FINDING THE VALIDITY OF USING A VANADIUM REDOX FLOW BATTERY TO LOAD SHIFT THE HODGES LIBRARY OFF PERIODS OF PEAK DEMAND

The University of Tennessee Green Fee program wanted to find a way to reduce energy costs in the Hodges Library by load shifting. Several options were investigated before vanadium redox flow batteries were selected as possibly the best viable option. The Hodges Library was modeled to compute estimates for the load profile of the library during on and off peak hours. These loads were then used with the electricity rate structure to find that there was a potential to save almost $200,000 per year. Several companies who manufacture these batteries were contacted for pricing and availability of a battery array that would fit the University’s needs. It was learned that outright purchasing a battery array would result in a cost that would take 15+ years to pay back for a battery with a 20 year lifespan.