UK startup develops new heat ‘megacell’ to help industry switch to cheap solar

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UK startup Caldera is building a new type of heat ‘megacell’ which could help industry switch off the gas and use super cheap solar power instead.

The Hampshire heat specialists have developed a unique heat storage technology, which takes solar energy – generated either on-site or at a nearby solar farm – to heat up one or more solid megacells made of scrap aluminium and volcanic rock.

Each vacuum-insulated cell can store this heat at up to 500°C, ready to be delivered on demand to industrial users as hot water or steam up to 210°C.

They have already proven the technology with a demonstrator at their factory and are now scaling up by building their first megacell – which will be 2.9 metres in diameter and seven metres high – and capable of storing up to 4MWh of low carbon thermal energy.

Caldera believes their groundbreaking system will enable many UK industries to turn off their CO2-emitting gas boilers in favour of a cost-effective green alternative.

The project has £4.3 million backing from the UK Department for Energy Security & Net Zero, and now company CEO James Macnaghten is seeking an industrial partner to host their first megacell.

“Most people think the steam age ended last century – but in fact it has never gone away,” James explains.

“Around 70 percent of UK industrial energy demand is for heat, with industrial steam accounting for 31 percent of the total.

“This steam is crucial for processes in sectors like pharmaceuticals, food manufacturing and brewing, and is typically generated by boilers burning gas or oil. Steam is ideal for many businesses because it holds a lot of heat which can be moved around relatively easily via pipes and valves.

“To date, most factories still rely on gas to heat that water – but our technology allows industrial users to capitalise on inexpensive solar energy, which can be generated on-site or on land nearby.

“Solar energy is getting cheaper by the day, and many businesses have not yet realised the huge potential for installing a dedicated solar farm – even where little roof space is available,” James says.

Independent analysis by energy consultants Gemserv shows Caldera’s system could slash fuel bills by 45 percent and pay for itself in less than six years.

“It is often both feasible and economic to lease land for a solar farm in the vicinity and run a dedicated cable – known as a ‘private wire’ – for a kilometre or more to the industrial site,” James continues.

“Our system removes the need for costly grid connection upgrades, which can take years, and means the factory owner can generate and use all of their solar energy at cost.

“This transforms the economics of solar power and gives the site owner price certainty over decades, allowing manufacturers to focus on their core business, and not on the price of gas,” James says.

To date, Caldera has been developing a number of small heat cells, connected in parallel, and the development of the megacell has come through discussions with industrial users.

“Many industrial sites have a constrained footprint. It therefore made sense for us to move away from multiple small cells to larger and much taller cells. Our new megacell is sized specifically to fit on a standard truck, and by making the cell much taller, we can now store significantly more heat.

“We are now talking with early-adopter industrial customers who wish to be the first to benefit from this low-carbon technology and we’re aiming to begin our first install in 2025,” James concludes.

Read the latest issue of the OGV Energy magazine HERE