A water pumping system used for lifting liquids in vertical or near vertical conduits or pipes to a higher elevation at a reduced energy cost. Also, the water pumping system can be used to circulate water between upper and lower elevations to generate hydropower energy at a lower energy cost. The water pumping system includes a water pump, air blowers, an air supply chamber, a lift conduit, a return conduit, a flotation device separation chamber, a plurality of floatation devices, one or more flotation device pushers, a dehydration unit, and two water storage tanks. The lift conduit and return conduit creating a continuous loop in which the flotation devices can circulate and act as a piston in the lifting conduit to elevate the water to higher elevations with reduced energy. The floatation devices include spacer rings and spacer rods. The floatation devices are inserted inside the lift conduit and the return conduit.

An electromagnetic turbine system includes a circulation system for recirculating fluid that drives turbine impellers for electromagnetic turbine modules. The circulation system includes a fluid separator module which separates gas from liquid and circulates the liquid back to a pressure chamber. The liquid in the pressure chamber is propel by compressed gas. Multiple pressure chambers may be controlled to release pressurized fluid to drive their respective shafts on a staggered timing sequence. The turbine modules may be levitated from a supporting surface to reduce friction.

A supercritical CO2 turbo-generator system includes multiple turbine generator units, a direct current bus, a plurality of active rectifiers, and a voltage controller. Each turbine generator unit includes a turbine with a supercritical CO2 input and a supercritical CO2 output, a generator with an electrical input and power output, a shaft connecting the turbine and generator, and a speed sensor for sensing shaft speed. The turbine generator units are connected in a cascading series with the input of a first turbine generator unit connected to a heated supercritical CO2 source and the input of each subsequent turbine generator unit is connected to the output of a prior turbine generator unit. The voltage controller monitors the speed sensor of the turbine generator units and varies the load on each generator to control shaft speed. Each active rectifier converts the power output of a generator to direct current, and the power from multiple active rectifiers is combined by the direct current bus.

An apparatus for generating energy through fluid dynamics includes a fluid reservoir, an energy extractor for extracting flow energy, a back-pressure control channel for circulating the fluid, and a pressure ejector for returning fluid to the fluid reservoir. The back-pressure control channel includes a fan-like device to generate a low-pressure region and draws fluid through the energy extractor. The energy extractor includes an energy extraction rotor to convert flow energy to rotation energy and may include a nozzle to alter flow characteristics of the fluid. The apparatus for generating energy may also include a settlement chamber to reduce flow disturbances.

An electromagnetic turbine system includes a circulation system for recirculating fluid that drives turbine impellers for electromagnetic turbine modules. The circulation system includes a fluid separator module which separates gas from liquid and circulates the liquid back to a pressure chamber. The liquid in the pressure chamber is propel by compressed gas. Multiple pressure chambers may be controlled to release pressurized fluid to drive their respective shafts on a staggered timing sequence. The turbine modules may be levitated from a supporting surface to reduce friction.

A pumped hydro energy storage system and method are disclosed. The system employs a high-density fluid, such as a slurry, to improve power output. In some cases, the fluid is a binary fluid system, with a high-density fluid and a lower-density fluid, such as water. The lower-density fluid flows through the turbine unit of the system, avoiding the need to modify the system to handle the high-density fluid, while achieving improved power output. The system can be configured with one atmospheric reservoir for a higher-density fluid and another one for a lighter-density fluid. Each of them is connected to a pressurized cavity which is filled with the higher-density or lighter-density fluid. The atmospheric tanks may be at the same elevation, or the tank with high density fluid might be higher for increased energy output. For example, the system may be placed on a topographical elevation.

A system including a pump, a boiler coupled to the pump, a turbine coupled to the boiler, a two-phase expander coupled to the turbine, and a condenser coupled to the two-phase expander and the pump.

Disclosed techniques include energy storage and buffering using multiple pressure containers. Liquid and gas are pumped into a subterranean container. The liquid and gas are pressurized in the subterranean container. A pump is coupled to the subterranean container to accomplish the pressurizing of the subterranean container. The pump and the subterranean container are coupled to an above-ground pressure vessel. The above-ground pressure vessel is pressurized using the pump. The above-ground pressure vessel receives excess flow from the pump beyond the flow provided to the subterranean container. The above-ground pressure vessel provides buffering for pressure flowing into or out of the subterranean container. The gas includes air and the liquid includes water. Pressure is extracted from the first subterranean container to drive a turbine. The pressure from the above-ground pressure vessel supplements pressure from the subterranean container to drive the turbine at a substantially constant rate.

A multiphase fluid pressurized hydroelectric power generation system is disclosed. The system comprises a combination of fluids in the liquid and gas phase in contact with each other, a plurality of water reservoirs where at least one is a closeable water reservoir comprising a closeable volume i.e. a confined space where all fluid flow in and out is controlled, and a source of pressurized fluid arranged for supplying pressurized fluid to the at least one closeable water reservoir. A corresponding method is also disclosed.

The invention relates to a device for thermoelectric storage or energy conversion, reducing the complexity, the thermodynamic irreversibilities and the costs of previous solutions.

The device consists of main pressurized tanks (1THERMO) (1TRANSIT), containing the hydraulic fluid (3), the propellant fluid (2), liquid communications (7), equipped with hydroelectric conversion assemblies for pumping (6) or turbining (5) and including heat exchange systems (8COND) (8EVAP).

The device may include mobile physical separations (11) between fluids, hot (15), or cold (16) thermal reserves, secondary tanks (13) equipped with pipes (14).

The device is intended for energy storage, in particular intermittent renewable energies, economical production of Cold and Hot, and net electricity generation exploiting weak thermal sources.