Ecole Polytechnique Federale De Lausanne

Exergo Sa

Ecole Polytechnique Féderale De Lausanne (epfl)

Solidpower Sa

Daniel Favrat

Jürg Schiffmann

Alfred Rufer

Zacharie Wuillemin

François Marechal

Sylvain Lemofouet

Adriano Viana Ensinas

Philippe Barrade

Alberto Mian

Emanuele Facchinetti

Céline Weber

Jan Van Herle

Patrick Wagner

The invention concerns a district energy system comprising: —at least one cogeneration or heat pump unit —a first pipe system for district heating and/or cooling consisting of at least one liquid or vapor COpipe; characterized by the fact that is also comprises a second pipe system consisting of at least one fluid line for the transport of COor O. The invention also relates to the use of a district energy system comprising: —at least one cogeneration or heat pump unit, —a first pipe system, —a second pipe system; characterized by the fact that that liquid or vapor COis used in the first pipe system for district heating and/or cooling and that a fluid of COor Ois used in the second pipe system.

Methods and systems for district energy CO2 support

Apparatus for salt separation () under supercritical water conditions, comprising a heat exchanger () and a fluidized bed reactor (). The fluidized bed reactor comprising a supercritical water pressure containing wall () defining therein a fluidized bed chamber () connected to an inlet system () at one end thereof and an outlet system () configured to separate solids from supercritical fluid at another end thereof. The fluidized bed chamber receives a fluidized bed () therein and is configured to receive through the inlet system () a liquefied aqueous substance () for treatment in the fluidized bed chamber. The inlet system () comprises an inlet chamber () and a fluidization plate () positioned between the inlet chamber () and the fluidized bed chamber (). The fluidized bed chamber extends between the inlet system () and outlet system () and comprises an entry section () adjacent the inlet system (), an outlet section () adjacent the outlet system (), and a mid-section () extending between the entry section and the outlet section. The heat exchanger () extends along the fluidized bed chamber () and is configured to generate a decreasing temperature gradient in the fluidized bed chamber from the outlet section () to the entry section (), the temperature gradient in the outlet section and mid-section being supercritical for aqueous substances and being subcritical for aqueous substances in the entry section () adjacent the fluidization plate ().

Apparatus for salt separation under supercritical water conditions

A new gas turbine-fuel cell Hybrid Cycle is proposed. The fuel cell advantageously operates close or under atmospheric pressure and is fully integrated with the gas turbine that is based on an Inverted Brayton-Joule Cycle. The idea of the invention is to capitalize on the intrinsic oxygen-nitrogen separation characteristic of the fuel cell electrolyte by sending to the Inverted Brayton-Joule Cycle only the anodic flow, which is the one free of nitrogen. In this way the flow that expands in the turbine consists only in steam and carbon dioxide. After the expansion the steam can be easily condensed, separated and pumped up. Therefore the compressor has mainly only to compress the separated carbon dioxide. This effect generates a substantial advantage in term of efficiency and enables separating the carbon dioxide. The new proposed Hybrid Cycle enables to: substantially increase the system efficiency compared to the known gas turbine-fuel cell Hybrid Cycle, maintain the fuel cell operating under or close to atmospheric pressure and separate the carbon dioxide.

Hybrid cycle SOFC-inverted gas turbine with CO2 separation

Different types of energy storage systems are described, in particular hydro-pneumatic storage systems. In one, energy is stored by compressing gas in a chamber () with a liquid piston and released by gas expansion. A spray head or grid at the top of the chamber () supplies liquid as a shower through the gas being compressed or expanding in the cylinder () to maintain an isothermal condition. In another, energy is stored from an array of solar cells connected to an array of supercapacitors forming an auxiliary storage, and a main energy storage device such as a hydro-pneumatic storage system, for supply to an AC or DC network. The efficiency is improved by connecting the solar cells via the array of supercapacitors to the AC or DC network. An immersed hydro-pneumatic storage device for off-shore/on-shore power generation systems comprises a cylinder that is immersed in a liquid mass, wherein energy is stored by compressing gas with a liquid piston and energy is released by gas expansion. The mass of liquid maintains an isothermal condition in the cylinder during compression and expansion.

Energy storage systems

Growing community of inventors

Epalinges, Switzerland

Daniel Favrat