EnelX and Magaldi team up for sandy batteries

Listen to the audio version of the article

The energy crisis and the jump in gas prices gave an unprecedented impetus to the industrial sector, especially energy-intensive companies, to search for cheaper and more sustainable energy sources. To date, the obstacle to using renewable sources in high-temperature industrial processes has been associated with the difficulty for heat pumps and electrochemical batteries to reach temperatures in excess of 90 degrees. Now a way around this barrier has been identified: EnelX and the Magaldi Group have begun a collaboration to experiment with thermal energy storage (TES) technology, that is, a thermal storage system of about 13 megawatt-hours that generates thermal steam.

industrial batteries

The battery developed by Magaldi is powered from renewable sources and uses silica sand as storage material. The sand is heated with a resistance system and can reach temperatures of 300 degrees and more, which converts the heat into steam that can be used in industrial processes. The project launched by EnelX and Magaldi will be implemented at Igi di Buccino in Salerno, which produces vegetable oils and is a supplier of the Ferrero confectionery group from Alba. “For more than a year, we have started experiments to identify the best solutions for the electrification of industrial processes – explains Francesco Venturini, CEO of EnelX – we have conducted experiments in Sardinia, Spain and Chile, and have been able to reach them. This new technology gives exceptional results: it is able to identify high efficiency To some extent and in certain conditions until it reaches a thousand degrees.This could also make it possible to electrify industrial processes that require high temperatures, such as ceramic processing, and decarbonize them.It is an important result, because it is Italian technology and supported by an Italian supply chain that can find niches in the markets We are also looking to other countries to electrify industrial processes: in Spain, for example, we can develop initiatives to electrify production processes at Renault plants.

The interesting aspect of Tes technology is its advanced state of development, with pre-industrial prototypes, which should allow development on the market within a couple of years. The partnership with EnelX represents an important step, consistent with the trajectory of our company, which has been oriented towards innovation for more than 90 years – comments Mario Magaldi, President of the Magaldi Group – Tes technology offers an immediate response to the need to decarbonize industrial processes and thus replace gas.

This technology already shows potential to replace the use of green hydrogen. “The renewable energy that is converted into heat and stored with this technology has an efficiency of more than 90%, while the efficiency of hydrogen is much lower – explains Luigi Lanuza, Head of B2B Innovation and Energy Storage at EnelX – it is possible to reach very high temperatures, at least 300 degrees One can imagine that Tes technology could be used to electrify at least 50% of industrial processes in Italy, but also abroad.” The heat captured through the sand, which in this way becomes a storage system, can be released within 8-10 hours and more. “It is suitable for processes that require at least 8 hours of continuous heat. In particular, it adapts to the needs of those who have to do drying such as food and drinks, “continues Lanuza. The spread of this technology is also supported by the convenience : in terms of the planar cost of accumulated energy, the cost is 20 € per megawatt-hour, to which must be added the cost of producing renewable energy. A classic lithium battery would cost at least 40-60 € per megawatt-hour. Serve the launched experiment En elX to test the best ways and times to charge and discharge a storage system, but also to check how this technology can participate in the resilience market. “We already have dozens of companies interested in installing these plants in Italy,” Venturini reveals. We are moving to other markets, such as the United States: this technology can access subsidies provided by the IRA for the storage sector: there are already implementation bids and we are evaluating how to participate ».