Innovation in home energy performance is moving at a fast pace. Tesla has introduced products that are attainable to most home buyers. And, now, others are moving in quick to compete with Tesla.
In this instance, a new energy storing system may approach the market at a much lower cost and have additional functionality that could potentially be a revenue stream for the home owner.
Imagine having a fridge-sized box in your home that not only generates and stores electricity on-site, but heats and cools the house, provides hot water and even churns out oxygen and hydrogen to use or sell. That's the vision a team from the University of Newcastle and Australian company Infratech Industries is working towards, and New Atlas spoke to two of the minds behind this potentially game-changing "Swiss army knife" of energy production.
The team calls the device a Chemical Looping Energy-on-Demand System (CLES), and it's based on an original invention by Professor Behdad Moghtaderi of the University of Newcastle. Infratech, spearheaded by CEO Rajesh Nellore, has been involved almost from the start, helping out with the technical development of the system as well as plans to commercialize it.
An industrial-scale reference plant was unveiled in Newcastle, Australia in early April, designed for a hospital, retirement village or a similar-sized commercial building. The CLES wouldn't just supply the facility with electricity, but also help out with the heating, cooling and hot water, and produce oxygen and hydrogen that can either be used on-site or sold.
