ISTC researchers are examining compressed natural gas energy storage (CNGES) as a low-cost alternative for storing renewable energy.
Storing renewable energy for peak demand is critical, but traditional solutions carry major drawbacks. Natural gas peaking plants, which operate only during high-demand hours, leave capital underutilized; battery storage remains expensive, provides power only for short durations, and requires a large supply of rare earth metals.
ISTC researchers propose leveraging existing natural gas pipeline infrastructure to store renewable power. Standard operations already compress natural gas for transport, but the energy used during compression is typically wasted during depressurization. By using excess wind and solar power to compress the gas — and installing expander generators to recover that energy when the gas is depressurized for delivery — ISTC’s CNGES model creates an efficient, low-cost storage solution without expensive new infrastructure or scarce materials.
Abbott Power Plant Demonstration Project
Phase I
ISTC performed a conceptual (Phase I) study at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign’s Abbott Power Plant to integrate natural gas-based energy storage into its operations. The project aimed to demonstrate the technical and economic feasibility of integrating CNGES technology with an existing co-generation fossil fuel power plant and to establish a path to maturation and commercialization.
A techno-economic analysis of the cost of energy storage at Abbott showed that CNGES requires about 89 percent less capital investment than lithium-ion battery storage to store the same amount of energy. The levelized cost of electricity was about 60 percent lower for CNGES. Calculated capital costs per kilowatt hour of energy are reduced even more when CNGES is scaled up to commercial size. The conceptual study showed that installing CNGES at Abbott could be well integrated and would be a cost-effective way to store renewable energy.
The U.S. Department of Energy, National Energy Technology Laboratory, Office of Fossil Fuels provided funding for the Phase I project (DE-FE 0032018).
Phase II
The research team is seeking potential partners and investors for phases II and III. Phase II will include additional team members from external consulting firms and other potential partners. The researchers will create an engineering, procurement, and construction plan; project timeline; detailed cost estimates; and complete the necessary paperwork to build and test the pilot CNGES in phase III.