Student research opportunities
Pumped hydro storage for Canberra
Project Code: CECS_901
This project is available at the following levels:
Supervisor:
Professor Andrew BlakersOutline:
Large scale deployment of wind and solar will eventually require the use of storage or other means to deal with intermittancy. Pumped hydro electric energy storage constitutes 99% of all energy storage, with some 140GW deployed around the world. The ACT and surrounding districts have many hilly areas that could be used for pumped hydro electric energy storage. National Parks, Nature reserves and technical constraints rule out many areas. However, many potential sites remain, including Lake George, Williamsdale and the enlarged Cotter Dam.
Goals of this project
- calculate the amount of storage required for an all-solar/wind powered Canberra
- examine a range of nearby sites to determine pumped hydro feasibility
- estimate costs and economic feasibility and compare with alternatives
