Large-scale Battery Energy Storage Research Articles

Comparing different battery thermal management systems for suppressing thermal runaway propagation

Thermal runaway (TR) stands as a critical risk in battery applications. Even though various battery thermal management systems (BTMSs) have been proposed to mitigate thermal runaway propagation, a comprehensive comparison remains elusive. This study evaluates the performance of three types of BTMSs with 5 configurations, which include: liquid cooling with cold plates added on the bottom (BTMS-1a), liquid cooling with cold plates added on the sides (BTMS-1b), liquid cooling with cold plates added between batteries (BTMS-1c), integrating thermal insulation materials between batteries (BTMS-2), and implementing phase change materials between batteries (BTMS-3). The highest temperature, propagation time, temperature uniformity, cooling rate, mass energy density, and volume energy density are used as key performance indicators for comparison. In general, BTMS-2 and BTMS-3 show advantages in energy density, however, their performances on TR suppression and battery thermal management are poor. BTMS-1c can suppress TR effectively at high flowrates, whereas it can lead to poor temperature uniformity. Suggestions are also provided regarding the selection of BTMSs for different applications: BTMS-1b, BTMS-1c, and BTMS-3 are recommended for small EVs, large EVs and large scale battery energy storage systems (BESSs), and small BESSs, respectively.

A Fast and Highly Stable Aqueous Calcium-Ion Battery for Sustainable Energy Storage.

Aqueous alkali-ion batteries are gaining traction as a low-cost, sustainable alternative to conventional organic lithium-ion batteries. However, the rapid degradation of commonly used electrode materials, such as Prussian Blue Analogs and carbonyl-based organic compounds, continues to challenge the economic viability of these devices. While stability issues can be addressed by employing highly concentrated water-in-salt electrolytes, this approach often requires expensive and, in many cases, fluorinated salts. Here, we show that replacing monovalent K+ ions with divalent Ca2+ ions in the electrolyte significantly enhances the stability of both a copper hexacyanoferrate cathode and a polyimide anode. These findings have direct implications for developing an optimized aqueous Ca-ion battery that demonstrates exceptional fast-charging capabilities and ultra-long cycle life and points toward applying Ca-based batteries for large-scale energy storage.

Revealing the intricacies of natural convection: A key factor in aqueous zinc battery design

Aqueous zinc-based batteries offer high safety, abundant resources, low cost, and environmental friendliness, making them a promising alternative to lithium-ion batteries for large-scale energy storage markets. However, the natural convection in the electrolyte during operation, which can greatly affect the battery performance, is overlooked for a long time. Through particle tracing experiments, this study demonstrates that in the vertical placement of the battery, natural convection occurs due to the variation of electrolyte density, whereas it does not happen when the cathode is on top. Besides, there is a significant difference in electrochemical performance between these two configurations, with a voltage difference of up to 0.25 V at 10 mA cm⁻² and a peak current difference of up to 3.4 mA in linear sweep voltammetry. Simulation results show that convective mass transfer can be up to 100 times greater than diffusive mass transfer in a bulk solution. This highlights the importance of considering natural convection to improve model accuracy. Further, to increase energy density, batteries are scaled up in practical applications to reduce the weight of the casing. This work simulates mass transfer conditions under various scenarios, illustrating the trade-off between current density and battery size, and offering new guidance for the design of aqueous zinc-based batteries.

Stabilizing water and regulating interfacial electrostatic interaction with economical supporting salt for stable Zn metal anode

Developing rechargeable aqueous Zn batteries for large-scale energy storage is impeded by inadequate reversibility and stability of the Zn anode, primarily caused by parasitic reactions and heterogeneous deposition. This study proposes an economical electrolyte strategy to address these Zn-related issues. The addition of a supporting salt enhances the thermodynamic stability of water, reduces the number of highly reactive water molecules, and modulates the interfacial electrostatic interaction. This approach effectively suppresses hydrogen evolution reaction and uncontrolled deposition. Remarkably, the rationally proportioned electrolyte allows a high average Coulombic efficiency of 99.93% for 1000 cycles in a Zn||Cu battery and a prolonged lifespan exceeding 4800 h in Zn||Zn cells. The knock-on effect is that Zn||MnO2 pouch cells deliver stable cycling performance, demonstrating the viability of this approach for practical applications.

