NHsolution
Thermal Storage
The principles:
Bill Gates is working on developing thermal storage together with a nuclear reactor see Link
In the same way as with the nuclear reactor, which builds up energy in the storage, and a steam system can then convert the heat energy from the storage into electricity, the same principle is used in solar power plants, where the sun's energy is stored in the storage until electricity is needed.
This is Waste-to-energy plant with thermal storage:
A waste-to-energy plant currently provides electricity to the electricity grid. The best waste-to-energy plants can convert waste into 25% electricity together with district heating.
In a supply network with a lot of renewable energy, it is therefore appropriate for waste-to-energy plants to retain electricity production, preferably in the same way as with Bill Gates' nuclear power system, where the structure can retain electricity production by storing the hot energy in the storage, and then provide very high output in periods when electricity is needed in the grid.
The thermal storage as a heat battery for surplus electricity together with a power plant (see Picture).
Thermal Storage with Waste-to-Energy Plants
When thermal storage is integrated with a power plant, surplus renewable electricity can be stored as heat within the plant’s boiler system. This allows the plant to deliver high levels of electricity precisely when shortages occur.
At ARC in Copenhagen, for example, the waste boilers currently supply about 260 MW of thermal power and produce around 60 MW of electricity continuously. By adding a 10,000 MWh thermal storage system, the plant could instead store energy and release up to 240 MW of electricity for 12 hours.
Using surplus renewable electricity to heat the storage beyond the waste boiler’s 440 °C limit—up to 600 °C—increases both storage capacity and efficiency. This raises the electrical conversion efficiency from roughly 25 % to as much as 45 %.
The result is a combined system capable of storing up to 16,000 MWh of thermal energy—enough to generate 300 MW of electricity for 24 hours. This provides a far more effective contribution to grid stability and renewable integration than maintaining a constant 60 MW base load.