Research > Energy Storage > Finding Pumped Hydroelectric Energy Storage
PHES requires very spcific topographical characteristics to be built. To construct a PHES faciltiy, two large water reservoirs, which usually have a capacity of at least 2,000,000 m3 of water, and a vertical heigth difference between them of 200 m or more, need to be built. To find a location that has these very specfic characteristics is quiet difficult and time consuming as it is currently done manually using maps. As PHES is such an attractive form of energy storage, and the primary issue with PHES is the identification of suitable locations, the objective of this study was to
Create a computer program that could scan a user specified terrain, and identify if there
were any suitable locations to build pumped hydroelectric energy storage.
By using a computer program it was anticipated that the process of finding suitable PHES sites would be faster, easier, more accurate, and also, the results obtained would be definitive i.e. in other words, when analysing an area with maps and the human eye it is possible that a site is missed. Conversly, as a program can search on such a small resolution, it is more likely that all potential sites could be identified.
To create the program, I collaborated with Atlas Computers Ltd. from Dublin, Ireland. Atlas specilise in land software solutions for a wide variety of applications. One program they have developed is called the Survey Control Centre (SCC), which can manipulate 3D terrain to search for suitable characteristics. Using the SCC as a base, we developed an additional PHES module to search a user-specified terrain for potential pumped hydroelectric energy storage sites. For more details on the structure and operationof the program, you can read our published articles on this topic (which are listed below and on the publications page), and if you are intereseted in using this software you can visit the "PHES Program" page.
Once developed, the program was used to search for potential pumped hydroelectric energy storage facilities across an 800 km2 area in the South West of Ireland, as displayed below.
After the search was completed, a total of five potential PHES sites were identified. Four of these, which are marked in red, have a minimum potential capacity of approximately 200 MW / 1750 MWh, and one of these, which is marked in green, has a minimum potential capacity of approximately 180 MW / 1600 MWh. Therefore, in this 800 km2 region of Ireland, the total potential for PHES identified by the program we developed was approximately 1000 MW / 8500 MWh. However, this program only considers the presence of suitable geographical formations for the construction of PHES and therefore, numerous additions can be made to this software in the future.
| Published Articles for Locating Potential PHES Sites | ||
|---|---|---|
 |
Journal Paper: Connolly D, MacLaughlin S, Leahy M. Development of a computer program to locate potential sites for pumped hydroelectric energy storage. Energy 2009, In Press, Corrected Proof (available online 30th October 2009, doi:10.1016/j.energy.2009.10.004). |
 |
 |
Conference Paper: Connolly D, MacLaughlin S, Leahy M. Locating Potential Sites for Pumped Hydroelectric Energy Storage. In: Proceedings of the Electrical Energy Storage Applications and Technologies (EESAT) Conference, Seattle, USA, 4-7 October 2009. |
|
 |
Conference Paper: Connolly D, MacLaughlin S. Locating Sites for Pumped Hydroelectric Energy Storage. In: Proceedings of the International Conference on Sustainable Energy Storage. Belfast, Northern Ireland, 21-24 February, 2011. |
Link |
 |
Book Chapter: Leahy MJ, Connolly D, Buckley DN, Wind Energy Storage Technologies, in Wind Power Generation and Wind Turbine Design, W Tong (ed.). 2009, WIT Press; Accepted. |
|
 |
Report: Connolly D, Leahy M. A Review of Energy Storage Technologies: For the integration of fluctuating renewable energy. Version 4. University of Limerick, 2010. |
