Australia's 1414 Degrees launches molten silicon energy storage system.

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Australia's 1414 Degrees has commissioned its SiBox Demonstration Module (SDM), marking a key funding milestone in SiBox's development agreement with Woodside Energy Technologies Pty Ltd.

The 1 MWh SiBox pilot unit uses its SiBrick fused silicon energy storage solution to store intermittent renewable energy and produce high-temperature clean heat for industrial environments.

The company says SiBox is the complete thermal energy storage system , designed to fit into heavy industry processes to provide clean heat. The company's proprietary silicon-based storage technology, SiBrick, is installed within SiBox to safely and efficiently store renewable electricity as latent heat. It provides high temperature air outlet, up to 1000°C, coupled to the process through an energy recovery system.

The heat is then available for use, providing a potential source of carbon-free heat to replace fossil fuels for industries requiring temperatures above 800 degrees. There are several opportunities for its application in the mineral processing and manufacturing industries, including the cement, alumina and iron and steel sectors.

It is a viable replace  Special Data  ment for fossil fuels and can provide the industry with reliable, decarbonized ultra-high temperature heat 24/7.



The company said the commissioning phase involved extensive testing, demonstrating the SDM's ability to convert electrical energy into a controlled stream of very hot air for industrial processes. The unit showed excellent energy storage performance, successfully passing 32 phase change cycles.

Additionally, SDM has demonstrated its flexibility to meet a variety of industry needs by operating at outlet temperatures ranging from 700°C to 850°C and providing 6 to 12 hours of continuous production at each set point.

The SDM is now operating autonomously and is ready to perform continuous cycle and discharge testing over the next 12 months to complete the validation phase.

“Over the next 12 months, we anticipate that SiBox will emerge as an important emissions reduction solution for the industrial sectors that manufacture our societies' infrastructure,”  said 1414 Degrees President Dr. Kevin Moriarty in  the press release .

“With financial support from Woodside and the Australian Government’s Modern Manufacturing Initiative, we are well positioned to make significant contributions to the industries transition to clean energy. “Our experience converting renewable electricity into zero-carbon heat can help them meet their unique challenges of high temperatures, reliability and profitability.”