On Thursday Tesla Motors, the electric car pioneer, announced that they will create solar-powered batteries which can be used for homes and business. According to the company this move will transform the whole energy infrastructure of the world.
Although home batteries are not something as big as electric luxury cars, according to Elon Musk, Tesla CEO, with this invention the world will no longer need oil and gas. The battery for home is known as the Powerwall Home Battery and the one for business is named Powerpack.
The Tesla Powerwall collects power from solar panels and at night from the electricity grid when it is usually less expensive. Thus in case of a power outage you have a secure backup. This system should fit inside a house or on the wall of a garage and could save houses from being dependent on the traditional energy grid.
According to Musk the Powerwall is a rechargeable lithium-ion battery which can store both solar and wind energy up to 10kWh. The device also contains liquid thermal control system. A solar inverter sends dispatch commands to software. The price of the product is around $3.500. Musk remarked:
“The issue with existing batteries is that they suck, they’re really horrible. We have to come up with a solution, that’s the missing piece that’s needed to have a proper transition to a sustainable energy world.”
Powerwall will most likely be bought by homeowners who want to store solar system energy and they can thus waste their own power during night time. The design of the home batteries is very supple, being only six inches thick.
The device will go on sale in the US later this year and will roll out internationally next year. Germany is considered a key market for the device since it has one of the highest take-ups of solar energy in the world. This invention could also be a blessing for under-developed areas where power is not reliable although the solar energy is abundant.
Musk compared the expansion of the Powerwall in under-developed regions with the way in which cellphone technology has expanded. Since it enables you to be completely off grid, Musk said that this is a great advantage for poor communities in the world. He called the sun a “handy fusion reactor” which should be exploited.
Tesla will build a battery factory near Reno, Nevada. It will occupy 1.000 acres of the Nevada desert, which will make it the biggest battery factory in the world.
Image Source: Telegraph
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