Development of a novel redox flow battery for electricity storage system

Abstract

A novel cylindrical battery which uses carbon fibres with high specific surface area as electrodes and a porous silica glass with high chemical stability as membrane has been fabricated. The results obtained from electrolysis of 0.5 M K3Fe(CN)6–0.5 M KCl and of 85 mM V(IV)–1 M H2SO4 indicate that the cell possesses excellent electrolytic efficiency. As a redox flow battery (RFB) its performance was investigated by employing all-vanadium sulfate electrolytes. The results of the cyclic voltammetry measurements indicate that at a glassy carbon electrode the electrochemical window for 2 M H2SO4 solution could reach 2.0 ∼ 2.4 V. Constant current charging–discharging tests indicate that the batteries could deliver a specific energy of 24 Wh L−1 at a current density of 55 mA cm−2. The open-circuit cell voltage, after full charging, remained constant at about 1.51 V for over 72 h, while the coulombic efficiency was over 91%, showing that there was negligible self-discharge due to active ions diffusion through the membrane during this period.