You have read here that Your Survival Guy wants you to consider putting some power away in your “pantry,” i.e., some batteries. These could be part of a whole-house system or battery generators, and possibly could be at the microgrid or grid level to smooth spikes in power demand or to keep the lights on during a power generation failure.
But the biggest issue with any of these systems is always cost. Batteries are expensive because they often use materials that are rare or hard to work with. But the science of batteries is rapidly working towards solutions for those problems.
In Part 2 of this series, you read about efforts to use different metal mixes in batteries to lower their costs. Now, the BBC has reported on efforts by researchers at Queen’s University in Belfast to 3D print cheaper versions of “flow” batteries (which use liquids to store energy rather than metal) based on iron, not expensive vanadium. Louise Cullen reports:
A 3D-printed battery developed at Queen’s University Belfast could “make a genuine impact” on the road to net zero, say the researchers behind it.
Flow batteries are seen as key to scaling up renewable energy, allowing it to be stored for when the wind is not blowing and the sun is not shining.
But they are expensive and typically use a metallic element – vanadium – that is only produced in a few places round the world.
Now, scientists at QUB have developed one based on iron, which is much easier to source, and have sent it around the world to help standardise research.
It is hoped it will accelerate the renewable energy revolution, making research more reliable and its findings more scalable.
Action Line: Generators are a great addition to any household, and are often cheaper than batteries, but they also require maintenance, they’re often loud, and they produce exhaust, which doesn’t work in some tight spaces. Batteries are a good alternative for putting some clean and quiet power away for a rainy day. Take the time to see if they might be helpful in your situation. And click here to subscribe to my free monthly Survive & Thrive letter.
Read the entire series here.
