Danfoss, Baltimore, Md., and The Pennsylvania State University, Philadelphia, Pa., conducted a workshop to explore the impact of energy storage on U.S. resilience and the United Nations net-zero carbon buildings program.

The workshop is one of several Danfoss initiatives to strengthen the industry dialogue on energy sustainability and support the UN Economic Commission for Europe efforts toward global adoption of its Framework Guidelines for Energy Efficiency Standards in Buildings. 

A group of 20 private sector and academic thought leaders assembled for the workshop session, which included four formal presentations:

  • Market Transformation: Grid, Building and Energy Storage Systems Integration 
    Kevin Wright, co-founder and president, ProtoGen Energy, Quakertown, Pa.
  • Ice Battery Energy Storage 
    Mike Hopkins, chief executive officer, Ice Energy, Santa Barbara, Calif.
  • Thermal Mass Energy Storage 
    Vince Cushing, chairman and CTO, QCoefficient, Chicago
    William Hederman, senior fellow, Kleinman Center for Energy Policy, University of Pennsylvania
  • Flywheel Energy Storage 
    Eric Murray, president and CEO, Temporal Power, Canada

The discussion underscored important linkages between technology, preparedness and economic growth—the innovation required for resilience needs to be tailored as well to strengthen productivity and competitiveness even while cutting emissions and supporting a stable and secure infrastructure platform.

“Advances in building systems, macro-grid, micro-grid and distributed electric generation technologies cannot create paths to electrical power resilience or a net-zero carbon society without deployment of multiple energy storage technologies,” says Lisa Tryson, director of corporate communications and public relations, Danfoss. “Finely tailored applications are critical to the management of tomorrow’s power generation regime, even while playing a role in electricity cost containment for both grid managers and customers. And, whether one looks to immediate challenges, mid-term goals or long-term aspirations, energy storage technology is today under-utilized.”