Transient thermodynamic modeling and economic analysis of an adiabatic compressed air energy storage (A-CAES) based on cascade packed bed thermal energy storage with encapsulated phase change materials

With the penetration of solar and wind plants into the energy markets, power production is becoming more erratic; therefore, a promising energy storage system is required for a reliable grid. Adiabatic compressed air energy storage, as a large-scale energy storage technology, has great promise to mitigate the challenges of managing the variability and intermittency of renewable energy generation. The Thermal Energy Storage subsystem is a key component that improves the efficiency of adiabatic compressed air energy storage, making it a feasible option as a large-scale energy storage system for scalability. In this article, a comprehensive investigation of a novel, efficient, and green adiabatic compressed air energy storage system based on a cascade packed bed thermal energy storage filled with encapsulated phase-change materials is employed, encompassing thermodynamic and economic aspects of the cycle, and transient modeling of the TES tanks. The objective of the proposed concept is to recover the waste heat generated in the compression process as much as possible to improve system performance. In this regard, the influence of the introduced thermal energy storage configuration on the efficiency and exergy destruction of the system is studied and compared with basic designs. The findings show that round trip energy and exergy efficiencies of 61.5% and 68.2% with a payback period is 3.5 years, resulting from the consumption of low-price off-peak electricity for charging and generating power at the peak demand hours.