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This is neat! This is basically pumped-storage hydroelectricity but using the difference in salt density between different layers of sea water instead of differences in height.
https://sizableenergy.com/news/2l26pidy71-sizable-energy-raises-8-million-to-launc
@gabrielesvelto fascinating. I wonder what the sea water density difference is? I guess you can only extract energy from the difference in weight of the water. On land a 1m³ of water weighs 1000kg, which determines how much energy can be extracted from that water. But how much does 1m³ of brine weigh? Since it displaces water at the surface, it's only the difference in weight that can be used for producing energy? Unless it's pumped up above the surface, where it would displace air.
@gabrielesvelto now I'm wondering if instead you could use osmotic pressure as a storage of energy. When there is excess electricity reverse osmosis is used to extract fresh water from sea water, and when electricity is needed osmosis is used to generate a pressure. Not sure if that would be more efficient though
@gabrielesvelto
It would be nice to have a Wikipedia-style description of the system, either the research-scale one or the envisioned one.
My first question is how is the reservoir constructed. Land-based solutions use natural basins (w/ the downside of submerging land that has not previously been under water). It is limited in potential energy by reservoir size and drainage height.
Contrasting, this substitutes much larger reservoirs, much larger heights, but only density differentials.
@gabrielesvelto Really interesting idea but would love to see actual details. I'm having difficulty imagining the containment method.
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