Large-scale storage technologies are crucial to balance consumption and intermittent production of renewable energy. At times of excess production, some renewable energy might be converted into compressed air or hydrogen, which is then stored in underground salt caverns. The energy is recovered later, when renewable production becomes insufficient.
Herminio Tasinafo Honorio, from Delft University of Technology, has been studying compressed air and hydrogen storage in underground salt caverns. Salt caverns are proven seals towards compressed gases; however, using them to store hydrogen or compressed air poses a number of challenges.
Dr Honorio has been investigating the time-dependent mechanical behaviour of salt rocks under different stress conditions, exploring the response of the cavern walls exposed to periodic pressure cycles. He has studied how the geometry of the cavern affects its long-term performance and developed an open-source three-dimensional finite element simulator, named “SafeInCave”, which also incorporates a comprehensive salt-rock constitutive model. You can find more information about this software and Dr Honorio’s work here.