Date: Apr 13, 2018
Researchers are extracting vanadium from the oilsands and using it to build batteries
Shell Canada’s JT Steenkamp is leading a project to research the extraction of vanadium from the oilsands to create large utility-scale electricity storage for renewable energy projects. (Kyle Bakx/CBC)
Originally from South Africa, JT Steenkamp doesn’t usually enjoy brisk Canadian winter weather, but this year is different for the engineer who is testing out a new type of battery at Shell Canada’s research centre in Calgary. The battery is built using a little-known metal found in bitumen, and the technology could represent a pivotal moment for both the oilsands industry and the renewable energy sector.
An unusually frigid prairie winter is perfect for his research.
“Coming from a sub-tropical country, it’s a very confusing series of emotions I’m going through wanting these cold snaps for the first time in my life because it means I get to beat up this battery as much I want,” said Steenkamp.
Shell’s project aims to extract a metal called vanadium from bitumen and use the material to produce large, utility-scale electricity storage for the renewable energy sector, which has struggled with ways to store large amounts of energy in a stable, reliable way.
It will prove that we are capable of delivering renewable energy game-changing ideas not in spite of traditional energy but precisely because of it.– JT Steenkamp , Shell Canada engineer
“If successful, it could be an absolute game change. It will prove that we are capable of delivering renewable energy game-changing ideas not in spite of traditional energy but precisely because of it.,” said Steenkamp.
Steenkamp has constructed what’s called a vanadium redox flow battery inside a garden shed, which is powered by solar panels above the research centre. The battery is run through continuous cycles of charging fully, then draining completely. Data is collected to gauge its performance, which so far is promising, according to Steenkamp.
The vanadium battery can store up to six kilowatt hours of electricity produced by solar panels on the roof of Shell Canada’s research centre in Calgary. (Kyle Bakx/CBC)
So far, the vanadium battery can only hold a charge of six kilowatt hours, enough to run a hairdryer for about four hours. It would need to be much larger to store electricity from a wind farm or solar field, but Steenkamp says this type of battery can easily be scaled up.
“Biggest challenge is the cost,” Steenkamp said. “It’s the classic problem of flow batteries and why we are here: Can you find this stuff in enough quantity and at a low enough cost to make large-scale energy storage viable?”
