Thermal energy storage

Thermal energy storage (TES) has been widely used in the commercial sector to shift HVAC cooling load out of the peak demand period of the day. A facility can take advantage of off-peak electricity prices and reduce any charges based on peak demand by charging a chilled water or ice-based TES system overnight. The addition of TES can also increase cooling capacity without installing more or larger chillers. There are three main mechanisms through which cool TES can contribute to site energy savings. The bottom line energy consumption of a particular site may or may not be improved with the addition of cool TES, depending on configuration and operational parameters. Energy savings at the electricity source are independent of specific energy savings at the use site. Electricity deregulation in many areas has areas meant the establishment of explicit markets for delivered and reserved energy on a variety of timescales, with cool TES emerging as a valuable resource in these markets with models emerging to realize that value.