Re-understanding and mitigating hydrogen release chemistry toward reversible aqueous zinc metal batteries

Interfacial H2 release severely limits the reversibility and feasibility of aqueous Zn metal batteries for large-scale energy storage. Different from the conventional perception that H2 release mainly originates from the competition between hydrogen evolution reaction and Zn plating process, we herein surprisingly find that non-negligible H2 is also generated during stripping due to the accelerated chemical corrosion of the newly exposed Zn surface. To address this issue, we systematically screened the organic additives with different molecular structures and functional groups. Interestingly, a positive correlation between the adsorption strength of additives and the ability to inhibit the interfacial hydrogen release is found. Taking cysteamine (MEA) as a model additive, a gradient solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) is in situ formed at the Zn surface, acting as a chemical “barrier” to isolate interfacial water molecules from electrode surface consequently enable a higher Coulombic efficiency (>99.5%, 4000 cycles) compared with that of MEA-free electrolyte (98.1%, 189 cycles). This work provides a new understanding of the interfacial hydrogen release mechanism and the criteria for selecting additives for aqueous Zn metal anodes.

A voltage-decoupled Zn-Br2 flow battery for large-scale energy storage

The flow battery represents a highly promising energy storage technology for the large-scale utilization of environmentally friendly renewable energy sources. However, the increasing discharge power of rechargeable battery results in a higher charge voltage due to its coupling relationship in charge-discharge processes, intensifying the burden of renewable energy power systems. Herein, we proposed a voltage-decoupled Na+-conducting Zn-Br2 flow battery (Ud-Na-ZBFB). Within a pH-regulation strategy, both neutral Zn/Zn2+ and alkaline Zn/Zn(OH)42− negative redox couples are integrated into one device, so as to increase discharge voltage a 0.5 V theoretical increase while remains a low charge voltage. The proof-of-concept Ud-Na-ZBFB demonstrates an unprecedented voltage characteristic, achieving a discharge voltage of up to 2.18 V while maintaining a remarkably low charge voltage of 1.78 V at a current density of 20 mA cm−2. Benefiting from the high discharge voltage, the peak power density of Ud-Na-ZBFB reaches 580 mW cm−2, nearly twice higher than the traditional ZBFB. Besides, the Ud-Na-ZBFB cycling operates for 45 h with excellent stability and resilience. With the “cycle-to-stage” operational mode, battery state of Ud-Na-ZBFB can be completely recovered after a long-term operation stage with several cycles, which electrolyte utilization efficiency of one stage is up to 41 %. This work offers a brand-new utilization pattern for high-power rechargeable battery that possesses a great potential in energy storage application scenes.

Co-Regulating Solvation Structure and Hydrogen Bond Network via Bio-Inspired Additive for Highly Reversible ZincAnode.

The feasibility of aqueous zinc-ion batteries for large-scale energy storage is hindered by the inherent challenges of Zn anode. Drawing inspiration from cellular mechanisms governing metal ion and nutrient transport, erythritol is introduced, a zincophilic additive, into the ZnSO4 electrolyte. This innovation stabilizes the Zn anode via chelation interactions between polysaccharides and Zn2+. Experimental tests in conjunction with theoretical calculation results verified that the erythritol additive can simultaneously regulate the solvation structure of hydrated Zn2+ and reconstruct the hydrogen bond network within the solution environment. Additionally, erythritol molecules preferentially adsorb onto the Zn anode, forming a dynamic protective layer. These modifications significantly mitigate undesirable side reactions, thus enhancing the Zn2+ transport and deposition behavior. Consequently, there is a notable increase in cumulative capacity, reaching 6000mA h cm⁻2 at a current density of 5mA cm-2. Specifically, a high average coulombic efficiency of 99.72% and long cycling stability of >500 cycles are obtained at 2mA cm-2 and 1mA h cm-2. Furthermore, full batteries comprised of MnO2 cathode and Zn anode in an erythritol-containing electrolyte deliver superior capacity retention. This work provides a strategy to promote the performance of Zn anodes toward practical applications.

