Technology: Big spinning mass, high speed, low friction
In/Out Efficiency: possibly up to 90%
Pros: Stable throughout high temperature variations, excellent power delivery speed
Cons: vacuum required
Life Expectancy (Terrestrial): 20 years (Extraterrestrial): possibly 100 years
Hazards: broken equipment would release stored momentum catastrophically
Notes: rolling out across the North East and CA for power regulation
Applications: Power cycle Regulation,
Companies: Beacon Power, Hitech Power
Chemical (L-Cell)
Technology: This approach involves mixing reactive chemicals to provide higher charge efficiency than normal rechargeable batteries.
In/Out Efficiency: 60%
Pros: Stable throughout reasonable temperature variations. More can be explored by increasing hazardous nature of chemicals, 10,000+ cycle capable system.
Cons: Fluid may need to be replaced every 5 years, lifetime dependent on charge / discharge cycle, low power density (investigate)
Life Expectancy (Terra): 20 years (Extraterrestrial): possibly 27 years
Hazards: leaking chemicals may cause damage to living creatures
Notes: Several charge / discharge cycles per day terrestrial cycle, extraterrestrial 1 cycle per day
Applications: Remote cell phone towers, diesel generator support
Chemical (L-Ion)
Pros: Widely deployed and well understood technology
Cons: 455 cycles for Tesla roadster with maximum electronic optimization, 1000 cycles w/ 80% charge capacity for new MacBook Pros
Notes: Information from Apple information from Tesla
Companies: Most of em
Compressed Gas (Air)
Pros: Cycles last as long as storage tank maintains containment
Hazards: Compressed air at 4500 PSI would cause serious injury if the containment was breached
Notes: MDI news article , read more about MDI Specs
Companies: MDI
