Energy Storage Process and System

Abstract

An energy storage method and system includes a collapsible bladder that is filled with water at depth. The bladder may be lowered to additional depths to increase the pressure experienced within the bladder and to increase the stored energy. In a preferred embodiment, over produced electricity is used to pump water into a bladder. During periods of high electricity demand, pressurized water within the bladder is directed through a conduit to turn turbines of generators and produce electricity. Two large all-thread screws are attached to the bladder and anchored to the seafloor or at or near a bottom of a body of water. Associated threaded mechanisms are connected to the exterior of the bladder such that when the all-thread screws are turned, the bladder is raised and lowered within the water to vary the internal pressure. In this manner, the bladder is lowered or anchored deeper as needed to produce additional pressure. Energy needed to lower the bladder may be recovered during the deflation process or in high excess energy production times where demand is low. The bladder may be used to store fresh water and reused as necessary. Controlled operation of the procedure may be performed through use of PLCs and coupled to sensors and actuators.

Claims

1. An energy storage device comprising a collapsible bladder being arranged beneath a surface of a body of water, said collapsible bladder having a fluid arranged therein, said collapsible bladder being filled with the fluid when electricity rates are low in cost and thereafter released to drive a generator to create electricity when electricity rates rise in cost.

2. A system for storing electricity comprising: a compressible bladder having a fluid arranged therein, said compressible bladder being deposited at a predetermined depth below a surface of a body of water and being filled with the fluid when electricity is being produced at a surplus; a pump connected to said compressible bladder to pump fluid into the compressible bladder via a conduit; a drive for submerging said bladder to the predetermined depth; a generator coupled to the compressible bladder via the conduit to produce electricity by releasing the fluid from within the compressible bladder; and, whereby the fluid within the compressible bladder is released to drive the generator to produce electricity as needed.

3. The system of claim 2 further comprising a diverter valve arranged with a common port connected to the conduit and a first switchable port connected to the pump and a second switchable port connected to the generator.

4. The system of claim 2 further comprising: a voltage source coupled to a pump that pumps fluid into the compressible bladder at an operating depth below the surface of the body of water; a check valve arranged in line between said pump and the compressible bladder and being arranged to allow only fluid to be pumped into the compressible bladder.

5. The system of claim 4 further comprising a second check valve arranged between the compressible bladder and the generator.

6. The system of claim 5 wherein said second check valve is an electrically operated valve.

7. The system of claim 2 wherein the drive for submerging said bladder to depth comprises a motor coupled to a chain drive which twists at least one screw to descend the bladder towards a bottom of the body of water.

8. The system of claim 2 wherein the drive for submerging said bladder to depth comprises a motor driving a synchronized chain drive, said motor comprising a power cord that is connected above the surface of the body of water to a power source.

9. The system of claim 8 wherein said power source is an array of solar cells.

10. The system of claim 8 wherein said power source is a wind turbine.

11. A system for storing electricity comprising: a compressible bladder having a fluid arranged therein, said compressible bladder being fastened to a bottom of a body of water at a predetermined depth below a surface of the body of water and being filled with the fluid when electricity is being produced at a surplus; a pump connected to the compressible bladder to fill the compressible bladder; a first conduit connected between the compressible bladder and the pump and which allows fluid to flow therebetween; a generator coupled to the compressible bladder to produce electricity by releasing the fluid from within the compressible bladder; and, a second conduit connecting said compressible bladder to the generator; whereby the fluid within the compressible bladder is released to drive the generator to produce electricity as needed.

12. The system of claim 11 further comprising a check valve arranged in-line in the first conduit and which prevents fluid from flowing from the compressible bladder back into the pump.

13. The system of claim 11 further comprising a check valve arranged in-line in the second conduit to prevent fluid from flowing from the generator back into the compressible bladder.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] FIG. 1 shows the preferred embodiment of realizing the invention.

[0017] FIG. 2 shows another embodiment of the invention.

[0018] FIG. 3 shows a further embodiment of the invention.

[0019] FIG. 4 is an electrical schematic showing an embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0020] The embodiments of the invention and the various features and advantageous details thereof are more fully explained with reference to the non-limiting embodiments and examples that are described and/or illustrated in the accompanying drawings and set forth in the following description. It should be noted that the features illustrated in the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale, and the features of one embodiment may be employed with the other embodiments as the skilled artisan recognizes, even if not explicitly stated herein. Descriptions of well-known components and techniques may be omitted to avoid obscuring the invention. The examples used herein are intended merely to facilitate an understanding of ways in which the invention may be practiced and to further enable those skilled in the art to practice the invention. Accordingly, the examples and embodiments set forth herein should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention, which is defined by the appended claims. Moreover, it is noted that like reference numerals represent similar parts throughout the several views of the drawings.

