Novel FeCr-battery operated with a mining product stream

• Applicants: Dr. Vladimir Atanasov; Dr. Jochen Kerres
• Subject Area: Chemical and Thermal Process Engineering ; Energy Process Engineering ; Synthesis and Properties of Functional Materials ; Preparatory and Physical Chemistry of Polymers
• Term: since 2021
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 464904359

The aim of this collaborative project is to perform research and development on a FeCr-based redox flow battery (FeCrRFB) with rebalancing (RBC) system using a low-cost mining produced iron-chromium product stream as electrolyte. South African mining companies (using 15% of SA energy supply) are currently struggling under intermittent (load shedding) and limited electricity supply, threatening the export of valuable resources to strategic partners such as Germany. Low-cost FeCrRFBs could replace not only the polluting emergency diesel generators used currently in SA, but also the more expensive VRFBs often associated with the storage of renewable energies. To attain this aim, three topics will be investigated; i) the upstream conversion of the FeCr product stream to an electrolyte using a novel membrane based solvent extraction process, ii) the development of novel and state of the art cation and anion exchange membranes for the battery itself and iii) the development of a rebalancing system to address the capacity loss associated with the FeCrRFB technology.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• International Connection: South Africa
• International Co-Applicant: Professor Dr. Henning Manfred Krieg