Chloride supporting electrolytes for all-vanadium redox flow batteries

Abstract

This paper examines vanadium chloride solutions as electrolytes for an all-vanadium redox flow battery. The chloride solutions were capable of dissolving more than 2.3 M vanadium at varied valence states and remained stable at 0–50 °C. The improved stability appeared due to the formation of a vanadium dinuclear [V₂O₃·4H₂O]⁴⁺ or a dinuclear-chloro complex [V₂O₃Cl·3H₂O]³⁺ in the solutions over a wide temperature range. The all-vanadium redox flow batteries with the chloride electrolytes demonstrated excellent reversibility and fairly high efficiencies. Only negligible, if any, gas evolution was observed. The improved energy capacity and good performance, along with the ease in heat management, would lead to substantial reduction in capital cost and life-cycle cost, making the vanadium chloride redox flow battery a promising candidate for stationary applications.