Rethinking Redox Flow Batteries
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Manchester
Department Name: Chemistry
Abstract
Concerns about climate change and urban pollution have prompted a shift from our current over-reliance on energy derived from oil, coal and gas. Technological advances have made it easier to extract energy from "renewable " sources - solar, wind, tidal - however a defining feature of such sources is their intermittent nature, so they can only be reliably exploited if there are ways to store that energy. Electricity cannot be stored, but electricity can be used to drive electrochemical reactions which store the electrical energy as chemical energy. This is the basis of a battery - achieving efficient energy storage, using electrochemical means, is therefore one of the most prominent technological challenges facing the UK and, indeed, all advanced economies.
Small scale devices based on lithium ion battery (LIB) technology have revolutionised power requirements for mobile devices over the last decade. In the current decade, a shift in energy storage methods for electric vehicles is underway with increasing interest (and sales) of LIB powered cars . The next challenge is to "scale up" the energy storage process to the scale of the electrical grid - can we develop large scale batteries which would enable us to store large amounts of electricity to power houses, schools and factories? The UK is blessed with ample (potential) wind, tidal and wave resources: although there are technical challenges involved in harnessing these resources, there is also a need to develop cheaper batteries which would not necessarily be based on LIB technology - because the batteries themselves would be stationary, so their mass and size becomes less important than their cost and lifetime.
This proposal seeks to develop the basis of an alternative battery technology called the redox flow battery which is designed for large-scale storage. The proposal does not seek to develop a battery which would be ready to deploy at the end of the project, further optimisation and engineering studies would be required to achieve such a goal. Rather we seek to develop the fundamental scientific principles which could lead to better performing (in terms of energy, cost and lifetime) redox flow batteries - based on two advances we propose: one which develops a "membrane-free" flow battery, the other develops novel types of materials to be used as the battery membranes.
Small scale devices based on lithium ion battery (LIB) technology have revolutionised power requirements for mobile devices over the last decade. In the current decade, a shift in energy storage methods for electric vehicles is underway with increasing interest (and sales) of LIB powered cars . The next challenge is to "scale up" the energy storage process to the scale of the electrical grid - can we develop large scale batteries which would enable us to store large amounts of electricity to power houses, schools and factories? The UK is blessed with ample (potential) wind, tidal and wave resources: although there are technical challenges involved in harnessing these resources, there is also a need to develop cheaper batteries which would not necessarily be based on LIB technology - because the batteries themselves would be stationary, so their mass and size becomes less important than their cost and lifetime.
This proposal seeks to develop the basis of an alternative battery technology called the redox flow battery which is designed for large-scale storage. The proposal does not seek to develop a battery which would be ready to deploy at the end of the project, further optimisation and engineering studies would be required to achieve such a goal. Rather we seek to develop the fundamental scientific principles which could lead to better performing (in terms of energy, cost and lifetime) redox flow batteries - based on two advances we propose: one which develops a "membrane-free" flow battery, the other develops novel types of materials to be used as the battery membranes.
Planned Impact
Three main routes for the dissemination, and hence maximisation of the impact, of the work are envisaged. The first is the conventional scientific publication route: both the PI and co-I have excellent publication records for their respective career stages (see Track Record). The second involves dissemination via presentation of the research at suitable conferences, both national and international. Support for post-doc and academic attendance at national and international meetings, both more "general" and specialised RFB meetings, has been requested (see Justification of Resources). Attendance at such meetings is important both for the presentation of the findings of the project to a suitable audience, but also to permit informal networks to be maintained and developed. Finally, industrial engagement/uptake of the research outputs is extremely important. Again, both the participating academics possess a large network of industrial collaborators and currently have various industrially supported projects underway in their laboratories. Specific routes to industrial dissemination will be achieved by the active participation of two collaborators who will provide materials, technical support and strategic advice to the project (see Letters of Support).
Further details are provided in the Pathways to Impact section.
Further details are provided in the Pathways to Impact section.
Publications
Elgendy A
(2021)
Nanoscale Chevrel-Phase Mo 6 S 8 Prepared by a Molecular Precursor Approach for Highly Efficient Electrocatalysis of the Hydrogen Evolution Reaction in Acidic Media
in ACS Applied Energy Materials
Ejigu A
(2021)
Reversible Electrochemical Energy Storage Based on Zinc-Halide Chemistry.
in ACS applied materials & interfaces
Jones A
(2022)
Quinone voltammetry for redox-flow battery applications
in Journal of Electroanalytical Chemistry
Papaderakis AA
(2022)
Taming Electrowetting Using Highly Concentrated Aqueous Solutions.
in The journal of physical chemistry. C, Nanomaterials and interfaces
Elliott J
(2022)
The electrochemical double layer at the graphene/aqueous electrolyte interface: what we can learn from simulations, experiments, and theory
in Journal of Materials Chemistry C
Elgendy A
(2022)
Nanocubes of Mo 6 S 8 Chevrel phase as active electrode material for aqueous lithium-ion batteries
in Nanoscale
Papaderakis AA
(2023)
Dielectric-free electrowetting on graphene.
in Faraday discussions
Papaderakis A
(2023)
Deciphering the mechanism of electrowetting on conductors with immiscible electrolytes
in Electrochimica Acta
Papaderakis AA
(2023)
Anion Intercalation into Graphite Drives Surface Wetting.
in Journal of the American Chemical Society
Al Nasser HA
(2023)
Electrochemical assessment of a tripodal thiourea-based anion receptor at the liquid|liquid interface.
in Physical chemistry chemical physics : PCCP
Papaderakis A
(2023)
The renaissance of electrowetting
in Current Opinion in Electrochemistry
Xiao W
(2023)
Synthesis of High Entropy and Entropy-Stabilized Metal Sulfides and Their Evaluation as Hydrogen Evolution Electrocatalysts
in Chemistry of Materials
Qu J
(2023)
A Low-Temperature Synthetic Route Toward a High-Entropy 2D Hexernary Transition Metal Dichalcogenide for Hydrogen Evolution Electrocatalysis.
in Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany)
Yang J
(2024)
Measuring the Capacitance of Carbon in Ionic Liquids: From Graphite to Graphene.
in The journal of physical chemistry. C, Nanomaterials and interfaces
Wei Z
(2024)
Relation between Double Layer Structure, Capacitance, and Surface Tension in Electrowetting of Graphene and Aqueous Electrolytes.
in Journal of the American Chemical Society
Description | We have developed new type of redox flow battery based on immiscible liquid phases, which allows us to dispense with the membrane component, normally present in existing batteries. |
Exploitation Route | We have obtained further funding for this research for SPRIND, the German Federal agency for Disruptive research. |
Sectors | Chemicals Energy |
Description | ndWe are in discussion about patenting work from this research. We have recently set up a spin-out company, HaliogenPower, to commercialise the work. Follow on funding was obtained from the German Federal "SPRIN-D" agency to enable this. The initial tranche of SPRIN-D funding was made as a research grant to the Univ, of Manchester. After a 12 month stage-gate, a further award of EUR 3 Million was made by SPRIN-D, but the condition of this second tranche was that the money had to be used to support a spin-out company - hence the creation of HaliogenPower. |
First Year Of Impact | 2022 |
Sector | Chemicals,Energy |
Impact Types | Economic |
Company Name | HalioGEN Power |
Description | HalioGEN Power manufactures long life batteries that are scalable for commercial purposes up to grid use. |
Year Established | 2023 |
Impact | THe company has just been formed |
Website | https://haliogen-power.com/ |