An alternative way of using the German closed coal-firing power plats

The German Centre of Aviation and Cosmonautics counducts a study on utilisation of closed coal power plants in Germany. The boiler of a former power plant would be replaced by a molten-salt energy storage tank (Carnot battery), which would encompass the excess of the energy during off-peak hours. The enthusiasts of this idea claim that this solution, if applied, could help to ensure the worplaces for the people from coal sector.

As the main advantage of proposed solution, the relatively low investment costs are indicated, becasue most of the plant's infrastructure would be reused. Moreover, the Carnot batteries are constructed from widely accessible components. In contrast to Li-ion storage tanks, the Carnot batteries are helpful in maintaing the proper frequency in the network, therefore they constitute a necessary complementation of the RES-based power grid. Michael Geyer, PhD from Institute of Engineering and Thermodynamics in Spain said that the pilot, commercial-scale installation is in the phase of preparation. The feasibility study has been already carried out and occurred to be succesful.