Capabilities of hydroelectric pumped-storage stand-alone power plants

The possibility of the use of pumped-storage power plants (PSPPs) as energy storages in standalone power plants for alternative sources of energy is considered. A method and software for calculating the parameters of PSPPs are developed. A comparative study of the energy characteristics of PSPPs and electrochemical accumulator batteries (ABs) is conducted. It is shown that, despite small amounts of stored energy per unit of weight in terms of economic characteristics, PSPPs are not inferior to the best electrochemical ABs. It has been found that the optimum height of water (in the head tank), at which minimum values of stored energy are reached, is 20 m. With a tolerable variation from the optimum within the range ±15%, water lifting can vary from 10 to 30 m. It is shown that PSPPs can be used as energy accumulators in stand-alone power plants.