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Iron-Air Batteries — The Future of Long-Duration Energy Storage — Form Energy — Impact on Other…
- Iron-Air batteries are a new and promising option for long-duration energy storage that could address the challenges created by over-generation of solar energy and the surge of demand on the power grid during night shifts. The risks associated with lithium-ion batteries due to their susceptibility to ‘run-away’ incidents increased the need for alternative technology. In the iron-air battery, an anode of metallic iron and an air-breathing cathode immersed with water-based electrolyte produce electricity when oxygen from the air enters the capsule and oxidizes the iron. Form Energy has raised $1.13B in funding and developed an iron-air battery farm for LDES with a unit the size of a washer and dryer that can store energy up to 100 hours. Each individual unit can theoretically be placed anywhere along the distribution chain. The broader effects of LDES can have implications in sectors like EV and methane pyrolysis.
- Over-generation of solar power has emerged as a pressing issue that has forced potential energy to be forfeited or sections of solar panels to be shut off as it affects the current power grid. The swift ramp-up in demand from low to high demand at night, followed by the surge in demands during the evening put a dangerous stress on the grid. The missing piece in the path to grid stability and decarbonization has always been Long-Duration Energy Storage (LDES) which keeps a reserve of energy for long periods of time.
- Iron-Air batteries could be the solution compared to lithium-ion batteries that are prone to ‘run-away’ incidents which could end up even damaging the electric storage farm. Anode of metallic iron and air-breathing cathode in the iron-air battery produce electricity when oxygen from the air enters the capsule and oxidizes the iron. Each individual unit of the iron-air battery farm can theoretically be placed along the distribution chain, including sources of generation, to each individual home. Each unit can store energy up to 100 hours.
- Form Energy has developed an iron-air battery farm for LDES with a unit that can store energy up to 100 hours, the size of a washer and dryer combo. They can store 1 MW energy at half an acre at the least dense configuration. At high-density configuration, they can store energy up to 3 MW per acre. Tesla’s offering, Megapack, a large-scale Lithium-Ion battery that stores up to 3.9 MWh per unit at its largest offering, has an installed cost of around $415 per kWh.
- Form Energy has raised $1.13B in its latest round and has become an interesting option for LDES. The company has investors such as Bill Gates’ Breakthrough Energy Ventures, Prelude Ventures, MIT’s Engine Ventures, Energy Impact Partners, TPG Rise Climate and more. The company finished its latest factory in West Virginia and is currently running production trials.
- Form Energy has received orders for more than 13 GWh of projects that will come online in 2025 and 2026, ranging from 100 MWh to 8,500 MWh from utility companies across the US. In July 2023, a 10-MW/1,000-MWh iron-air battery system to be built by Form Energy was approved by Minnesota regulators for Xcel Energy’s Minnesota utility, Northern States Power.
- Iron-Air batteries and LDES have implications in sectors like electric vehicles which could become energy storage devices for homes. Methane pyrolysis could help keep the lights on if something takes out solar panels by allowing an easy swap from hydrogen to methane.
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