Analytical investigation of interleaved input/output parallel DAB converter for grid scale battery storage

With the surge of integration of intermittent renewable energy sources into the grid the installation of large scale battery energy storage is rising at a rapid rate to support the power system. The grid scale battery storage needs to be scalable with varying power system requirements. Parallel connected modular dual active bridge (DAB) converter with high frequency transformers interface can facilitate adjustable large power flow for grid scale battery storage. The high gain between LV and HV side can be achieved using isolated high frequency transformers and parallelism of the DAB converter with efficient and smooth bidirectional power transfer capability. In this paper, a generalized interleaving operation (ILO) on both input and output parallel connected DAB (IOPDAB) converter has been proposed for large energy storage capability and to enable improved quality of power flow. The generalized expressions of peak currents, average circulating current and active power flow, has been developed for the IOPDAB converter with n-parallel connected DAB modules. A detailed analytical investigation has been carried out to show the improved currents profile in both input and output sides in the interleaved mode. The operating performance of the IOPDAB converter has been shown using PSCAD/EMTDC software based simulation. The results are verified through laboratory experimental setup with two interleaved I/O parallel DAB using Spartan 3AN FPGA processor as controller. A performance comparison has been done with the non-interleaving operation (NILO) and interleaving operation (ILO) modes, and it is shown that the ILO mode has better performance in terms of efficiency, Input/output ripple current reduction, increased ripple frequency and circulating current minimization.

Life Cycle Assessment and Costing of Large-Scale Battery Energy Storage Integration in Lombok’s Power Grid

Life Cycle Assessment and Costing of Large-Scale Battery Energy Storage Integration in Lombok’s Power Grid

Proton Activity and Pathway in Aqueous Organic Redox Flow Battery Electrolyte

Aqueous soluble organic (ASO) redox-active materials have recently shown great promise as alternatives to transition metal ions employed as energy-bearing active materials in redox flow batteries for large-scale energy storage because of their structural tunability, cost-effectiveness, availability, and safety features. However, development so far has been limited to a small palette of organics that are aqueous soluble. This presentation will use fluorenone as an example to showcase how a natively redox-inactive molecule can be tuned to possess two-electron redox reversibility through hydrogenation and dehydrogenation. The modified fluorenone molecules demonstrated high energy density and recorded stable cycling. Furthermore, research has shown the unique chemical-electrochemical coupled redox reactions mechanism; thus, the system rate capabilities can be improved by incorporating suitable hydrogen acceptors that regulate the proton pathway for faster kinetics.Reference:Feng et al., Science 372, 836–840, 2021Feng et al., Joule 7, 1–14, 2023

High-Rate and Durable Zinc-Based Flow Batteries for Large-Scale Energy Storage

Large-scale energy storage is a key enabling technology for the widespread adoption of renewable energy such as wind and solar power. Among various technologies, zinc-based flow batteries stand out as one of the most promising candidates due to the high energy density, low cost, and use of earth-abundant active materials. However, the low operating current density and short cycle life resulting from notorious zinc dendrite formation, large internal resistance, and sluggish reaction kinetics pose a great challenge for their practical applications. Although great efforts have been made to address these issues, previous works mainly focused on one specific aspect, making it challenging to boost the overall performance of zinc-based flow batteries. In this presentation, a systematic study on the effects of key components on the electrochemical performance of zinc-bromine flow batteries will be presented. Our results show that all key components (electrodes, electrolytes, membranes, and flow fields) can exert a significant influence on the electrochemical performance. More impressively, a high areal capacity of >200 mAh/cm2 and an operating current density of as high as 400 mA/cm2 can be achieved by optimizing the design and operating parameters. Underlying mechanisms and perspectives for further improvement will be discussed during the presentation.

Rechargeable Hydrogen Gas Batteries for Large-Scale Energy Storage

Large-scale energy storage is of significance to the integration of renewable energy into electric grid. Despite the dominance of pumped hydroelectricity in the market of grid energy storage, it is limited by the suitable site selection and footprint impact. Rechargeable batteries show increasing interests in the large-scale energy storage. However, the challenging requirement of low-cost materials with long cycle and calendar life restricts most battery chemistries for use in the grid storage. Recently we developed a new generation of rechargeable hydrogen gas batteries by exploiting catalytic hydrogen evolution/oxidation reactions as the anode, which offers negligible overpotentials, high rates and stable electrochemical performance. In this poster, I will introduce some exciting rechargeable hydrogen gas battery chemistries, including novel nickel-hydrogen gas, proton-hydrogen gas, chlorine-hydrogen gas, and among others. The excellent stability and low cost of the rechargeable hydrogen gas batteries demonstrate attractive characteristics for large-scale energy storage.