[0021] FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of the invention 1 wherein part of the system is immersed within water 100. In this instance, a bladder or ballast 10 is arranged beneath the surface of the water 100. A flexible conduit 11 connects to the bladder 10 at one end and to a diverter valve 13 which includes a common port and two switchable ports. The common port connects to the flexible conduit 11. One of the switchable ports connects to the generator 14; the other connects to a pump 12. In a first position, the pump 12 is fluidly connected to the flexible conduit 11 for filling the bladder 10 by allowing fluid to be driven from the pump 12 and into bladder 10. In a second position, fluid from within bladder 10 is diverted into the generator 14 to produce electricity. That is, water or other fluid which is contained within the bladder 10 is filled via pump 12. Thereafter, the fluid contained within the bladder 10 is drained through the diverter valve 13 and into the generator 14 which includes a turbine that produces electricity. Battery 16 accepts energy from the generator 14. Electricity produced from the generator 14 is also deposited onto the electrical grid. The instant invention receives electricity to submerge a bladder to an operating depth whereby potential energy is stored within the bladder and thereafter released to produce electricity during peak demand. When electricity is being produced at the cheapest rate, such as when there is a large production and a smaller demand, the bladder is filled with fluid. The bladder 10 may be lowered to a deeper depth via a pair of screw drives 15 which are driven via a synchronized chain drive 30. Each screw drive 15 includes an exterior thread thereon. A motor 23 is mounted on the bed of the body of water 101. A drive gear 21 turns a chain 19 or belt to drive a gear 17 arranged at an end of each screw drive 15 to raise or lower the bladder 10 as threaded mounts 24 move up and down a respective screw drive 15. The motor 23 turns the synchronized chain drive 30 and is coupled to a power cord 18 which is connected at the surface to a power source, such as a solar panel, wind turbine or battery 16. The synchronized chain drive 30 is preferably fastened to the bottom of the body of water or sea floor. As, the screw drives 15 are turned, the bladder 10 raises or lowers in the water to aid in the filling of the bladder 10 or production of electricity. In this manner, the internal pressure of bladder may be increased or decreased. Pressurized water, or other such fluid, may be directed from within the bladder towards the surface to drive one or more turbines which are used to produce electricity during peak periods of electricity use or when the sun is not shining or the wind is not blowing. Thus, the system may be utilized as an energy storage system or accumulator which is cost-effective and cheap to implement.

[0022] The process includes providing the bladder at a deep enough depth such that water or other fluid stored within the bladder is pressurized to a great enough pressure that will drive a turbine to produce electricity when controllably released. The process includes utilizing surplus electricity to fill the bladder and/or sink it to a deep enough depth to drive the turbines when a valve is opened which allows water or other fluid to be squeezed from within the bladder to drive a generator and produce electricity. The process may further comprise using a motor to turn a chain drive which in turn twists at least one screw causing the bladder to be pulled towards the bottom of the body of water in which the bladder is maintained. Control structures comprising microprocessors and programmable logic controllers and sensors may be utilized to control operation of the invention to maximize its efficiency.

[0023] FIG. 2 shows an alternative embodiment of the invention wherein a power source 16, such as a wind turbine, solar array or battery bank, is used to pump water into a stationary and collapsible bladder that is attached to or near the bottom of a body of water to create a pressurized bladder 10. The bladder 10 is initially filled utilizing a pump 12 which fills the bladder during periods of excess electrical production. This bladder is then drained of its potential energy by opening a valve to direct water through a turbine which produces electricity. The electricity may be fed back onto the electric grid 105 at peak demand times. It should be noted that again that the collapsible bladder may be used as an emergency source of readily assessible potable water if it is filled with such. A check valve 50 is placed within the flexible conduit 11 between the pump 12 and the bladder 10 to ensure that pressurized water is directed towards the water driven turbine 14. A second electrically operable valve 51 may be provided between the bladder and the water driven turbine such that water within the output side of the conduit will not drain back into the bladder during filling operations. Like FIG. 1, the bladder 10 may be raised or lowered to increase or decrease the internal pressure of the bladder.

[0024] FIG. 3 shows a further embodiment of the invention. In this instance, a collapsible bladder 10 is affixed to a bottom or at a desired depth within a body of water. This bladder 10 is filled with water by first filling the bladder 10 with air via air pump 40. A valve 50 is opened allowing the trapped air within the bladder to escape while drawing surrounding water into the collapsible bladder. A turbine may be positioned between an inlet into the bladder and the exterior of the bladder to harness energy additional energy from pressurized water draining into the bladder as air is replaced with water in the bladder. Valve 51 releases fluid from within bladder 10 to drive a water turbine.

[0025] FIG. 4 shows an electrical schematic of the first embodiment and showing control circuitry associated with controlling the expansion and contraction of the various bladders as previously set forth. A user interface 80 which may include a keyboard, screen, laptop, tablet, smart phone, or the like which controls the processor 81. Processor 81 receives feedback from the system, and controls the operational function of the system such as filling or pressurizing the bladder. Some of the control features may include: turning on and off motor controller 32, operating synchronized chain drive; and, opening and closing selected valves 50, 51. There may be included in the invention, pressure sensors arranged on an exterior and/or interior of the bladder 83. Actuators that control the various motors, screw-drive, valves, turbines and other necessary parts for controlling operation of the invention are controlled by processor 81. Other sensory input may include automatically determining electrical demand and production and operating the invention to produce electricity during peak electrical demand periods via a peak electricity demand indicator 82.

[0026] It is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the exact construction illustrated and described above, but that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and the scope of the invention as defined in the following claims. While the invention has been described with respect to preferred embodiments, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in limiting sense. From the above disclosure of the general principles of the present invention and the preceding detailed description, those skilled in the art will readily comprehend the various modifications to which the present invention is susceptible. Therefore, the scope of the invention should be limited only by the following claims and equivalents thereof.