October 6, 2013
Keywords: Manufacturing industry
The Heat Pump and Thermal Storage Technology Center of Japan, which is engaged in the promotion and related activities of thermal storage system, has been conducting a campaign every July, designating it as "thermal storage month," when it actively advertises the use of thermal storage systems to cut power consumption at peak hours in summer.
The thermal storage system stores heat in thermal storage tank enabling a shift in the time of power consumption after generation, bringing about many advantages. These advantages primarily include leveling the power consumption between daytime and night, achieving an energy conservation effect and environmental friendliness, with particularly marked effects seen in air-conditioning systems. In addition, there are secondary advantages; it is economical and useful in times of emergency.
In the face of the shortage of power supply after the Great East Japan Earthquake on March 11, 2011, the Center released an "Urgent Proposal" in June 2012 for compiling the advantages and past records of thermal storage systems that are excellent in terms of environment engineering, and actively recommended introducing the system.
The thermal storage system has mainly been expanded to newly developed areas, such as the Tokyo Skytree® area.