Juhl Wind Inc.計劃建立一個1MW的鋅空氣儲能系統(tǒng)，該系統(tǒng)位于Woodstock Hills 風(fēng)電廠，靠近公司位于Woodstock, Minnesota 的總部。
Juhl Wind公司的總裁Dan Juhl表示，我們選擇鋅空氣以及其核心技術(shù)作為我們的第一個儲能系統(tǒng)，是因為我們相信這種儲能系統(tǒng)是儲能領(lǐng)域?qū)Νh(huán)境最沒有影響的安全技術(shù)。我們仔細(xì)研究過儲能技術(shù)的進(jìn)展，我們相信大規(guī)模儲能將能使風(fēng)能的價值完全釋放出來。

Juhl Wind Inc. plans to install a 1 megawatt energy storage system developed by Zinc Air Inc. at its recently acquired Woodstock Hills wind farm located near the Company's headquarters in Woodstock, Minnesota.

Montana-based Zinc Air develops a Zinc Redox flow battery which they claim is one of the greenest battery technologies in the market. The system will allow the wind farm to store and shift wind power for flexible use by utility operators.

Generally, Zinc based redox batteries fill two tanks either with a solution of Zinc bromide or Zinc cerium called electrolytes that hold chemical energy. When energy is needed, the electrolytes are pumped in a compartment called an electrochemical cell to convert chemical energy into electricity picked up by the electrode. When the electrolyte has been discharged, it can be pumped back while a current is applied in order to recharge it.

Being non-hazardous and cheaper than traditional energy storage devices, Dan Juhl, chairman of Juhl Wind, deemed it as a good system fit for his company’s needs.

"We selected Zinc Air and its core technology for our first system because we believe it offers the combination of being the most advanced technology along with the most environmentally safe option in the field of energy storage," Mr. Juhl said. "We have carefully studied the growth in storage technologies because we believe large scale storage will unlock the full value of wind power.

Juhl Wind was the original developer of the 10.2-megawatt wind farm and has been in service since 1999. Juhl bought the 99.9 percent of the facility for $400,000 and the remaining .1 percent remains with the community last May. The farm is expected to continue generating revenues of about $1.2 million annually. Its 17 turbines produce electricity sold to utility Xcel Energy. – O. M. Bayani