A techno-economic analysis of a thermally regenerative ammonia-based battery

Abstract

A substantial amount of energy available from low-grade heat remains unexploited worldwide. The thermally regenerative ammonia-based battery (TRAB) is an electrochemical system that effectively converts low-grade thermal energy into electricity. This technology must follow a sustainable development path to be scalable and implementable in real-world conditions. This study performs a first-of-a-kind techno-economic analysis (TEA) of an all-aqueous copper thermally regenerative ammonia-based battery (Cuaq-TRAB) to identify its technical feasibility and cost performance; thereby evaluating the scalability and potential applications of a TRAB. The levelized cost of storage (LCOS) is assessed as the key economic indicator of the TEA. For a 20-year lifetime project of a Cuaq-TRAB, this study shows that TRABs can reach an LCOS of 349 $/MWh and 707 $/MWh for power application (0.5 h) and energy application scenarios (15 h), respectively. The main cost drivers are the membrane selection for power applications and the ligand choice for energy applications. This TEA shows that the developed Cuaq-TRAB offers competitive LCOS for short-duration energy storage.