GREEN-ICEs: Generation of REfrigerated ENergy Integrated with Cold Energy storage

Lead Research Organisation: University of Birmingham
Department Name: Chemical Engineering

Abstract

The provision of cold is a vital foundation of modern society to underpins many aspects of modern life, consumes up to 14% of the UK's electricity, and is also responsible for around 10% of UK's greenhouse gas emissions, including both CO2 associated with their power consumption and leakage of refrigerants with high Global Warming Potential (GWP). In order to achieve net-zero emission target in 2050 in the UK, we must significantly decarbonise the cooling sector.
The decarbonisation of the cooling section requires to tackle two key challenges. Firstly, the leakage of traditional, refrigerants with high GWP is a key issue of the greenhouse gas emission of the cooling sector. It is, therefore, necessary to substitute them with low GWP natural refrigerant such as CO2. Secondly, the high-power consumption of the cooling sector also results in greenhouse gas emission if non-renewable power is consumed. Hence, cost-effective cold storage capacity will need to be deployed to maximise the use of intermittent renewable energy and cheap off-peak electricity. The recent study concluded that the addition of cold storage can potentially provide a 43% decrease in peak period consumption.
In response to the challenges identified above, this project aims to develop a novel integrated system for cold energy generation and storage using CO2 hydrate as both refrigerant and storage material, contributing to the decarbonisation of the cooling sector in the UK and more widely the global. The multidisciplinary consortium, consisting of six leading researchers from the Universities of Birmingham, Glasgow and Heriot-Watt, processes a wide range of well-balanced expertise including chemical engineering, thermodynamics, heat transfer, CFD, and economics to address several key scientific and technical challenges, and is further supported by several leading industrial partners to maximise knowledge exchange and impact delivery.

Planned Impact

The GREEN-ICEs project aims to contribute to net-zero emission target in 2050 in the UK by developing an integrated approach for cooling power generation and storage with the development of CO2 hydrate. A novel method to rapidly, continuously and economically produce the CO2 hydrate slurry by spraying subcooled liquid CO2 into the pressurized reactor, and a new method for ice slurry production through the throttling expansion process of high concentration CO2 hydrate, as well as a dynamic and reliable modelling code for simulating the GREEN-ICEs system, will be developed. This research will help reduce the current cold energy demand from fossil sources and facilitate within the UK a healthier and more sustainable energy system and low carbon energy market. The research will also accelerate the development of the next generation refrigerant and the deployment of carbon capture and utilization in the UK.
Through the implementation of this project, the following groups will benefit from the research:
- Academic communities working on research areas of cold energy storage, cold chain, CO2 capture and utilization, chemical reaction and process, heat exchanger design, system optimization, etc. Both the experimentalists and modelling researches could benefit from the project outcomes directly. These outcomes involve new scientific discoveries, understandings, and methodologies of CO2 hydrate formation, transportation, and dissociation process; knowledge concerning the heat transfer process of transcritical/supercritical CO2 flow for the optimal design of devices; and new knowledge on system modelling and the related techno-economic performance.
- UK industry associated with refrigeration, cold energy storage and cold chain applications (food, medical protective and transport), etc. They will benefit from the novel results in terms of new refrigerant production, CO2 utilization, heat exchanger and system design and performance optimization, to improve their competitiveness and maintain a leading position in the market.
- UK Energy policymakers. This project outcome will offer future technology options in cold energy storage towards decarbonisation of cold supply, and can also offer a broadened range of technologies for deployment of CO2 capture and utilization. These impacts will be achieved by engaging with stakeholders and policymakers as planned.
- UK Environment. This project will develop novel environment-friendly slurries through the dispersion of CO2 hydrate in water which is capable of carrying cold in secondary loops, then reducing the refrigerant amount in the cold system. This will benefit the availability of hydrofluorocarbons and also the fossil sources reduced in the UK. In addition, it will play a significant role in developing net-zero emission cold energy storage technology, benefitting for fighting global warming.
- UK Economy and Society. The addition of cold storage can potentially provide a 43% decrease in peak period consumption. Chilled water storage is most commonly used but only on very large projects (typically over 5,000m3). Ice storage (both ice block and ice slurry) is more compact but requires an additional heat transfer system that uses ethylene (or propylene) and also consumes more chiller energy due to lower refrigeration temperature. This project aims to develop new CO2 hydrate based cold energy storage technology which will help support the role out of cold energy in the UK that potentially contribute to a sustainable and low carbon society, and also help public understand the development of new cold storage science and technology.
- The PRDAs, PhD students and engineers involved in the research teams and industry partners. They will receive critical training that related to the CO2 hydrates formulation, transportation and dissociation processes as well as system numerical modelling and experimental skills during the project, benefiting UK's future research capacity in this regard.

Publications

10 25 50

 
Description (CO-COOL) - Collaborative development of renewable/thermally driven and storage-integrated cooling technologies
Amount € 892,400 (EUR)
Funding ID 101007976 
Organisation European Commission 
Sector Public
Country European Union (EU)
Start 05/2021 
End 05/2025
 
Description (Electro-Intrusion) - Simultaneous transformation of ambient heat and undesired vibrations into electricity via nanotriboelectrification during non-wetting liquid intrusion-extrusion into-from nanopores
Amount € 3,651,381 (EUR)
Funding ID 101017858 
Organisation European Commission 
Sector Public
Country European Union (EU)
Start 01/2021 
End 12/2024
 
Description An Adsorption-Compression Cold Thermal Energy Storage System (ACCESS)
Amount £1,022,621 (GBP)
Funding ID EP/W027593/1 
Organisation Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) 
Sector Public
Country United Kingdom
Start 01/2023 
End 08/2025
 
