I think the problem with the water-pumping thing is the infrastructure you need (i.e. a handy mountain with two lakes/a hollow mountain with a lake). This obviously need a decent body of water - but I'd love to know what equipment is needed for storing the pressurised air.
I imagine this being most interesting at dams, where pumping the stored energy into air bubbles in the pent-up lake also increases the water (&pressure) level at the dam, thus maybe further increasing the efficiency, compared to, say, pumping water back up (for which you need the large water source at the bottom end)?
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Date: 2011-07-11 08:20 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2011-07-12 02:42 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2011-07-11 09:38 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2011-07-12 07:09 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2011-07-12 08:07 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2011-07-12 08:11 am (UTC)I imagine this being most interesting at dams, where pumping the stored energy into air bubbles in the pent-up lake also increases the water (&pressure) level at the dam, thus maybe further increasing the efficiency, compared to, say, pumping water back up (for which you need the large water source at the bottom end)?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pumped-storage_hydroelectricity
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compressed_air_energy_storage#Lake_or_ocean_storage