30 μm thin hexamethyl-p-terphenyl poly(benzimidazolium) anion exchange membrane for vanadium redox flow batteries

Brian Shanahan; Thomas Böhm; Benjamin Britton; Steven Holdcroft; Roland Zengerle; Severin Vierrath; Simon Thiele; Matthias Breitwieser

Electrochemistry Communications (May 2019)

30 μm thin hexamethyl-p-terphenyl poly(benzimidazolium) anion exchange membrane for vanadium redox flow batteries

Brian Shanahan,
Thomas Böhm,
Benjamin Britton,
Steven Holdcroft,
Roland Zengerle,
Severin Vierrath,
Simon Thiele,
Matthias Breitwieser

Affiliations

Brian Shanahan: Laboratory for MEMS Applications, IMTEK Department of Microsystems Engineering, University of Freiburg, Georges-Koehler-Allee 103, 79110 Freiburg, Germany
Thomas Böhm: Laboratory for MEMS Applications, IMTEK Department of Microsystems Engineering, University of Freiburg, Georges-Koehler-Allee 103, 79110 Freiburg, Germany
Benjamin Britton: Department of Chemistry, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, Canada
Steven Holdcroft: Department of Chemistry, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, Canada
Roland Zengerle: Laboratory for MEMS Applications, IMTEK Department of Microsystems Engineering, University of Freiburg, Georges-Koehler-Allee 103, 79110 Freiburg, Germany; Hahn-Schickard, Georges-Koehler-Allee 103, 79110 Freiburg, Germany
Severin Vierrath: Laboratory for MEMS Applications, IMTEK Department of Microsystems Engineering, University of Freiburg, Georges-Koehler-Allee 103, 79110 Freiburg, Germany; Hahn-Schickard, Georges-Koehler-Allee 103, 79110 Freiburg, Germany; Freiburg Center for Interactive Materials and Bioinspired Technologies (FIT), Georges-Kohler-Allee 105, 79110 Freiburg, Germany
Simon Thiele: Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, Helmholtz-Institute, Erlangen-Nürnberg for Renewable Energy, (IEK-11), Erlangen, Germany; Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität, Erlangen-Nürnberg, Erlangen, Germany
Matthias Breitwieser: Laboratory for MEMS Applications, IMTEK Department of Microsystems Engineering, University of Freiburg, Georges-Koehler-Allee 103, 79110 Freiburg, Germany; Hahn-Schickard, Georges-Koehler-Allee 103, 79110 Freiburg, Germany; Corresponding author at: Laboratory for MEMS Applications, IMTEK Department of Microsystems Engineering, University of Freiburg, Georges-Koehler-Allee 103, 79110 Freiburg, Germany.

Journal volume & issue: Vol. 102
pp. 37 – 40

Abstract

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We present the first results of an anion exchange ionomer membrane, hexamethyl-p-terphenyl poly(benzimidazolium) (HMT-PMBI), in a vanadium redox flow battery. Anion exchange membranes exhibit superior vanadium crossover suppression compared to proton exchange membranes due to the Gibbs–Donnan effect. HMT-PMBI was benchmarked against a similarly thin Nafion XL membrane which allowed us to compare differences based solely on chemical properties of the ionomer materials. We report cycling data of 45 cycles at a current density of 150 mA/cm2 with excellent coulombic efficiency of >99.4%, energy efficiency of 80.6–74.2% and a low ohmic resistance of 0.219–0.255 Ω cm2. In addition, a three times lower self-discharge rate is obtained for the HMT-PMBI membrane compared to Nafion XL. HMT-PMBI is therefore a potential alternative for PFSA based ionomers in VRFB applications. Keywords: Anion exchange membrane, Vanadium redox flow battery, Energy storage, HMT-PMBI, Coulombic efficiency

Published in Electrochemistry Communications

ISSN: 1388-2481 (Print); 1873-1902 (Online)
Publisher: Elsevier
Country of publisher: United States
LCC subjects: Technology: Chemical technology: Industrial electrochemistry; Science: Chemistry
Website: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/electrochemistry-communications

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