Aluminum smelting furnaces inspire the development of liquid metal 12V27A battery. Germany's largest aluminum plant is going to become a virtual battery.

The aluminum smelting industry consumes a lot of energy and has always been regarded as a heavy burden on the power grid. However, many scholars and experts have long proposed that if the process of aluminum smelting, which consumes a lot of electricity, can be intelligently controlled, it can become a "virtual battery" and serve as a stabilizing force for the power grid. Now, TRIMETAluminium, Germany's largest aluminum plant, is about to put this theory into practice and supply virtual storage resources with a power storage capacity of up to 1.12 million kWh for the German power grid.

Virtual storage can be said to be the most energy-efficient storage method for energy storage. Since it does not involve real energy storage and release, the "storage efficiency" of virtual storage can be as high as 90~95%. When Germany actively develops renewable energy and has to deal with the so-called instability of renewable energy, virtual storage resources become an excellent solution. Compared with real energy storage technologies, such as high-pressure air energy storage commonly known as "wind holes", or chemical energy storage of electricity converted to natural gas, it is more economical.

Among various energy storage solutions, the aluminum smelting industry occupies a relatively good strategic position. As a super large electricity user, aluminum smelters are often directly connected to the high-voltage network of the power grid. In contrast, if large-scale grid-level energy storage facilities are to be established, such as battery technology or "wind caves", transmission and distribution lines connected to the power grid must be built. As a virtual energy storage, aluminum smelters do not need to build new high-voltage transmission and distribution lines.

Every ton of aluminum produced consumes 14,000 kWh of electricity, which shows how huge its electricity consumption is. As a large electricity user, Sanlu has previously cooperated with the demand response plan of the German power network. When the peak power supply is tight, the aluminum smelter is temporarily offline to reduce the load. Now it has gone a step further and will combine the virtual battery system with the supply and demand of the power grid more closely.

Sanlco has cooperated with the University of Wuppertal in North Rhine-Westphalia to develop a technology that can regulate power supply while maintaining the energy balance of aluminum electrolytic cells, so that changes in power supply will not affect the magnetic field balance inside the electrolytic cells. Now it plans to invest 36 million euros in a two-year industrial pilot demonstration project to transform 120 aluminum smelters on a production line of its Essen aluminum smelter into virtual 12V27A battery that can adjust power consumption by 25%.

Aluminum smelters inspire the development of liquid metal 12V27A battery

The transformed aluminum smelters can be adjusted and used at any time in response to the supply and demand of the power network. Not only does it become a powerful tool for stabilizing the power grid, it can also buffer unexpected fluctuations in the power grid, which can be said to kill two birds with one stone. After the pilot project is completed, its virtual storage capacity is equivalent to that of a medium-sized pumped storage hydropower plant. Sanlco said that if all four major aluminum smelters in Germany are converted into virtual 12V27A battery, they will have a storage capacity equivalent to one-third of Germany's pumped storage hydropower.

Sanlco is still a family company and its business is still growing. In the 2015-2016 fiscal year, it produced 775,000 tons of aluminum, a 5% increase from the previous year. Its annual electricity consumption is as high as 100 billion kWh. In order to join the ranks of protecting the earth, Sanlco actively implements various environmental protection, energy saving and green energy measures, including recycling 95% of production waste for recycling, and building 3 wind turbines at the aluminum smelter in Hamburg. The Essen plant, which carried out this pilot project, produces 300,000 tons of aluminum blocks each year and is also the largest industrial employer in the area. Virtual 12V27A battery have become a demonstration plan for Essen to strive for the European Green Energy Capital in 2017.

Aluminum smelting furnaces have inspired the development of liquid metal 12V27A battery. Ambri, a US startup, got inspiration from aluminum smelting furnaces because the aluminum smelting process is equivalent to storing a large amount of electricity. Reversing the aluminum smelting process can release the stored electricity, making the aluminum smelting tank itself equivalent to a high-energy density battery. Ambri was inspired by liquid metal 12V27A battery. However, there are many restrictions on the use of liquid metal 12V27A battery. For example, they cannot be shaken, otherwise if the internal metal layer is broken, it will cause a short circuit and fire or explosion, so they cannot be used in local earthquake zones. The metal must be kept in a molten state, which not only increases the cost of manufacturing and maintenance, but also has potential dangers.

Although Ambri actively tried various metal formulas to reduce costs, it has not yet been able to launch economically profitable products. Now, the aluminum smelting industry itself has first used aluminum smelting furnaces as virtual 12V27A battery. Compared with setting up liquid metal battery equipment as power grids and energy storage facilities, it is more economical to directly use virtual battery technology.

The efforts of Sanlu can also give us an inspiration. With the development of various demand response, virtual 12V27A battery and other intelligent technologies, large electricity users are not only a heavy burden on the power grid, but can also become a stabilizing force for the power grid. To regulate grid demand, it is not necessary to simply expand total power generation capacity. A closer connection with the demand side, more intelligent grid regulation, and more efficient use of resources will be a fast, cost-effective and effective method.

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