A US company Energy Vault could store renewable energy for any amount of time using fundamental physics and bricks.
The technology uses excess wind and solar-powered motors to raise the 35-ton composite bricks. The bricks can sit still, storing the energy as gravitational potential energy. Then, when needed, the bricks are lowered, transforming the energy back to electrical energy through attached cables that spin a motorized generator, sending electricity back to the grid. The bricks can be raised and lowered at will.
The technology is durable and uses local, low-cost materials. It does not depend on the weather, nor is it affected by extreme weather. It can withstand category 4 hurricane winds and magnitude 8 earthquakes, as tested at the California Institute of Technology.
Do you think this has the lowest carbon footprint of any energy generation or storage system? Leave your comment below.