Energy storage a buzzword in New York
November 30, 2016
In early Fall 2016 New York Mayor Bill de Blasio announced an initiative that promotes more energy storage installations in commercial properties. The energy storage initiative is a target of 100 megawatt-hours installed by 2020, according to Power Magazine. This is the first time a City has ever set an energy storage target. This is also New York state's first ever energy storage deployment target, though it's very similar to what California and Massachusetts have already created.
And it seems that the City is already off to a good start. Though the City may not realize it CALMAC already has the equivalent of 60MWhs of installed thermal energy storage capacity in properties such as 1155 Ave of the Americas, 11 Madison Ave and 55 Water Street.
As a result of the target, New York businesses will have an even greater incentive to fortify their buildings with energy storage. The influx of energy storage technologies will help fortify the City’s changing energy landscape. Property owners and developers benefit from improved cash flow and lower operating expenses too.
Enthusiastic goal
At the heart of the City’s initiative is a grid modernization movement in which there’s the idea that energy storage has the ability to help mitigate intermittent demands caused by renewable resources. Energy storage is a way to reduce electricity loads during periods of peak demand. Managing energy usage is important especially in New York City which features an electricity grid that is heavily relied upon by over 8 million persons. A lapse in electricity coverage costs businesses lost revenue, reputation, restoration expense and wasted overhead.
Manhattan, one of New York City’s five boroughs, is an island, so it faces even greater challenges to adding power transmission as power demand grows. There is also limited surface area on the urban buildings for adding solar. Wind turbines don’t really work on the tall buildings. With limited access to renewables, making the most efficient use of current infrastructure is crucial and energy storage allows the City do just that. Energy storage uses energy that is already readily available. New transmission is not needed since energy storage can tap into plentiful, existing power supplies when demand is low.
"de Blasio wants to have 100 MWH of energy storage by 2020."
Putting the mass back in buildings
Understandably, engineers can be quite skeptical of new building technologies. The good news is that the concept of energy storage is not new. Years ago, buildings could not rely on an electric grid. Instead buildings were designed with lots of storage known as thermal mass. Buildings were not heated or cooled like they are today so it was important that materials be resistant to changes in temperatures. The thermal mass could store heat or cold for later use. But as then we turned into the modern era Architects started taking the mass out of buildings. Glass skyscrapers lined the skies. However with a move towards energy conservation, the mass is being brought back. Today common thermal mass design solutions include insulation, phase change materials, concrete slabs, water containers and interior masonry walls.
Storing thermal energy brings back mass in the form of ice and is gaining popularity especially in dense urban environments. Thermal energy storage, which already has a strong presence in the New York City has a strong return on investment over conventional air-conditioning systems. The thermal systems work with conventional chillers. The storage devices can be placed in basements, garages or roofs of City buildings. Thermal storage technologies can help reduce demand charges, defer utility upgrades, pre-cool buildings and shift renewable power consumption. Architects implement design strategies that put the mass back in buildings as a way to save energy while also helping reduce reliance on the grid.
New York Energy Storage
One of the most recognized commercial properties in the world utilizes thermal energy storage in New York City. Rockefeller Center is Home to NBC, Radio City Music Hall and the world-famous ice skating rink and Christmas tree. The buildings of Rockefeller Center are served by a central chilled water plant containing 14,500 tons of steam and electric driven chillers. An ice making chiller is sized to provide 8,600 ton-hours of thermal energy storage.
Another installation, the Goldman Sachs Group in its New York City headquarters also adopted ice-based thermal energy storage and thus takes a massive amount of demand off the grid, alleviating stress considerably. Deep below the trading floors lies a thermal storage systems capable of making enough ice for 3.4 million margaritas every night.
It's these success stories and more that have paved the way for more building owners to implement energy storage in the City on a mass-scale. New York City is undergoing a massive change, and has unique challenges. Energy storage can help.
