Evaluating Powerful Batteries for Modular Electric Grid Energy Storage

Sandia has begun lab-based characterization of TransPower’s GridSaver, the largest grid energy storage (ES) system analyzed at Sandia’s Energy Storage Test Pad. Project lead David Rosewater said that Sandia will evaluate the 1 MW lithium-ion grid ES system for capacity, power, safety, and reliability and also investigate the system’s frequency regulation, which grid operators need to manage the moment-to-moment differences between electrical supply and demand.

“Independent evaluations provide valuable feedback for industry efforts to standardize metrics for characterizing and reporting reliability, safety, and performance. Companies need the standards to develop large procurement goals for grid ES because they must be able to compare performance and cost,” said Rosewater.

The data generated from characterizing a large system like GridSaver will improve operational models; identify technology or research gaps; and provide feedback to manufacturers to improve system performance, reliability, and safety. Additional specific tests will help validate Sandia’s grid ES characterization protocols, which have been developed jointly by industry and the national labs, as prestandards to measure and express ES system performance.

“Developing an ES system involves the complex integration of many components beyond just the battery, including sophisticated power electronics and controls—often communications. Sandia is assessing the entire system,” said Imre Gyuk, ES program manager in the Department of Energy’s Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability (OE).

“Third-party evaluation of large systems like TransPower’s GridSaver can help break down the barriers to grid ES proliferation,” Rosewater said. GridSaver was commissioned by the California Energy Commission’s Public Interest Energy Research (PIER) electric program. Sandia’s work is funded by DOE OE.

Read the Sandia news release.