A method for producing electrical energy in a combined energy generation plant which comprises an air treatment unit and a power station unit is proposed. In a first operating mode, air is liquefied to form an air liquefaction product and, in a second operating mode, an air liquefaction product is converted into a gaseous or supercritical state, in which said product is introduced into the power station unit and is used for producing electrical energy. In a third operating mode, air is condensed in the air treatment unit and used in the power station unit directly for producing electrical energy. It is envisaged that, in the first operating mode, the air is cooled to several temperature levels by two liquid coolants and the air liquefaction product is correspondingly heated. In addition, in the first operating mode, the air is condensed stepwise over several pressure levels.

A heat exchanger 1 comprises a shell 2 which has in an interior thereof a heat exchange chamber 20 in which a gas to be cooled or an intermediate medium is filled, and performs heat exchange directly or indirectly between liquid hydrogen and the gas to be cooled, in the interior of the heat exchange chamber 20; a tray 23 which is provided in the interior of the heat exchange chamber 20 and receives a liquefied gas and a deposited substance F which are generated by the heat exchange in the interior of the heat exchange chamber 20; and a liquid discharge mechanism (flashboard 22, drain port 25, and drain pipe 26) which discharges the liquefied gas from the tray 23 in a state in which the deposited substance F is left in the tray 23.

The present invention relates to a gas storage apparatus and method, and more specifically to liquid air energy storage and its use to facilitate both Demand Side Reduction (DSR) and the use of reduced-cost electricity by industrial compressed-air users. A related electricity generating apparatus and method is also disclosed. The apparatus and method use a first sensible heat coolth store and second latent heat coolth store to first reduce the gas in temperature and then to change it into a liquid phase. Coolth top up devices are also disclosed.

Cryogenic energy storage systems, and particularly methods for capturing cold energy and re-using that captured cold energy, are disclosed. The systems allow cold thermal energy from the power recovery process of a cryogenic energy storage system to be captured effectively, to be stored, and to be effectively utilised. The captured cold energy could be reused in any co-located process, for example to enhance the efficiency of production of the cryogen, to enhance the efficiency of production of liquid natural gas, and/or to provide refrigeration. The systems are such that the cold energy can be stored at very low pressures, cold energy can be recovered from various components of the system, and/or cold energy can be stored in more than one thermal store.

A method of liquid air energy storage is provided. This method includes liquefying and storing air to form a stored liquid air during a first period of time; during a second period of time, introducing a compressed air stream into a cryogenic system, wherein the cryogenic system comprises at least one cold compressor, and at least one heat exchanger. The method includes producing a first exhaust stream and a second exhaust stream. The method also includes vaporizing at least part of the stored liquid air stream in the heat exchanger, thereby producing a first high pressure compressed air stream, then combining the first high pressure compressed air stream, the first exhaust stream and the second exhaust stream to form a combined exhaust stream, heating the combined exhaust stream, then expanding the heated combined exhaust stream in an expansion turbine to produce power.

The present invention relates to a method and system for producing liquefied natural gas (LNG) from a stream of pressurized natural gas which involves a combination of mechanical refrigeration.

Apparatus, systems, and methods store energy by liquefying a gas such as air, for example, and then recover the energy by regasifying the liquid and combusting or otherwise reacting the gas with a fuel to drive a heat engine. The process of liquefying the gas may be powered with electric power from the grid, for example, and the heat engine may be used to generate electricity. Hence, in effect these apparatus, systems, and methods may provide for storing electric power from the grid and then subsequently delivering it back to the grid.

A proposed method provides a highly efficient fueled power output augmentation of the liquid air energy storage (LAES) with zero carbon emissions of its exhaust. It combines the production of liquid air using excessive power from the renewable or/and conventional energy sources and an effective recovery of stored air for production of on-demand power in the fueled supercharged reciprocating internal combustion engine (ICE) and associated expanders. A mutually beneficial integration between the LAES and ICE makes possible to recover the ICE exhaust energy for increase in power produced by the LAES expanders and to use a cold thermal energy of air re-gasified at the LAES facility for cryogenic capture of CO.sub.2 emissions from the ICE exhaust.

An apparatus and a method for cooling and compressing a fluid to produce a low-temperature compressed fluid that can efficiently use the cold of LNG and reduce the energy needed, the apparatus using a Rankine cycle system having a first compression device, a first heat exchanger, an expansion device, a second heat exchanger, and a first flow passageway for guiding the heat transfer medium from the second heat exchanger to the first compression device; and at least one second compression device that is coupled to the expansion device, wherein at the second heat exchanger, a low-temperature LNG and the heat transfer medium undergo heat transfer, wherein at the first heat exchanger, a fed material gas and the heat transfer medium undergo heat transfer to produce a low-temperature fluid from the material gas, and the low-temperature fluid is compressed at the second compression device to produce a low-temperature compressed fluid.

A proposed method for thermally assisted electric energy storage is characterized by a significant increase in round-trip efficiency through a profitable use of waste heat energy streams from the co-located power generation and industrial facilities, combustion of renewable or fossil fuels, or harnessing the renewable energy sources. In the charge operation mode it is achieved by superheating and expansion of recirculating air stream in the liquid air energy storage with self-producing a part of power required for air liquefaction. In the discharge operation mode it is attained through the repeated and efficient use of a stream of discharged air in auxiliary power production cycle.