Hardware Podcasts

Storing Clean Energy with Air & Water: Hydrostor’s Game-Changing Tech

Hardware to Save a Planet · 27 Feb 2025 · 44m · Episode 73

What this episode covers

Curtis VanWalleghem, Co-Founder and CEO of Hydrostor, explains how his company uses compressed air energy storage in underground caverns to provide long-duration grid stability. He details the engineering of the system, including thermal management and the 'champagne effect,' and contrasts Hydrostor's economics and 100-year lifespan with lithium-ion batteries and pumped hydro. VanWalleghem discusses the company's pivot from marine balloons to mining caverns, its commercial projects in Australia and California, and the critical need for market redesign to value long-duration storage.

Most relevant to

companies scaling up

Topics

Mentioned

Companies
Hydrostor, Bruce Power, Deloitte, Octopus Energy, Energy Dome, Form Energy, EcoGen
Products
Lithium-ion, Pumped Hydro, Synchronous Condenser
Tools
Shell and tube heat exchanger, Centrifugal compressors, Steam turbine

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