Ohio State is in the process of revising websites and program materials to accurately reflect compliance with the law. While this work occurs, language referencing protected class status or other activities prohibited by Ohio Senate Bill 1 may still appear in some places. However, all programs and activities are being administered in compliance with federal and state law.

Using CO2 for Bulk Energy Storage to Enable the Deployment of Renewable Electricity Technologies

Picture of a buckeye leaf with Thompson Library far in the background.
February 13, 2015
All Day
3150 Smith Lab

Environmental Science 7899 – Issues in Environmental Sciences

Watch the live seminar remotely via CarmenConnect

Seminar Chair: Gil Bohrer, bohrer.17@osu.edu
Seminar Coordinators: Michelle Smith, straley.23@osu.edu; Yanting Guo, zhao.1093@osu.edu

Course Requirements

This course is graded S/U. Satisfactory participation in this course includes all of the following: 

  1. Attentive and active participation in lectures and discussion. 
  2. Attendance at all classes, with one excused absence. If you must miss more than one class, see Dr. Bohrer.
  3. Advance reading for any seminars for which it is required

Using CO2 for Bulk Energy Storage to Enable the Deployment of Renewable Electricity Technologies

By Jonathan Ogland-Hand

Reducing the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) being emitted to the atmosphere is a primary challenge for electricity generating infrastructure. Renewable energy sources (i.e. wind and sunlight) offer a solution but their variability limits their impact. Electricity generated by wind and solar energy technologies does not necessary follow demand; this electricity can be generated when there is little demand (e.g., a windy night) or not generated when it is demanded (e.g., a hot, cloudy, windless day). Being able to store and time-shift energy with bulk energy storage (BES) technologies is essential for enabling broad penetration of renewable energy technologies, but current BES approaches are (1) expensive, and have (2) small capacities, and/or (3) limited geographic deployment potential. Our energy storage approach addresses these concerns by using CO2 to generate electricity from geothermal resources and store excess energy from wind solar energy technologies.

Carbon dioxide can be used to store energy in sedimentary basin geothermal resources (CO2-BES). CO2 is captured from fossil fuel power plants and injected into the subsurface to isolate it from the atmosphere, obtain thermal energy, and store pressure. The heated CO2 can be produced, circulated through a surface power plant - converting the heat to electricity - and then re-injected into the subsurface. By injecting CO2 (using electricity) when electricity supply exceeds demand and extracting CO2 (to generate electricity) when electricity demand exceeds supply, electricity produced from variable renewable sources can be used when needed. CO2-BES can use cooler and shallower reservoirs than typical geothermal power plants, thus expanding the usable geothermal resource in the United States. Further, this approach can also be capacity- and cost- competitive with other electricity generating technologies. Overall, the system can (a) mitigate the variability of wind and solar power, (b) reduce the carbon intensity of energy systems, and (c) avoid wasting or curtailing high-capital cost, low-carbon energy resources.

Jonathan is a first year PhD student and a member of Prof. Jeffrey Bielicki’s Energy Sustainability Research Group. Jonathan received a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Valparaiso University and his research interests include energy storage and the energy-water nexus. For more information please visit his website.