In the OCEANO 2023 Renewable Energy Case Study competition, the Champione Team from the Department of Chemical Engineering (DTK), Faculty of Engineering (FT), Universitas Indonesia (UI), namely Nadzwa Adzlia Chinara, Arifah Bening Saptana, and Inggarjati Qolbun Salim, emerged as the first winners. The students used paraffin as a material to produce electrical energy in designing a Thermal Energy Storage (TES) system. This victory was thanks to research based on case studies regarding Energy Storage Systems which had to be modified according to demand.
Paraffin is a hydrocarbon compound that is widely used because it has an important role in industry, crafts, and for daily use. Paraffin comes from crude oil that has gone through a refining process. It has unique properties, such as low reactivity and high stability. Moreover, paraffin is a hydrocarbon chemical that is affordable and easy to obtain.
According to Nadzwa, this project started by utilizing solar as an alternative energy source to overcome the energy crisis which is of global concern. Even though Indonesia supports the concept of net zero emissions and solar energy, the high tariff for using solar energy makes people prefer electricity from PLN which has a limited supply. Therefore, the Champione Team created an affordable and sustainable TES system.
The TES designed by Tim Champione uses photovoltaic (PV) panels and an inverter, with paraffin as the energy storage medium. Paraffin is an economical alternative compared to expensive ESS lithium-ion batteries for solar energy use in Indonesia. The use of solar panels in this TES system utilizes photo capture from sunlight, which then produces electric current through the photovoltaic effect.
“Paraffin is used in solar panel innovation, because it can produce twice the energy compared to conventional methods. The TES system with paraffin media can also save energy costs, because it can divert energy consumption. Melting and solidifying paraffin produces energy, thus heated paraffin can produce twice the energy. Apart from that, the risk of leakage when paraffin solidifies at room temperature is also very low,” said Nadzwa.
The innovation produced by the Champione Team in the event initiated by the Marine Engineering Study Program, Sepuluh Nopember Institute of Technology (ITS) in September 2023 received appreciation from the Dean of FTUI, Prof. Dr. Heri Hermansyah, S.T., M.Eng., IPU. “Utilizing solar energy is an important and increasingly relevant topic today, because solar energy is an unlimited energy source. This innovative idea from FTUI students considers economic aspects and environmental sustainability. Hopefully, this innovative idea can be implemented as an alternative to using solar energy,” he said.
