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Photo by Karsten Wurth on Unsplash
The Simple Technology That Will
Bring An End To Fossil Fuels
Will Lockett
Mar 11th, 2022
Soon your house could
be powered by a gravity battery.
The world is turning its back on fossil
fuels to save the planet and, in recent times, to hurt Putin and his
horrific plans. But, there is a massive problem. Renewable energy,
like solar and wind are erratic, and the mega batteries we use to
overcome this issue are costly and massively impact the environment.
However, a simple, little-used technology is set to solve this problem
and enable an energy revolution. Welcome to the brilliant world of
gravity batteries.
The advantages of switching to solar and
wind are apparent. They are some of the
lowest carbon forms of energy, have practically no dependency on
fossil fuels and are by far the
cheapest form of energy per kWh. As climate armageddon looms and
oil and gas prices rocket, due to Russian sanctions, these factors
make solar and wind very appealing. But there is a huge problem. The
Sun doesn’t always shine and the wind doesn’t always blow.
![](images/images_03_15_2022/pic5.jpg)
Photo by American Power Association on Unsplash
To
turn the sporadic nature of solar and wind power into a useable,
on-tap source we need to use massive batteries like the
100 MWh pack Tesla built in Australia. These mega-batteries store
surplus energy for later use so we can get 24/7 power. So, in theory,
these packs solve the problem and allow a country to run themselves
entirely on solar and wind power. But there is a terrible problem.
The process of building, replacing and
recycling these mega batteries is
prohibitively expensive and
catastrophic for the environment. This means that solar and wind
technologies can’t out-compete fossil fuels at the moment.
![](images/images_03_15_2022/pic7.jpg)
The Tesla powered Hornsdale Power
Reserve —
Hornsdale Power Reserve
Building a battery with over 100 MWh’s
capacity takes a colossal amount of rare-earth metals, refining and
shipping. All of which
release toxic metals into waterways, pollute the atmosphere and
destroy wildlife.
Even worse,
these batteries don’t last forever. They are being constantly
charged and discharged at a frightful pace. Even our best batteries
can only take a few years of this punishment before they start to
degrade, lose capacity and breakdown. So, we will need to build
another mega battery to replace it in the not too distant future,
costing a fortune and doing even more environmental damage. Also, the
old battery needs to be disposed of properly. Yet again this process
can pollute the air and damage the environment.
Despite all of this, a lithium-ion battery
supported solar farm or wind farm is still much better for the
environment than fossil fuels. But, our planet is at stake. We can’t
just be better. We need to be perfect.
Enter the
gravity battery, one of the most simple pieces of technology and
possibly one of the most impactful.
![](images/images_03_15_2022/pic8.jpg)
Energy Vault’s 60m prototype
gravity battery —
WikiCC
A gravity battery is comprised of a massive
weight attached to a motor/generator. When you power the
motor/generator it lifts the weight, storing the electrical energy as
gravitational potential energy. Then, to recover, simply drop the
weight and let the motor/generator spin, turning the energy back into
electrical energy.
I told you it was simple. But it is this
simplicity that could cause a revolution.
Firstly, it is far cheaper and easier to
build. In theory, all you need is iron, steel, copper, magnets and
some computer components. All are easily recycled and sourced, meaning
it is far cheaper than the equivalent lithium-ion battery alternative.
As these materials are widely available all
over the globe, you can build these with far less shipping than
lithium-ion batteries, meaning much less pollutants. They hardly use
any rare-earth metals, meaning minimal horrific mining practices need
to take place. Both of these factors make gravity batteries far more
environmentally friendly.
![](images/images_03_15_2022/pic9_SM.jpg)
You could build a gravity battery
out of mostly recycled metals —
WikiCC
But surely such a battery would be far more
massive than a conventional lithium-ion one? Well, not so. Musk’s 100
MWh pack in Australia takes up
around 0.01 km² (before recent expansion). Let’s build a
similar-sized gravity battery and see how big it is in comparison.
A 100m tall gravity battery needs a weight
of 360 million kg to have the same energy capacity. If we built the
weight for this battery out of iron (to keep prices down), it would be
a cube with 35m sides. That is a massive weight!
We need a structure capable of lifting this enormous weight, so let’s
build a Tower with a 50m by 50m and 150m tall footprint to contain our
gravity battery. This means our gravity battery would have a
footprint 200 times smaller than Musk’s mega pack!
So it is cheaper, smaller, easier to build,
less environmentally damaging and will last far longer than a massive
lithium-ion mega battery!
But, we have yet to build a gravity battery
on this scale, until now.
Gravitricity and Energy Vault are both currently building
prototypes of gravity batteries that can rival Musk’s mega-battery.
Once they have proven their technology they plan to offer their
services across the globe.
![](images/images_03_15_2022/pic10.jpg)
Gravitricity’s 250 kW prototype —
Gravitricity
When they do, solar and wind will become
cheaper, less environmentally damaging and more sustainable in the
long term. This means more countries can make the switch without
breaking the bank and have a minimal environmental impact. Make no
mistake. This simple technology could spark a mass exodus of
fossil-fuel power as even developing countries can now afford to
invest in renewable energy, and developed countries can afford to
speed up their transition.
So will gravity batteries cause an energy
revolution? I think so. They solve all of the problems of solar and
wind without the damaging effects of lithium-ion batteries. What’s
more, their longevity and low cost will mean we can make the crucial
switch to low carbon fuels even quicker. It goes to show that even
simple technology can still be potent.
Written by
Will Lockett
Content writer passionate about cutting edge technology, space and
fighting climate change. Hire me at www.linkedin.com/in/w-lockett
Green Play Ammonia™, Yielder® NFuel Energy.
Spokane, Washington. 99212
www.exactrix.com
509 995 1879 cell, Pacific.
Nathan1@greenplayammonia.com
exactrix@exactrix.com
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