Worldwide demand for cooling and refrigeration systems are rising exponentially. Driven by a warming planet and a rapidly expanding middle class in developing economies, the use of cooling systems (e.g., air conditioners, cold storage units, beverage coolers, bulk milk coolers, etc.) is surging. In most countries, energy consumed by cooling systems account for a substantial portion of the total power used. Almost all current cooling systems operate on the vapor-compression thermodynamic cycle, where a circulating liquid refrigerant absorbs and removes heat from a cooled space (such as, for example, an enclosed room, cabinet, etc.), and rejects the heat elsewhere. However, such cooling systems consume large amounts of power. A recent intergovernmental study estimates that power consumption for residential air conditioning alone will increase over thirty-fold by the year 2100.
Furthermore, cooling systems (such as air conditioners) in a geographic area tend to turn on at the same time causing a surge in power use. To accommodate this demand surge, utilities in developed countries use “pecker plants” (gas turbines, etc.) which can provide instantaneous power at a significantly higher cost. Since consumers are unwilling to pay the higher rates, many parts of the developing world encounter blackouts as the demand exceeds supply. To reduce the cost of peak power, and the inconvenience of blackouts, it is desirable to shift some of the high electricity loads to non-peak time (e.g., morning, night, etc.). One way to accomplish this is by storing the energy needed to operate the cooling systems in batteries. However, electric battery cost is very high. Embodiments of the current disclosure provide systems and methods to alleviate some of these deficiencies. The scope of the current disclosure, however, is defined by the attached claims, and not by the ability to solve any specific problem.