Wanted: super batteries – mere mortals need not apply

Solar and wind power are fantastic energy alternatives to non-renewable fossil fuels. But as everyone knows, they only work when the sun is shining or the wind is blowing. So far, wind and solar count for only 3 percent of the energy needs in the United States. But with plans to increase wind power supplies to 25 percent by 2025, a reliable and stable back-up is essential.

Enter Plan B. Plan Battery, that is.

A small wind farm in Luverne, Minnesota is leading the charge with the nation’s first wind-to-battery setup. It uses the wind to charge batteries that in turn release the wind power onto the grid.

These aren’t your typical double-A batteries. They are super-batteries the size a double-decker bus, complete with mask, cape and superpowers. Though they can’t leap tall buildings in a single bound, they certainly can power them.

A Super Battery can soak up 7.2 megawatt hours of power with help from his trusty sidekicks: Wind Turbines. The superhero team belongs to MinWind, a Minnesota wind-power developer.

Overseeing the entire super battery project is Xcel Energy, a Minneapolis-based utility, which bought the batteries from NGK Insulators, a Japanese battery supplier. The reason? A year ago, their wind capacity was at 2,700 megawatts compared with about 3,000 megawatts today, an amount it hopes to double by 2020.

Research is being done to see how much power the sodium-sulfur battery system can absorb, how quickly, at what cost – and then deliver it to the grid.

It’s a bird, it’s a plane. No – it’s Super-battery!

Image: XCel Energy