Interactive Sand Battery

2022

Initial Conception & First Prototype

Concept Origin

Summer 2022

Inspired by Finland's sand battery, Kent began exploring thermal energy storage for agricultural applications.

First Public Concept Discussion

September 30, 2022

Presented concept at private event: Using thermal storage to revolutionize energy-intensive agricultural practices.

First Working Proof-of-Concept

October 2022

Built at home using off-the-shelf consumer parts; 20kg fine white sand in stainless steel double-layer container; achieved 165°C internal while exterior remained safe at 40°C; output warm water at ~60°C via copper tube.

Field Research

November 3, 2022

Visited boutique tea factory and off-grid house to assess real-world applications replacing wood-furnace dryers.

Thermal Breakthrough

November 4, 2022

Core reached 150°C while exterior stayed at 28°C (cool to touch)—validating the heat isolation design.

Prototype Zero Completed

December 2022

"Prototype Zero" completed in balcony lab, establishing the baseline architecture for all future iterations.

2023

Industrial Scaling & Patent Filing

Vietnamese Patent Filed

August 15, 2023

Vietnamese Patent Application No. 1-2023-05430 filed, defining key innovations: heat isolation valves and distributed heating elements in protective carbon-based tubes.

Industrial-Scale Prototype Success

August 22, 2023

First industrial-scale prototype successful: 800kg-2 tons of sand, reached 600°C, maintained heat for nearly 3 weeks.

2024

Commercial Units & USPTO Approval

Sand Battery v2.0 Design

Early 2024 (Q1-Q2)

Designed and tested v2.0 (~250kWh capacity) with rotary dryer system for commercial applications.

USPTO Patent Application Filed

April 1, 2024

Formal USPTO patent application filed using Vietnamese application as priority document.

First Full-Size Commercial Unit

June 27, 2024

First full-size commercial unit completed: 5 tons of sand capacity.

USPTO Patent Granted Approved

October 29, 2024

USPTO Patent Granted: US 12,130,086 B1 "Thermal Storage Batteries and Thermal Storage Battery Systems for Drying Agricultural and Food Products". Kent named inventor on the granted patent.