Membraneless hydrogen bromine laminar flow battery for large-scale energy storage

Abstract

Electrochemical energy storage systems have been considered for a range of potential large-scale energy storage applications. These applications vary widely, both in the order of magnitude of energy storage that is required and the rate at which energy must be charged and discharged. One such application aids the integration of renewable energy technologies onto the electrical grid by shifting the output from renewable energy resources to periods of high demand, relaxing transmission and distribution requirements and reducing the need for fossil fuel burning plants. Although the market need for such solutions is well known, existing technologies are still too expensive to compete with conventional combustion-based solutions. In this thesis, the hydrogen bromine laminar flow battery (HBLFB) is proposed and examined for its potential to provide low cost energy storage using the rapid reaction kinetics of hydrogen-bromine reaction pairs and a membrane-less laminar flow battery architecture. In this architecture, fluid reactants and electrolyte flow through a small channel at sufficiently low Reynolds number that laminar flow is maintained and the liquid electrolyte acts as a separator between the reactants. Experimental results from a proof of concept cell are presented, and compared with numerical and analytical modeling results to better understand discharging and recharging behavior. General theoretical principles for the design and optimization of laminar flow batteries are also developed. These results indicate that the HBLFB can efficiently store and discharge energy at very high power densities compared to existing battery technologies using low cost reactants and stack materials at room temperature and atmospheric pressure.