HIGH PERFORMANCE FLOW BATTERY
First Claim
1. A flow battery comprising:
- at least one cell comprising a low resistance positive electrode in a positive half cell and a low resistance negative electrode in a negative half cell; and
a pump for circulating electrolyte through a flow channel of said negative half cell, wherein said pump and said channel are configured to provide a high rate of mixing of said electrolyte in a deposition region proximate a deposition surface;
wherein said electrolyte has a metal ion concentration greater than the equilibrium saturation concentration of the metal ion in said electrolyte.
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Accused Products
Abstract
High performance flow batteries, based on alkaline zinc/ferro-ferricyanide rechargeable (“ZnFe”) and similar flow batteries, may include one or more of the following improvements. First, the battery design has a cell stack comprising a low resistance positive electrode in at least one positive half cell and a low resistance negative electrode in at least one negative half cell, where the positive electrode and negative electrode resistances are selected for uniform high current density across a region of the cell stack. Second, a flow of electrolyte, such as zinc species in the ZnFe battery, with a high level of mixing through at least one negative half cell in a Zn deposition region proximate a deposition surface where the electrolyte close to the deposition surface has sufficiently high zinc concentration for deposition rates on the deposition surface that sustain the uniform high current density. The mixing in the flow may be induced by structures such as: conductive and non-conductive meshes; screens; ribbons; foam structures; arrays of cones, cylinders, or pyramids; and other arrangements of wires or tubes used solely or in combination with a planar electrode surface. Third, the zinc electrolyte has a high concentration and in some embodiments has a concentration greater than the equilibrium saturation concentration—the zinc electrolyte is super-saturated with Zn ions.
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Citations
23 Claims
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1. A flow battery comprising:
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at least one cell comprising a low resistance positive electrode in a positive half cell and a low resistance negative electrode in a negative half cell; and a pump for circulating electrolyte through a flow channel of said negative half cell, wherein said pump and said channel are configured to provide a high rate of mixing of said electrolyte in a deposition region proximate a deposition surface; wherein said electrolyte has a metal ion concentration greater than the equilibrium saturation concentration of the metal ion in said electrolyte. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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- 17. A method of charging a flow battery comprising, circulating electrolyte through a flow channel of a negative half cell in said flow battery, wherein said flow channel is configured to provide a high rate of mixing of said electrolyte in a metal deposition region proximate a deposition surface of said negative half cell.
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22. A ZnFe flow battery comprising:
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at least one cell comprising a low resistance positive electrode in a positive half cell and a low resistance negative electrode in a negative half cell; a pump for circulating electrolyte through a flow channel of said negative half cell, wherein said pump and said channel are configured to provide a high rate of mixing of said electrolyte in a deposition region proximate a deposition surface; wherein said electrolyte has a zinc metal ion concentration greater than the equilibrium saturation concentration of said zinc metal ion in said electrolyte, and wherein a mass transfer coefficient of said electrolyte in said deposition region is sufficient to maintain an electrolyte concentration of zinc metal ions proximate said deposition surface for a substantially uniform deposition of zinc metal on said deposition surface at a uniform high current density. - View Dependent Claims (23)
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Specification