logo

Redox flow batteries for renewable energy storage

PDF Publication Title:

Redox flow batteries for renewable energy storage ( redox-flow-batteries-renewable-energy-storage )

Next Page View | Return to Search List

Text from PDF Page: 001

Storage & smart power Technical Briefing Redox flow batteries for renewable energy storage Battery storage | As energy storage becomes an increasingly integral part of a renewables-based electricity system, new technologies are coming to the fore. Jens Noack, Nataliya Roznyatovskaya, Chris Menictas and Maria Skyllas-Kazacos from CENELEST, a joint research venture between the Fraunhofer Institute for Chemical Technology and the University of New South Wales, chart the rise of redox flow batteries, a promising alternative to lithium-ion-based systems In the last 15 years, the increase in renewable energy sources such as photovoltaic and wind energy has accelerated significantly. At the same time, manufacturing and installation costs, especially for PV systems, have fallen significantly, making this energy source one of the cheapest and cleanest forms of energy, depending on the location. With the increase of fluctuating renewable energies in an electrical grid, the need for compensation possibilities at times when renewable energies are not available increases [1]. One possibility is the use of electrochemical energy storage such as lithium-ion, lead-acid, sodium-sulphur or redox-flow batteries. Additionally, combinations of hydrogen electrolysis and fuel cells can be used [2]. Batteries can be adapted in a flexible and decentralised manner depending on the respective requirements and are scaleable from a few kW/kWh for e.g. domestic storage up to systems of several MW/MWh for grid storage. The different types of electrochemical energy storage systems have different physical/chemical properties, which affect the cost of the system. It is important to note that the cost of the storage system over its lifetime (levelised cost of storage – LCOS) is a critical factor used in selecting the most suitable system for a particular application [3]. For example, the investment costs for lead-acid batteries are significantly lower than for all other technologies, but the service life is very short. Technologies with similar investment costs at higher lifetimes result in a lower levelised cost of storage, but to be precise additional factors such as recycling, energy efficiency and maintenance costs have to be considered. A battery with a high efficiency, low recycling effort, low investment and maintenance costs and great freedom of scalability to meet the requirements of the application would be an ideal system. In electrical networks there are different storage time requirements: short-term storage, medium-term storage and long-term storage. The shorter the storage time, the more suitable are physical storage devices such as capacitors. Batteries are suitable for applications ranging from a few minutes to several hours. In addition, mass storage systems such as electrochemical hydrogen generation (power-to-gas) are particularly suitable for long-term storage of several weeks. Redox flow principles All electrochemical energy storage systems convert electrical energy into chemical energy when charging, and the process is reversed when discharging. With conventional batteries, the conversion and storage take place in closed cells. With redox flow batteries, however, the conversion and storage of energy are separated [4]. Redox flow batteries differ from conventional batteries in that the energy storage material is conveyed by an energy converter. This requires the energy Schematic of a redox flow battery storage material to be in a flowable form. This structure is similar to that of fuel cells, whereby in redox flow batteries, charging and discharging processes can take place in the same cell. Redox flow batteries thus have the distinguishing feature that energy and power can be scaled separately. The power determines the cell size or the number of cells and the energy is determined by the amount of the energy storage medium. This allows redox flow batteries to be better adapted to certain requirements than other technologies. In theory, there is no limit to the amount of energy and often the specific investment costs decrease with an increase in the energy/power ratio, as the energy storage medium usually has comparatively low costs. Figure 1 shows the general operating principle of redox flow batteries. The energy conversion takes place in an electrochemical cell which is divided into two half cells. The half cells are separated from each other by an ion-permeable membrane or separator, so that the liquids of the half cells mix as little as possible. The separator ensures a charge balance between positive and negative half cells, ideally without the negative and positive active materials coming into direct contact with each other. In fact, however, separators are not perfect so some cross-over of the active materials always occurs and this leads to the self-discharge effect. In a single cell there is always one positive and one negative half-cell. The electrochemical reactions for charging and discharging take place at the electrodes of the half-cells. The electrodes are the phase transitions of ionic and electronic conductors. In redox flow batteries, the electrodes should not participate in the reactions for energy 106 | November 2019 | www.pv-tech.org Credit: Fraunhofer ICT

PDF Image | Redox flow batteries for renewable energy storage

redox-flow-batteries-renewable-energy-storage-001

PDF Search Title:

Redox flow batteries for renewable energy storage

Original File Name Searched:

Redox-flow-batteries.pdf

DIY PDF Search: Google It | Yahoo | Bing

Salgenx Redox Flow Battery Technology: Salt water flow battery technology with low cost and great energy density that can be used for power storage and thermal storage. Let us de-risk your production using our license. Our aqueous flow battery is less cost than Tesla Megapack and available faster. Redox flow battery. No membrane needed like with Vanadium, or Bromine. Salgenx flow battery

CONTACT TEL: 608-238-6001 Email: greg@salgenx.com | RSS | AMP