alt Hacker NewsStores it for return as heat. Which is useful, but not nearly as useful as returning it as electricity would be.
Still, if it could be stored stably in the summer and converted to heat in the winter then possibly helpful.
I wonder how the efficiencies compare to producing hydrogen or other burnable gases.
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> Still, if it could be stored stably in the summer and converted to heat in the winter then possibly helpful.
There are already sand batteries that store heat well and are used in northern climates: https://polarnightenergy.com/news/worlds-largest-sand-batter...
> Still, if it could be stored stably in the summer and converted to heat in the winter then possibly helpful.
The capex per unit of stored energy in undoubtedly far too high for that to be worthwhile. Seasonal energy storage requires extremely low cost storage media.
Something like 25% of global energy is dedicated to industrial heating. While not as immediately applicable as electricity, there are many uses for load shifting solar as heat.
That being said, there are some "hot rocks" companies who have been working with thermoptovoltaic cells. Which could still work, but the low hanging fruit is in the millions of direct uses for heat.