Yes, it can be stored! And it can be broken into 3 general categories: thermal, battery, and mechanical. Let’s take a look at each.
Thermal Storage
It uses various types of sources so the energy can be stored! These are water or molten salt. These two are used to absorb and retain heat from the sun. This heated medium is stored in an tank until the energy is needed, usually to boil water for energy generation.
Battery Storage
Solar energy can also be stored in electrochemical batteries. When solar is pumped into a battery, a chemical reaction takes place in order to store the energy. The reaction is reversed when the battery is discharged, allowing current to exit the battery. These types of batteries are made of lithium and there’s a new technology which promises to yield cheaper and efficiently compared to the material used as of now.
Mechanical Storage
This type of storage takes advantage of the potential energy of an object to generate electricity. This method converts surplus electrical power into mechanical energy, which is converted into electrical energy for later use. There are three prominent mechanical energy storage systems: Flywheel, Pumped hydro and Compressed air.
So, what’s the best way to store solar energy?
There’s no silver bullet solution for solar energy storage. Solar energy storage solutions depend on the customer requirements and available resources too.
Source: Aurora Solar