Design of hundred mw level shared BESSs and “Clean Energy + Energy Storage” joint operation mode

Abstract This paper presents the background of the construction of the Fujian Xiapu shared energy storage power station project. It also establishes the structure of the dispatching energy management system (EMS) for a large-scale Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) based on the energy storage station’s topology. The design and implementation method of the monitoring module for the energy storage power station is introduced, along with the proposition of the joint operation mode of “clean energy + energy storage”. Additionally, the technical requirements and feasibility of this mode are discussed. The shared energy storage operation mode can effectively enhance the energy conversion efficiency of the battery system while significantly reducing costs.

Noise control tactics to balance the demand for sustainable energy storage, community tranquility, and environmental regulatory compliance

As the construction of large-scale Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) facilities increases in California, their impact on urban sprawl is also becoming more pronounced. Projects involving BESS arrangements increasingly find themselves within or near residential land uses in California, providing greater challenges for noise control and abatement to comply with state and local operational noise thresholds. This paper presents case studies of what Dudek has found to be the most efficient noise control tactics related to lowering the noise emission of BESS facilities, particularly through the implementation of onsite noise walls, direct noise attenuation applied to BESS equipment (i.e., noise attenuation for battery thermal management systems involving the operation of ventilation fans and refrigeration system components), and modified BESS equipment arrangements. These strategies are essential for ensuring that BESS projects are not only compliant with environmental standards but also socially acceptable within residential communities. By presenting practical and efficient noise mitigation techniques, this paper aims to guide planners and developers in the sustainable development of BESS facilities, balancing the demand for energy storage with the preservation of community tranquility and compliance with regulatory noise limits.

Stabilizing dual-cation liquid metal battery for large-scale energy storage: A comprehensive hybrid design approach

Liquid metal batteries (LMBs) hold immense promise for large-scale energy storage. However, normally LMBs are based on single type of cations (e.g., Ca2+, Li+, Na+), and as a result subject to inherent limitations associated with each type of single cation, such as the low energy density in Ca-based LMBs, the high energy cost in Li-based LMBs, and the short cycling lifespan in Na-based LMBs. Here we propose a dual-cation (Ca2+ and Li+) liquid metal battery, which allows access to, simultaneously, high energy density, prolonged cycling lifespan, reduced energy cost, and enhanced cycling stability. For this strategy to work, the main obstacle to overcome is the instability of the dual-cation system in electrochemical reactions. We have undertaken a hybrid design approach to resolve this issue, by integrating phase diagram design, first-principles calculations, and machine learning techniques. We discover that incorporating magnesium as an inert additive can effectively stabilize the cycling performance of dual-cation LMBs. Furthermore, our results reveal that specific ion ratios are required to release tailor dual-cation chemistry, to enable the designed multi-component alloy (Ca-Li-Mg in our case) electrode to function properly in LMBs. These findings are expected to have general implications for future developments of innovative LMBs with enhanced performance.

Heterostructured MnSe/FeSe nanorods encapsulated by carbon with enhanced Na+ diffusion as anode materials for sodium-ion batteries

The natural abundance of sodium has fostered the development of sodium-ion batteries for large-scale energy storage. However, the low capacity of the anodes hinders their future application. Herein, carbon-encapsulated MnSe-FeSe nanorods (MnSe-FeSe@C) have been fabricated by the in-situ transformation from polydopamine-coated MnO(OH)-Fe2O3. The heterostructure constructed by MnSe and FeSe nanocrystals induces the formation of built-in electric fields, accelerating electron transfer and ion diffusion, thereby improving reaction kinetics. In addition, carbon enclosure can buffer the volumetric stress and enhance the electrical conductivity. These aspects cooperatively endow the anode with superior cycling stability and distinguished rate performance. Specifically, the discharge capacity of MnSe-FeSe@C reaches 414.3 mA h g−1 at 0.1 A g−1 and 388.8 mA h g−1 even at a high current density of 5.0 A g−1. In addition, it still retains a high reversible capacity of 449.2 mA h g−1 after 700 long cycles at 1.0 A g−1. Further, the ab initio calculation has been employed to authenticate the existence of the built-in electric field by Bader charge, indicating that 0.24 electrons in MnSe were transferred to FeSe. The in-situ XRD has been used to evaluate the phase transition during the charging/discharging process, revealing the sodium ion storage mechanism. The construction of heterostructure material paves a new way to design performance-enhanced anode materials for sodium-ion batteries.

