Utilizing natural gas based on chemical storage system for boosting power plants

This study presents a performance evaluation of a conventional steam power plant integrated with a chemical energy storage system based on the reversible methane steam reforming. By enabling the plant to run in two modes, charging and discharging, operational flexibility is attained. In cases of low grid demand, a portion of the boiler steam output is redirected to an endothermic reformer, where additional thermal energy is preserved as synthesis gas. The stored energy is released through the exothermic methanation process and used to power a secondary cycle in higher demand. At design condition, the system achieves a round-trip thermal efficiency of 83%. In addition, the operation points of the primary turbine, increased the efficiency from 33.6% to 41%, resulting in a total plant efficiency of 31.43%, Parametric evaluation suggests that steam diversion and machine scale enhance overall performance. Overall, the integrated system provides an efficient solution to energy time shifting.