Description ENSIGN: ENergy System dIGital twiN
Amount £4,340,128 (GBP)
Funding ID EP/X025322/1 
Organisation Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) 
Sector Public
Country United Kingdom
Start 08/2023 
End 08/2027
 
Description Flexible Heat
Amount £137,858 (GBP)
Funding ID 10025661 
Organisation Scottish Power Ltd 
Sector Private
Country United Kingdom
Start 03/2022 
End 04/2022
 
Description Flexible Heat Pump Technology - from Concept to Applications
Amount £180,255 (GBP)
Funding ID IF\R1\231053 
Organisation The Royal Society 
Sector Charity/Non Profit
Country United Kingdom
Start 01/2024 
End 12/2027
 
Title small-scale gas hydrate generation reactor 
Description A small experimental apparatus has been constructed and well-instrumented. It can be used to test the dynamic gas hydrate formation process. The experimental apparatus has been designed with the necessary controls and visual observation. The test results have been used to verify the numerical models. It has been shown that the design agrees with the predictions of the numerical models. 
Type Of Material Improvements to research infrastructure 
Year Produced 2022 
Provided To Others? Yes  
Impact This experimental apparatus has become an important facility for further research in the area of accelerating the gas hydrate formation process. 
 
Description Collaboration with Prof Xiangeng Fan and Dr Martin Sweatman at Edinburgh 
Organisation University of Edinburgh
Country United Kingdom 
Sector Academic/University 
PI Contribution I led a joint grant application in collaboration with Prof Xiangeng Fan and Dr Martin Sweatman at Edinburgh. EP/W027593/1 - An Adsorption-Compression Cold Thermal Energy Storage System (ACCESS). It was awarded but yet to start. Total value is £1.01, and University of Glasgow receives £501k.
Collaborator Contribution Prof Xiangeng Fan and Dr Martin Sweatman at Edinburgh led two work packages of the joint project. EP/W027593/1 - An Adsorption-Compression Cold Thermal Energy Storage System (ACCESS)
Impact This project has not started yet.
Start Year 2021
 
Description collaboration with Dr Yasser Mahmoudi larimi 
Organisation University of Manchester
Country United Kingdom 
Sector Academic/University 
PI Contribution Academic collaboration in the area of energy storage.
Collaborator Contribution Dr Yasser Mahmoudi larimi has invited to participate a consortium for a large research EPSRC grant application.
Impact just started the collaboration
Start Year 2023
 
Description collaboration with Soltropy Ltd 
Organisation Soltropy Ltd, UK
Country United Kingdom 
Sector Private 
PI Contribution collaborate on the integration of solar thermal energy with air source heat pump
Collaborator Contribution provide solar thermal collectors
Impact still ongoing
Start Year 2023
 
Description Energy Sub-Alliance in University Alliance of the Silk Road (ESA-UASR) 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Postgraduate students
Results and Impact Invited as a Plenary Speaker to deliver a lecture entitled 'Microencapsulation of phase change materials for cold energy storage applications'.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2021
 
Description Guest on the Science Show - Jambo Radio 
Form Of Engagement Activity A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press)
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach National
Primary Audience Media (as a channel to the public)
Results and Impact Guest at The Science Show of Jambo Radio.

Talk about heating technologies, heat pumps, heat decarbonisation. Challenges and Opportunities.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2022
URL https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bmkfDM-H9nU
 
Description International Summer School Lecture - Shandong University, China 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Postgraduate students
Results and Impact guest lecture entitled: Phase change based Thermal Energy Storage and applications
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2021
 
Description International Summer School Lectures - Tianjin University, China 
Form Of Engagement Activity A talk or presentation
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Postgraduate students
Results and Impact Development and applications of phase transition based thermal energy storage and conversion technologies
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2020
 
Description Interview by Physics World of Institute of Physics 
Form Of Engagement Activity A magazine, newsletter or online publication
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Media (as a channel to the public)
Results and Impact Interviewed by the journalist to talk about may invention of flexible heat pump and more widely heat decarbonisation.

Home, green home: scientific solutions for cutting carbon and (maybe) saving money
13 Oct 2022 Margaret Harris
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2022
URL https://physicsworld.com/a/home-green-home-scientific-solutions-for-cutting-carbon-and-maybe-saving-...
 
Description Interviewed by Knowable Magazine of Annual Reviews 
Form Of Engagement Activity A magazine, newsletter or online publication
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach International
Primary Audience Media (as a channel to the public)
Results and Impact Interviewed by a journalist to talk about my invention of flexible heat pumps, and heat decarbonisation more widely.


How heat pumps of the 1800s are becoming the technology of the future
Innovative thinking has done away with problems that long dogged the electric devices - and both scientists and environmentalists are excited about the possibilities

By Chris Baraniuk 01.11.2023
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2022
URL https://knowablemagazine.org/article/technology/2023/heat-pumps-becoming-technology-future
 
Description MSc module - Sustainable Cooling and the Cold Chain 
Form Of Engagement Activity Participation in an activity, workshop or similar
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach Local
Primary Audience Postgraduate students
Results and Impact Give a guest lecture entitled: Overview of technologies for sustainable cooling and the cold chain
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2022
 
Description Presentation at the Supergen cross-hub workshop 
Form Of Engagement Activity Participation in an activity, workshop or similar
Part Of Official Scheme? No
Geographic Reach National
Primary Audience Study participants or study members
Results and Impact 20 early career researchers attended to discuss the potential collaborations cross the three supergen research hubs.
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity 2023