Molten salt thermal storage technology:

The molten salt is a mixture of 60 % sodium nitrate and 40 %

potassium-nitrate, commonly called saltpeter.
The melting point is 430 F and is maintained at liquid state at 550 F
in an insulated cold storage tank.
The salt is passed to the top of the receiver, where concentrated
sunlight heats it to 1050 F.
After heating, it is sent to a hot storage tank. The size of the tank
depends on the utility.
When needed, the hot salt is pumped to a conventional steam
turbine to produce electricity.
electricity can be generated in periods of inclement weather or even
at night using the stored thermal energy in the hot salt tank.
The tanks are well insulated and can store energy for up to a week.

Studies show that the two-tank storage system could have an

annual efficiency of about 99 percent.

Several parabolic trough power plants in Spain[14] and solar power

tower developer SolarReserve use this thermal energy storage concept. The Solana
Generating Station in the U.S. can store 6 hours worth of generating capacity in molten
salt. During the summer of 2013 the Gemasolar Thermosolar solar power tower/molten
salt plant in Spain achieved a first by continuously producing electricity 24 hours per day
for 36 days
PHES:

Isentropic, a company Mr Howes co-founded with two

colleagues, developed several prototypes of pumped-
heat electricity storage (PHES).
The PHES system consists of two silos each filled with
crushed rock, such as gravel.
The silos are connected by pipes filled with an inert
gas, argon.
When there is electricity, argon is compressed using a
compressor and the argon is heated to 500 0 C.
When argon is passed through the first silo it heats it.
The obtained gas is expanded resulting in lowering its
temperature to about -150 0 C. When it is pumped
through the second silo it cools the gravel.
The resulting difference between the silos can be used
to generate electricity by reversing the process. The hot
gas from the hot vessel is expanded to drive a generator and then supplied to the cold
store. The cooled gas retrieved from the bottom of the cold store is compressed which
heats the gas to ambient temperature. The gas is then transferred to the bottom of the
hot vessel to be reheated.
 Gas heated by the hot silo flows to the cold one,
driving the cylinders of what had been the pump to
turn what had been the motor as a generator.
Isentropic says PHES is able to store and discharge
electricity with a round-trip efficiency of 72-80%.
Pumped-hydro uses surplus electricity to pump water
between two lakes on a mountain side, one higher
than the other. Once the water is in the higher lake it
can be released at will and used to drive a
hydroelectric plant. Pumped-hydro is efficient, but you
have to have a nearby mountain to make it work.
Based on its capital cost amortised over 25 years and
its running costs, is $50 a megawatt hour. The price of
pumped-hydro varies a lot, as installations differ in
detail and ease of construction, but is typically around
$65 a megawatt hour, so the heat-pump system looks
competitive.