Organic Active Material Electrolyte for Redox Flow Battery
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Solution Overview
Problem
Redox flow batteries face challenges with vanadium-based active materials due to low energy density, precipitation issues, and cost constraints, limiting their efficiency and stability.
Innovation Solution
An electrolyte solution for redox flow batteries using an organic active material such as alkyl viologen dihalide, 4,4-bipyridine, pyrazine, or quinoxaline dissolved in an aqueous solvent, which acts as a single active material for both cathode and anode, providing high solubility and a wide potential window.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If vanadium-based active material is used in redox flow battery, then the battery can store energy, but the energy density is low and precipitation occurs at extreme temperatures
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the chemical parameters of the active material from inorganic vanadium compounds to organic compounds (viologens, pyrazines, quinoxalines) with tailored molecular structures. This parameter change enables higher solubility in aqueous electrolytes, wider operational temperature ranges, and higher energy density while maintaining stability through reversible redox reactions.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs composite electrolyte formulations combining organic active materials with specific supporting electrolytes (such as tetraalkylammonium salts) and aqueous solvents. This composite approach enhances solubility, prevents precipitation, and maintains high energy density across varying temperatures by synergistically combining multiple functional components.
2Quantity of substance
If concentration of vanadium active material is increased to improve energy density, then energy density increases, but precipitation occurs on electrodes at low or high temperatures
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the chemical nature of the active material from vanadium compounds to organic compounds with higher intrinsic solubility in aqueous media. This parameter change allows achieving high energy density through increased concentration without the precipitation problems that plague vanadium systems at extreme temperatures.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs organic active materials that can be readily synthesized and replaced if needed, offering a cost-effective alternative to vanadium. These organic materials provide high solubility and prevent precipitation issues, allowing high concentration operation without the harmful effects of electrode deposition.
3Ease of operation
If Fe/Cr active material is used in redox flow battery, then the battery can operate, but active material permeates through separator and corrosion occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs organic active materials with larger molecular sizes and tailored charge distributions that act as intermediaries between electron transfer and solution stability. These organic compounds do not permeate through standard separators like Fe/Cr do, and their molecular structures resist corrosion, maintaining operational reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the physical and chemical parameters of the active material from small inorganic ions (Fe2+, Cr3+) to larger organic molecules. This parameter change fundamentally alters the interaction with separators, preventing permeation, and improves corrosion resistance through the stability of organic molecular structures in aqueous electrolytes.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The organic active material solution enhances the stability and reversibility of redox reactions, reduces material costs, and prevents precipitation issues, thereby improving energy density and battery performance.
Implementation Method 1
a redox flow battery is a secondary battery that employs oxidation and reduction of a redox couple or an active material dissolved in an electrolyte solution
Implementation Method 2
an organic compound, useful as a single active material for a cathode and an anode, is dissolved in a water-soluble solvent
Data Source
AI summary
This invention relates to an electrolyte solution for a redox flow battery containing an organic active material, in which an organic compound useful as a single active material for a cathode and an anode is dissolved in a water-soluble solvent, and to a redox flow battery using the same. The electrolyte solution of the invention is an aqueous electrolyte solution obtained by dissolving an active material in an aqueous solvent, and is thus very stable due to the low risk of fire or explosion. Furthermore, the organic compound is applied as a single active material to the cathode and the anode, and thus, when the capacity of the battery is decreased due to the permeation of the active material through the separator, the battery capacity can be restored through rebalancing.