Flow simulation and analysis of high-power flow batteries

Knudsen, E.; Albertus, P.; Cho, K. T.; Weber, A. Z.; Kojic, A.

doi:10.1016/j.jpowsour.2015.08.041

Flow simulation and analysis of high-power flow batteries

Journal Article · Fri Sep 25 00:00:00 EDT 2015 · Journal of Power Sources

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpowsour.2015.08.041· OSTI ID:1506247

Knudsen, E. ^[1]; Albertus, P. ^[2]; Cho, K. T. ^[3]; ^[4]; Kojic, A. ^[1]

Bosch Research and Technology Center, Palo Alto, CA (United States)
Dept. of Energy (DOE), Washington DC (United States). Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E)
Northern Illinois Univ., DeKalb, IL (United States). Dept. of Mechanical Engineering
Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)

The cost of a flow battery system can be reduced by increasing its power density and thereby reducing its stack area. If per-pass utilizations are held constant, higher battery power densities can only be achieved using higher flow rates. Here, a 3D computational fluid dynamics model of a flow battery flow field and electrode is used to analyze the implications of increasing flow rates to high power density operating conditions. Interdigitated and serpentine designs, and cell sizes ranging from 10 cm² to 400 cm², are simulated. The results quantify the dependence of pressure loss on cell size and design, demonstrating that the details of the passages that distribute flow between individual channels and the inlet and outlet have a major impact on pressure losses in larger cells. Additionally, in-cell flow behavior is analyzed as a function of cell size and design. Flow structures are interrogated to show how and where electrode parameters influence pressure drops, and how regions where transport is slow are correlated with the presence of experimentally observed cell degradation.

View Accepted Manuscript (DOE)

Research Organization:: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE; USDOE Advanced Research Projects Agency - Energy (ARPA-E)

Grant/Contract Number:: AC02-05CH11231; AR0000137

OSTI ID:: 1506247

Alternate ID(s):: OSTI ID: 1253214

Journal Information:: Journal of Power Sources, Journal Name: Journal of Power Sources Journal Issue: C Vol. 299; ISSN 0378-7753

Publisher:: ElsevierCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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The Effect of Interdigitated Channel and Land Dimensions on Flow Cell Performance Gerhardt, Michael R.; Wong, Andrew A.; Aziz, Michael J. Journal of The Electrochemical Society, Vol. 165, Issue 11 https://doi.org/10.1149/2.0471811jes	journal	January 2018

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