We are part of an innovation project consortium investigating and extending the potential of large-scale cryogenic energy storage using renewable energy sources. This stored energy will then be used for cooling, energy use and feed-in to the grid.

At a glance

  • DatesApril 2016 start (four years)
  • SponsorEuropean Commission's Horizon 2020 programme
  • Funded£100,000
  • Partners13 other European academic and commercial organisations

We are one of 14 partner organisations, both academic and commercial, from across Europe involved in the CryoHub project consortium, headed by London Southbank University.

The innovation project is investigating and extending the potential of large-scale cryogenic energy storage (CES) using renewable energy sources, and will be applying the stored energy for cooling, energy use and feed-in to the grid.

CES is a novel method of storing grid electricity. The idea is that off-peak or low-cost electricity is used to liquefy air (by way of a compressor, cooler and then expander), that is then stored in an energy dense cold liquid form. When electricity is required, the cold liquid air is pumped to increase its pressure, super-heated in a heat exchanger using either ambient or low-grade waste heat and then expanded through a turbine generating useful electricity.