltage-and-frequency-(VF-) based battery energy storage system (BESS) controller used in micro grid for analyzing the optimum capability of plant. Microgrid is formed by using three hydropower plants feeding three-phase four-wire load. The proposed controller is used for load balancing, harmonic elimination, load leveling, and neutral current compensation. The proposed BESS controller permits the selection of an optimum voltage level of battery and allows independent current control of each phase. The main emphasis is given on maintaining constant voltage and frequency within the micro grid during transient conditions. Micro grid with power plant and its controller is modeled in MATLAB/Simulink using Power System Blockset (PSB) toolboxes.

scholarly journals Numerical study of the Martelange mine to be used as underground reservoir for constructing an Underground Pumped Storage Hydropower plant

2018 ◽  
Vol 45 ◽  
pp. 51-56 ◽  
Author(s):  
Estanislao Pujades ◽  
Philippe Orban ◽  
Pierre Archambeau ◽  
Sebastien Erpicum ◽  
Alain Dassargues
Keyword(s):  
Numerical Study ◽  
Surrounding Medium ◽  
High Capacity ◽  
Abandoned Mines ◽  
Hydropower Plant ◽  
Underground Reservoir ◽  
Pumped Storage ◽  
Surface Reservoir ◽  
Synthetic Models

Abstract. Underground Pumped Storage Hydropower (UPSH) using abandoned mines has been considered as a potential high capacity Energy Storage Systems. In UPSH plants, the excess of electricity is stored in the form of potential energy by pumping water from an underground reservoir (abandoned mine in this paper) to a surface reservoir, while electricity is produced (when the demand increases) discharging water from the surface into the underground reservoir. The main concerns may arise from the water exchanges occurring between the underground reservoir and the surrounding medium, which are relevant in terms of environmental impact and UPSH efficiency. Although the role of the water exchanges has been previously addressed, most studies are based on synthetic models. This work focuses on a real abandoned slate mine located in Martelange (Belgium). The effects of different rehabilitation works to prepare the mine as an underground reservoir are assessed in terms of groundwater exchanges and their associated consequences.

scholarly journals Small-Signal Analysis of Autonomous Hybrid Distributed Generation Systems in Presence of Ultracapacitor and Tie-Line Operation

2010 ◽  
Vol 61 (4) ◽  
pp. 205-214 ◽  
Author(s):  
Prakash Ray ◽  
Soumya Mohanty ◽  
Nand Kishor
Keyword(s):  
Energy Storage ◽  
Hybrid Systems ◽  
Distributed Generation ◽  
Signal Analysis ◽  
Alternative Energy ◽  
Storage System ◽  
Energy Storage System ◽  
Small Signal ◽  
Small Signal Analysis ◽  
Tie Line

Small-Signal Analysis of Autonomous Hybrid Distributed Generation Systems in Presence of Ultracapacitor and Tie-Line OperationThis paper presents small-signal analysis of isolated as well as interconnected autonomous hybrid distributed generation system for sudden variation in load demand, wind speed and solar radiation. The hybrid systems comprise of different renewable energy resources such as wind, photovoltaic (PV) fuel cell (FC) and diesel engine generator (DEG) along with the energy storage devices such as flywheel energy storage system (FESS) and battery energy storage system (BESS). Further ultracapacitors (UC) as an alternative energy storage element and interconnection of hybrid systems through tie-line is incorporated into the system for improved performance. A comparative assessment of deviation of frequency profile for different hybrid systems in the presence of different storage system combinations is carried out graphically as well as in terms of the performance index (PI),ieintegral square error (ISE). Both qualitative and quantitative analysis reflects the improvements of the deviation in frequency profiles in the presence of the ultracapacitors (UC) as compared to other energy storage elements.

Energy-Based Modeling of Alternative Energy Storage Systems for Hybrid Vehicles

2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. McDonough ◽  
K. Jebakumar ◽  
F. Chiara ◽  
M. Canova ◽  
K. Koprubasi
Keyword(s):  
Energy Storage ◽  
Fuel Economy ◽  
Alternative Energy ◽  
Storage Systems ◽  
Storage System ◽  
Energy Storage System ◽  
Hybrid Vehicles ◽  
Energy Storage Systems ◽  
Fuel Economy Improvement

Alternative energy storage systems (AESS) are receiving considerable interest today for low-cost mild-hybrid vehicles where the electrical system is substituted with mechanical or hydraulic energy storage. As these technologies are being explored, simulation tools become helpful to predict the behavior of the energy storage system during vehicle use, as well as to conduct comparative studies evaluating the energy and power density, fuel economy improvement, system weight and costs. This paper presents an energy-based modeling approach to characterize the low-frequency dynamic behavior of alternative energy storage systems for hybrid vehicle applications, with the ability to predict the energy flows and sources of energy loss during driving operations. The model aims at evaluating the potential, in terms of efficiency and fuel economy improvement, offered by non-electrified energy storage systems, such as mechanical (flywheels) or hydraulic (accumulators). The modeling tool developed is able to provide a characterization of the performance of each of the two systems starting from a characterization of the components energy conversion behavior. The paper includes a simulation study where the performance of a mechanical and hydraulic energy storage system are compared on a forward-oriented hybrid vehicle simulator, with the objective of characterizing and comparing the energy recuperation process and the energy efficiency of the two systems.

Design and Analysis of a New-Type Sand Energy Storage System for Wind Power Stations

2012 ◽  
Vol 487 ◽  
pp. 825-829
Author(s):  
Han Han Sun ◽  
Yun Miao
Keyword(s):  
Energy Storage ◽  
Wind Power ◽  
Model Experiment ◽  
Storage System ◽  
Energy Storage System ◽  
Storage Medium ◽  
Power Stations ◽  
New Type ◽  
Working Principle ◽  
Pumped Storage

Pumped storage is one of the optimum and practical methods acting as an energy storage plan for conventional wind power stations. However, in northwestern China where more than 50% of China's total available wind energy exists, water resources are always too scarce to support any energy storage systems. To solve this contradiction, this paper puts forward a new-type storage plan for wind power stations, namely the Sand Energy Storage System(SESS). This plan needs masses of sand or gravel as an energy storage medium and simulates the working principle of pumped storage, yet certain devices are specially designed. Additionally, this paper demonstrates further exploration of the SESS by means of a model experiment, and ensuing analysis is made according to actual situations.

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