SUMMER 2019 | INNOVATION & TECH TODAY 81
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would be the load, then let’s say you have a solar
array on your roof that generates your electricity.
If you keep that contained, that is its own house
microgrid.”
In Maldonado’s case, a microgrid would have
allowed her to generate enough energy to
operate her home and advanced energy storage
solutions would have enabled her to do so
indefinitely. In an emergency situation, that
capability could be the deciding factor in
whether her son takes his next breath.
Energy Storage Solutions
To address these life-threatening issues, NREL
partnered with energy company Shell to
establish the Shell GameChanger Accelerator
Powered by NREL, or GCxN. The program
works to solve renewable energy challenges and
is currently focused on creating battery storage
options to enhance grid resiliency.
Duran explained how the technology may
impact energy infrastructure: “When we think
about the utility grid of the future, we’re looking
at multi-source generation. Whether it be
conventional energy production with the
carbon sources we have, we’ll have that
integrated with renewable generation. Then
we’ll have a really flexible, smart way to do that
distribution and transmission through the line.”
He continued, “We used to work our way
down from regional generation. The viewpoint
now is to start thinking about it from the
individual household and working our way up,
then using that as a means of coordinating the
grid and all the demand and generation that
goes with that.”
One company participating in the GCxN
program is Electric Grid Monitoring (EGM),
which uses sensors throughout the grid in
tandem with wireless networks to communicate
with utilities operators. Technicians can then
respond faster to outages or problems and send
resources where they’re most needed. In the
case of Puerto Rico’s outages, the system would
have been able to communicate which hospitals
had power so government agencies could route
patients more effectively.
Other companies working within the GCxN
program are exploring concepts like solid/liquid
zinc energy storage and thermal energy storage
to create longer lasting batteries that are cheaper
and more efficient than existing options. The
ability to store power from a sunny day and use
it on a cloudy day could be pivotal to
maintaining grid operation.
Mastering the Microgrid
Duran elaborated, “These new technologiesare helping provide resilience, especially when
we start talking about the broader topic of
microgrids and how we can start – whether it be
at the household level, the neighborhood level,
or this broader grid-specific level – helping to
provide opportunities for backup storage power
sources. Being able to store that energy when it’s
inexpensive or when the grid is operating at full
capacity and then being able to draw off of it
when it’s expensive energy or when we lose
access due to natural disasters is one of the big
benefits.”
As extreme environmental disasters become
more common, microgrids could eliminate
power failures. Heat waves, brown outs, floods,
earthquakes, and forest fires would no longer
threaten a region’s ability to provide power to its
citizens. In a future where every home or
neighborhood generates and stores its own
power, the fear of power outages could become a
distant memory. Families like those of Zaria
Maldonado could rest easier at night, knowing
their power is renewable, sustainable, and reliable.
Man-made machines may be the cause of
increasing climate instability, but technological
innovation may also be the defining factor in
whether we succumb, survive, or thrive in the
years ahead. QThe Shell GameChanger Accelerator Powered by NREL is an incubator program working to solve renewable energy challenges, particularly those centered around
battery storage options. Experts at NREL assist the startups with expertise, financing, and networking to help them bring their products to market.