Karlsruhe Institute of Technology
Figure 1: Within the framework of KIT’s LIMELISA project, components for large-scale thermal storage systems are tested in a liquid metal circuit. (Photo: Karsten Litfin, KIT)
High-temperature technologies enable electrothermal storage systems for large amounts of energy from renewable sources. Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), the German Aerospace Center (DLR), and the industry partner KSB have now launched the LIMELISA project to develop the necessary basis. Research is funded with EUR 3.8 million by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy.
Every year, wind parks and solar facilities in Germany produce thousands of gigawatt hours of power that cannot be used directly and therefore remain unused. At other times, lacking capacities are compensated by energy from fossil sources. Large-scale electrothermal storage systems may solve this problem and additionally enhance grid stability. The idea is to convert power into heat, to