#Germany is using heated #bricks to replace gas-fired industrial boilers

Michelle Lewis | Jan 19 2026

"At 100 megawatt‑hours (MWh), the Brunsbüttel system is scheduled to come online by the end of 2026. It will be tied with the 100 MWh Rondo heat battery that went into operation in California in October as the largest industrial heat battery in the world. Covestro’s project is backed by Breakthrough Energy Catalyst and the European Investment Bank.

[...]

"The underlying technology is deceptively simple. Rondo’s heat battery uses bricks – a proven heat‑storage medium that’s been used in steelmaking for centuries – paired with modern automation and controls. Electricity heats the bricks; the stored heat runs a conventional boiler; and the system produces emission‑free steam using electricity from #renewable sources."

Read more:
https://electrek.co/2026/01/19/germany-is-using-heated-bricks-to-replace-gas-fired-industrial-boilers/

#SolarPunkSunday #OldSchoolTechnology #NewSchoolTechnology #HeatBatteries #HeatStorage #RenewablesNow

Funny how advocacy for low-tech solutions reveals a modern and accurate understandment of the world.

Tecnocracy, you can retire. 😉

(Here's the link to the actual articke, I have to finish reading it, but up to now it looks neat)
https://academic.oup.com/pnasnexus/article/3/7/pgae274/7710221?login=false

@JohannesIEckert

#LowTech #EnergyTransition #EnergyStorage #HeatStorage #GreenHydrogen #GridStorage #RenewableEnergy

Yesterday #Fortum, the local heating utility in Espoo, Finland, has shut down their last remaining coal plant at #Suomenoja.
One year ahead of schedule.

#DistrictHeating in #Espoo is decarbonising quickly and increasingly relies on excess heat recovery, #HeatPumps, several hundred megawatt electric boilers and #heatStorage.

#EspooCleanHeat #SectorCoupling
https://www.fortum.com/media/2024/03/fortum-end-use-coal-finnish-district-heat-production-ahead-schedule

How does a rock battery work? Well, it stores heat, not electricity. In this video, Matt Farrell explains how storing heat helps with our energy storage needs.

#Battery #UndecidedWithMattFerrel #HeatStorage #Energy #GreenEnergy

https://youtu.be/B3JlTVt0jLw