Energy storage and delivery in idle oil and gas pipelines
CAPS, short for Compressed Air Pipeline Systems, turns stranded oil and gas pipelines into long-distance energy storage and delivery networks. Breeze injects compressed air into the pipeline, where it stays until it is needed. Energy nodes along the route release it through turbines for electricity, cooling, EV charging, greenhouses or hydrogen production.
What pipeline energy storage is
| Pipeline | Idle steel oil and gas lines |
|---|---|
| Role of the pipe | Storage and delivery |
| Nodes supply | Electricity, cooling, EV charging, greenhouses, hydrogen production |
| Permits and easements | No new ones |
| Compressor drive | Gas, then renewables |
Pipeline energy storage is the use of a pipeline as both a store of energy and the route that delivers it. In a Compressed Air Pipeline System, or CAPS, the pipeline is an idle steel oil or gas line that no longer has a product to carry. A compressor, driven first by a natural gas engine, takes in outside air and pushes it into the pipe under pressure. The air stays in the pipeline until it is needed, and compressing at one point and releasing at another can happen at the same time. Along the route, off-ramps take air from the pipe at the places that need energy. At each one the air is released through a turbine that turns a generator, with no fuel burned there, and the cold air leaving the turbine can be used for cooling. Later, a motor run on solar or wind power replaces the gas engine, and the pipeline and the turbines stay.
Who CAPS is for
Pipeline owners
CAPS is for owners of stranded oil and gas pipelines that are in the ground with nothing to carry.
Oil and gas firms
The system starts with gas engines and compressors, equipment that oil and gas operations already know.
Energy users along the route
EV charging sites, manufacturing plants, edge data centers, villages, greenhouses and hydrogen producers can each take air at an off-ramp.
The problem it solves
A quarter (25%) of the 3 million miles of oil and gas pipelines in the US are idle. A stranded pipeline is already built and already has its route, but it has no product to move.
CAPS gives that pipeline a second use as an energy network that delivers along its whole length. Repurposing an existing pipeline needs no new permits or easements, and it gives the owner a low-risk entry into net-zero infrastructure. Breeze describes this as unlimited long duration energy storage at the lowest CAPEX.
How CAPS works along a pipeline
One pipeline is the store and the delivery route at once.
Assess the pipeline
The work starts with the idle pipeline itself. Breeze looks for an empty steel pipeline: the length should be miles, and the wider the better.
Inject compressed air
A gas engine drives a compressor that takes in outside air and pushes it into the pipeline.
Hold the air in the pipe
The air stays in the pipeline until it is needed. Compressing and releasing can happen at the same time.
Release it at nodes along the route
At each off-ramp the air runs a turbine that turns a generator. The turbine’s cold exhaust is available for cooling.
What the pipeline powers along its route
Turbines
At an off-ramp the air runs a turbine that turns a generator. The node gets electricity, and the turbine’s cold exhaust for cooling.
EV charging
An off-ramp can supply an EV charging site on the pipeline’s route, with the electricity generated at the node.
Greenhouses
Greenhouses can be served along the route. Breeze names agriculture as one of the new industries a repurposed pipeline enables.
Hydrogen production
A node can supply hydrogen production along the route, the other new industry Breeze names for CAPS.
| Energy stored | 675 megawatt hours in 200 meters of 34-inch pipeline |
|---|---|
| Idle US pipelines | 25% of 3 million miles |
| Delivery distance | Projects in design run 300 to 400 miles |
Questions about pipeline energy storage
Does a repurposed pipeline need new permits or easements?
No. CAPS repurposes a pipeline that is already in place, with no new permits or easements.
How long does the air stay in the pipeline?
Until it is needed. The air can be stored indefinitely and delivered on demand without energy loss. The pipe does not have to be filled first and emptied later, because compressing and releasing can happen at the same time.
What can a node along the pipeline supply?
Electricity and cooling, and through them EV charging, greenhouses and hydrogen production. Breeze also names manufacturing plants, edge data centers and villages as places an off-ramp can serve.
How much energy can a pipeline hold?
200 meters of 34-inch pipeline can store 675 megawatt hours.
Is any fuel burned along the route?
No. Fuel is used only at the compressor, where a gas engine drives it at first. The turbines at the nodes run on the released air alone.
Energy storage in pipelines, explained on video
What the video covers
The video explains how idle steel oil and gas pipelines hold compressed air and carry it over long distances. It shows off-ramps along the route serving EV charging, a manufacturing plant, an edge data center, a village, greenhouses and hydrogen production, with compressors that start on natural gas and move to solar.
The same system, used elsewhere
How it works
The whole chain in four stages: compressor, pipeline, turbine, and the move from gas to renewable power.
How compressed air pipeline energy worksCommunity microgrids
Powerhood supplies electricity and cooling to microgrids of 150 to 200 homes, and can be installed before the homes are built.
About Powerhood microgridsData center cooling
Cold turbine exhaust air, supplied on site or by pipeline, cools a data center through its standard ventilation.
About data center coolingHave a pipeline with nothing to carry?
Tell us its length, its diameter and where it runs.