Low-cost H2/K+ hybrid batteries for large-scale energy storage

Rechargeable hydrogen gas batteries are gaining significant attention as a highly reliable electrochemical energy storage technology. However, the high costs of both cathode and anode limit their widespread applications. Here, we demonstrate a low-cost H2/K+ hybrid battery using Fe–Mn-based Prussian white - K2·74Mn[Fe(CN)6]0.90·0.13H2O (KMF) as cathode and non-noble metal high entropy alloy (NNM-HEA) as anode. It demonstrates a high capacity of 146.1 mAh g−1 at 1 A g−1 with excellent rate performance and stability. Even with a ∼7-fold increase in active loading of the KMF cathode, the capacity of the H2/K+ battery remains as high as 100.5 mAh g−1. Furthermore, a low-cost H2/K+ hybrid battery using our newly developed NNM-HEA based hydrogen catalytic anode is successfully fabricated, which shows an extended capacity with a retention of 90% after 1200 cycles. This work will pave the way for designing low-cost electrode materials for high-performance, large-scale energy storage hydrogen gas batteries.

Improved rule-based power distribution algorithm for hybrid battery storage systems and real-world validation

Large-scale battery energy storage systems (BESS) can serve many applications and are already widely used for grid services. The rapidly growing BESS market and the recent interest in their deployment accentuate the need for safe, reliable, and highly available energy management systems (EMS) for automated control. However, the EMS and their integrated power distribution algorithms (PDA) can still be optimized to adapt various characteristics of the BESS. This study investigates a new version of a PDA with a particular focus on battery aging and system efficiency. The rule-based PDA has been validated on a 6 MW/7.5 MWh BESS system with five battery technologies providing frequency containment reserve to the German power grid. The results underline the PDA's capability to exploit the individual strengths of each battery technology. The PDA sets objectives for the state of charge, energy throughput, and power of the batteries to extend battery life. The distribution of energy throughputs among batteries can be selected in advance through the new implementation of the PDA. At the same time, the inverters are significantly less often activated and used in the optimal efficiency range, increasing the overall system efficiency to approximately 82 %. The optimized switching behavior leads to less frequent power switching between individual battery units and longer phases with more constant power. In addition, the operational efficiency of BESS can be improved by the choice of battery technology and the overall system layout on the hardware side. The improvements on the software side are only possible by increasing the overall power requests through multi-use operation by about 6 % compared to our benchmark test. The results can be used by BESS operators to increase operational profits due to longer battery life and fewer efficiency losses.

Separator pore size induced oriented Zn deposition

Aqueous zinc batteries (AZBs) are promising alternatives to lead-acid batteries for large-scale energy storage. In this work, we developed a TiO2-grafted polyethylene (TiO2-PE) separator for AZBs with excellent hydrophilicity. The TiO2-PE separator demonstrates the thinnest thickness of 9 μm, significantly decreasing the inactive mass of the entire battery comparing with the commercial glass fiber separator (260 μm). We further prove that the separator pore size can modulate the Zn deposition morphology. The (002)-orientated Zn deposition is induced when the pore size is smaller than the crystal critical length. Therefore, the 0.2 μm pores in TiO2-PE induce a (002)-orientated Zn deposition, while the 2 μm pores in glass fiber lead to a randomly oriented growth of Zn metal. This work highlights the opportunities in the pore size-modulated deposition/dissolution process in Zn and other metal batteries.

Lithium-Ion Batteries on Board: A Review on Their Integration for Enabling the Energy Transition in Shipping Industry

The emission reductions mandated by International Maritime Regulations present an opportunity to implement full electric and hybrid vessels using large-scale battery energy storage systems (BESSs). lithium-ionion batteries (LIB), due to their high power and specific energy, which allows for scalability and adaptability to large transportation systems, are currently the most widely used electrochemical storage system. Hence, BESSs are the focus of this review proposing a comprehensive discussion on the commercial LIB chemistries that are currently available for marine applications and their potential role in ship services. This work outlines key elements that are necessary for designing a BESS for ships, including an overview of the regulatory framework for large-scale onboard LIB installations. The basic technical information about system integration has been summarized from various research projects, white papers, and test cases mentioned in available studies. The aim is to provide state-of-the-art information about the installation of BESSs on ships, in accordance with the latest applicable rules for ships. The goal of this study is to facilitate and promote the widespread use of batteries in the marine industry.