A High Discharge Power Density Single Cell of Hydrogen–Vanadium Flow Battery

Abstract

Hybrid flow chemical power source (Pt–C)H₂|Nafion|VO₂⁺(C) in which the membrane–electrode assembly combines gas-diffusion anode of hydrogen–air fuel cell and cathode of vanadium redox flow battery is studied. Concept of such a hydrogen–vanadium flow battery had been proposed earlier (2013) as an alternative to the vanadium redox flow battery, also designed for large-scale electrical energy storage but its practical implementation has so far been limited to single cells having the active area within several tens of cm². The goal of this work is the establishing of the factors limiting the discharge power density of such hybrid. hydrogen–vanadium flow battery cells which is inferior to both hydrogen–air fuel cell and vanadium redox flow batteries, even though the hydrogen–vanadium flow battery cell represents a combination of their more reversible half-cells. The object of the study is a cell with a 2 × 2 cm membrane–electrode assembly equipped with Luggin capillary on the vanadium electrolyte side. Measurements of the current–voltage characteristics of the entire cell, as well as the polarization characteristics of its half-cells, are performed using a six-electrode scheme of the cell connection with varied vanadium electrolyte circulation rate and different cathode materials (carbon felts, 4.6 or 2.5 mm thick, as well as carbon paper). The contribution of the hydrogen gas diffusion electrode to the total dc resistance of the hydrogen–vanadium flow battery cell is shown being twice that of the flow-through vanadium cathode. A record high discharge power density has been achieved: 0.75 W cm^–2, for the cell based on the commercially available material, Sigracell GFD 2.5 EA-TA carbon felt as the cathode material, without its special surface modification.