How is energy stored in a vanadium electrolyte system?

The energy is stored in the vanadium electrolyte kept in the two separate external reservoirs. The system capacity (kWh) is determined by the volume of electrolyte in the storage tanks and the vanadium concentration in solution. During operation, electrolytes are pumped from the tanks to the cell stacks then back to the tanks.

Why do flow batteries use vanadium chemistry?

This demonstrates the advantage that the flow batteries employing vanadium chemistry have a very long cycle life. Furthermore, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy analysis was conducted on two of the battery stacks. Some degradation was observed in one of the stacks reflected by the increased charge transfer resistance.

Does the vanadium flow battery leak?

It is worth noting that no leakages have been observed since commissioned. The system shows stable performance and very little capacity loss over the past 12 years, which proves the stability of the vanadium electrolyte and that the vanadium flow battery can have a very long cycle life.

What is stack power rating (kW)?

The stack power rating (kW) is given by the number of cells and the effective electrode area. With this unique system architecture, the power rating and energy capacity can be designed independently for different applications.

When was vanadium first used?

It was first proposed and demonstrated by Skyllas-Kazacos and co-workers from the University of New South Wales (UNSW) in the early 1980s , . Using vanadium as a single electroactive element in both half-cell electrolytes eliminates the issue of cross-contamination due to ion movement across the membrane.

What is an all-vanadium flow battery (VFB)?

The all-vanadium flow battery (VFB) employs V 2 + / V 3 + and V O 2 + / V O 2 + redox couples in dilute sulphuric acid for the negative and positive half-cells respectively. It was first proposed and demonstrated by Skyllas-Kazacos and co-workers from the University of New South Wales (UNSW) in the early 1980s , .