The industrial sector faces a monumental challenge: decarbonizing its processes and transitioning away from fossil fuels, while still maintaining the intense heat required for manufacturing steel, cement, chemicals, and countless other products.
This quest has sparked a fierce battle for the most efficient and cost-effective solution, with hydrogen long considered the frontrunner. However, a new contender is emerging from the shadows, heating up the climate change conversation: heat batteries.
Leading the charge are investment giants like BlackRock, Saudi Aramco, and Rio Tinto, who are pouring hundreds of millions of dollars into startups specializing in heat batteries. These revolutionary devices function similarly to traditional batteries, but instead of storing electrical energy, they capture and release thermal energy.
Think of them as giant, industrial-strength toasters, capable of accumulating and unleashing heat reaching 2,750 degrees Fahrenheit – hotter than a quarter of the sun's surface! This heat, sourced from renewable energy, can then be used on-demand to power various industrial processes.
Industrial heat production accounts for a significant portion of the global energy equation: roughly 20% of global energy use and around 10% of greenhouse gas emissions. Traditionally, these processes rely heavily on fossil fuels like natural gas, releasing harmful emissions into the atmosphere.
Manufacturers have explored various alternatives to combat this dependency, including green hydrogen and even nuclear fusion. However, hydrogen production remains expensive and faces project delays, while fusion technology is still in its early stages. Additionally, removing carbon captured through emissions has emerged as a complementary strategy to address unavoidable emissions.
Enter heat batteries, offering a potentially game-changing solution. Unlike traditional batteries, which use lithium ions and come with limitations on discharge duration and high temperatures, heat batteries boast several advantages:
- Cost-effective: Their storage capacity allows them to store days' worth of renewable energy, making them competitive with fossil fuel-based heat generation in terms of cost, especially with the additional incentive provided by the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act.
- Long-lasting: Heat batteries can maintain high temperatures for extended periods, making them ideal for industrial applications requiring consistent heat delivery.
- Scalability: They are designed for large-scale deployment, potentially reaching widespread adoption within the next few years.
- Material advantage: The use of abundant raw materials keeps production costs down compared to other solutions like hydrogen.
Antora Energy, a California-based company leading the heat battery charge, utilizes carbon blocks that glow red-hot when charged. These blocks transfer heat using light, eliminating the need for air or fluid, which simplifies the system and reduces costs.
Their first customer-deployed battery came online in September 2023 near Fresno, California, and they've already established a manufacturing facility. With the recent $150 million investment round, Antora plans to scale up its operations and build larger projects, accelerating the heat battery revolution.
Analysts suggest that heat batteries may surpass hydrogen in fulfilling certain industrial heat requirements. Their rapid deployment potential, cost-effectiveness, and scalability make them a compelling option, especially considering the current challenges faced by hydrogen production.
