Pumped Storage Energy

Pumped Storage is exactly what its title implies - it stores energy. This does not produce mass amounts of energy as coal plants do but it does provide that little extra bump needed during peak hours (the time of day when power is in high demand).

How it works is by using two giant reservoirs of water, one at a higher elevation. Water is released from the higher to the lower using gravity and sent through a turbine which generates electricity. I wouldn't classify this as a renewable energy but the same water is pumped back up from the lower reservoir to the higher. Coal burning and nuclear power plants take from half and hour or longer to generate to full capacity, while PS plants can do it in seconds, which is why they're so good at leveling off the base power during the peak hours in densely populated areas.

Thirty six countries world wide use PS energy and nearly all of them pump the water back to the top using power from coal burning plants. However with green technology on the rise they will soon use wind turbines and solar power to run the pumps. Another idea is ocean water instead of fresh water. A form of tidal barrage or tidal lagoon is being developed using the high tide to let the water into the reservoir then let out during low tide. There's much more to learn about this on the Tidal Energy page - come geek out with me over it!

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