Isentropic

About Isentropic

Isentropic Ltd was a UK-based technology company founded in 2004 that focused on developing a novel grid-scale electricity storage system. The company ceased operations and was dissolved following liquidation in October 2017.

The core of Isentropic's work was its Pumped Heat Electricity Storage (PHES) system. This technology was designed to convert electrical energy into thermal energy by creating a significant temperature difference. The process involved using electricity to power a custom heat pump that would compress and expand argon gas, heating one large, insulated container of gravel to approximately 500°C and cooling another to -160°C. To regenerate electricity, the cycle was reversed, using the stored temperature difference to run a heat engine. This approach aimed for a round-trip efficiency of 75% and was intended to offer a low-cost, geographically independent alternative to other grid-scale storage solutions like pumped hydro.

A significant milestone for Isentropic was securing £14 million ($22 million) in project funding and equity investment from the UK's Energy Technologies Institute (ETI) in 2012. This investment, a first of its kind in terms of equity from the ETI, was intended to fund the construction of a full-scale 1.5 MW / 6 MWh grid-connected demonstrator at a substation in the English Midlands. The company's leadership included CEO James McNaughten and CTO Jonathan Howes. Despite its promising technology and substantial backing, Isentropic entered administration in January 2016 and was subsequently dissolved. Following the company's closure, Newcastle University took over the lease of Isentropic's facility and key engineers in 2017 to continue research on the pumped heat energy storage concept.