Energy evaluation of a solar hydrogen storage facility: Comparison with other electrical energy storage technologies

Abstract Storage of electricity from renewable energy sources is one of the main challenges to be overcome to ensure a proper integration of renewable technologies into the power grid, paving the way for their gradual introduction into future energy scenarios. The use of hydrogen as an energy carrier is a potential and promising option among the different technologies that can be used to store electrical energy from renewable sources on a large scale. Typical hydrogen facilities used to store renewable electricity are currently based on electrolysis systems connected to the power source, mainly wind or photovoltaic. Hydrogen is stored in accordance with the facility requirements for its use in stationary fuel cells for electric power production. This article presents the evaluation, in terms of energy-related parameters, of a hydrogen storage system, connected to a renewable energies power plant. The system is located at INTA R&D facilities in Huelva, SW of Spain. These parameters will be representative of the real performance of the system, and can be used as indicators to compare different electrical energy storage systems based on hydrogen and other technologies.