How Energy Storage Systems Can Help Manage Power Surges

Electrical infrastructure and utility companies have an essential resource at their fingertips — energy storage systems (ESSs). An ESS, usually a battery energy storage system (BESS), boosts grid stability and improves the quality of life for citizens everywhere. How do they do this, and when have there been instances of successful power surge resilience?

Peak Shaving

Peak shaving, also called load shedding, occurs when the ESS distributes stored electricity it gains during low-demand hours and releases it during peak use. Peak shaving gives businesses another resource to tap into for more power when there is little of it, reducing consumption on equipment that draws a lot of energy.

Utility companies regulate prices more effectively with an ESS’s help because they can scale down operations by depending on external assets. Power companies observe how healthy and full the lithium-ion-battery-operated storage is with resources like software and sensors for monitoring.

Frequency Regulation

Frequency regulation describes an equipment’s ability to handle usage fluctuations. ESSs alleviate burdens from providers, and erratic supply and demand have less of an impact on availability than they did without storage. Many industrial BESSs leverage built-in algorithms, which let the machinery learn the public’s usage patterns over time. The data makes it more adaptable and responsive because it anticipates quick changes in its area.

The Hornsdale Power Reserve in Australia is an example of how energy storage stabilized a grid under pressure that could cause undue power surges. The BESSs added 2,000 megawatts to the grid’s inertia, which means the generators keeping the lights on remain spinning. The region was previously at an inertia deficit, so combining renewable energy and BESSs improved resilience in southern Australia.

Voltage Support

Excessive voltage would cause any electrical equipment to surge. ESSs prevent this from happening, even if the equipment receives a monumental influx of energy. Many ESSs have inverters, which manage this well. Technologies like solar panels or induction heaters produce alternating or direct currents, and inverters convert different ones to the right type for energy storage.

When there’s a mismatch, voltage issues might happen. Energy storage technicians gauge the system’s ability to handle spikes with surge testing. Typically, a pulse’s current peaks in as little as 8 microseconds, which shows how fickle surge power is.

Load Leveling

Load leveling, or load shifting, is similar to peak shaving because it manages energy distribution. Instead of adding a new power source into the mix, load leveling tries to flatten the spike as much as possible.

The technique achieves this by using machines that require a lot of electricity during off-peak times and low-intensity equipment at peak. ESSs harness as much energy as they can amid low demand to easily shoulder the burdens of the busiest hours without causing a surge.

At its core, load leveling is when utility companies schedule energy distributors to a shift that makes sense for how much they can endure. Researchers are discovering advanced energy storage applications to level loads on boats to charge and discharge components quickly. Energy storage can do this without adversely affecting the vessel, such as causing surges or reducing the life cycle of stressed equipment.

Black Start Capability

The grid requires tons of manual and electrical support to come back from a blackout. ESSs could boost its resilience by having built-in black start capability, which is how fast the system can recover after a disruptive surge.

Utility companies want to pull from external sources because the ESSs can operate independently. Areas recovering or prone to natural disasters like tornadoes and hurricanes should have ESSs already to enhance emergency response and recovery.

All the Power Without the Surges

Every community could benefit from having ESSs. Temperatures and weather events are becoming more extreme, and defending the grid against these pressures is critical for keeping vital businesses open, such as emergency services and data centers. Private and public organizations must work together to make ESSs more spread out to withstand surges, keeping humans powered and connected, no matter the conditions.