Green Energy Storage, from rhubarb to electricity storage
Man has been endowed with reason and the power to create, so that he can add his own to what has been given to him.
Anton Chekhov
Technological innovation and sustainability is not always a perfect combination. Today, technology seems to be the link between applied science and the dynamics of society that characterize our day. The price of this comfort is often too high, especially in terms of respect for the environment. Fortunately, however, there is someone who has well understood how important it can be to minimize the impact on the ecosystem.
Green Energy Storage
, an innovative start-up founded in 2015 in Trento, is one of them.
With an exclusive agreement for Europe with Harvard University, Green Energy Storage researchers have developed an organic storage system for renewable energy based on quinone, a molecule found in rhubarb and other plants. Storage systems allow energy produced from renewable sources to be used flexibly, solving the problem of intermittent renewable sources and reducing costs.
It is, therefore, an extremely ambitious business model that occupies a market segment that is yet to be explored but which is of strategic importance in the energy transition.
Suffice it to say that the spread of renewable energies, such as wind or photovoltaic, avoids the production of pollutants linked to fossil resources. However, it poses significant problems to the electricity system related to the intermittency of these resources. This is because solar panels do not work at night, as do wind turbines in the absence of wind.
And this is why they are working on the possibility of storing the electricity produced by these sources, which could then be reused when necessary. In fact, the explosion of this type of renewable energy on the market risks losing value without storage systems capable of storing the energy produced.
“We want to actively contribute to combating the causes that favor climate change,” they say , “reducing pollutant emissions while continuing to meet the energy needs of our current and future customers.”
But what is the difference between this solution compared to others already on the market?
First of all, sustainability. At the base of the battery, in fact, there are organic quinone electrolytes, elements easily extracted from rhubarb and other plants that have the advantage of being biocompatible and low-cost. Normal batteries, on the other hand, use vanadium and zinc-bromine (Zn/Br), substances that are much more toxic and expensive.
And what are the characteristics of the storage systems that Green Energy Storage has developed? Without a doubt, scalability, thanks to the separation of power components and energy components. And then, they have a long life cycle with cost-effective scale. They are safe but above all sustainable as they are based on organic technology.
Green Energy Storage is a company that is set to grow. Suffice it to say that on a crowdfunding platform in just ten hours he raised 500 thousand euros, the maximum goal set by the equity crowdfunding offer on Mamacrowd. But that’s not all. The company has successfully closed a €200,000 capital increase at a valuation of €12 million pre-money. Small steps for a big future.
