ABSTRACT

Public and private investments in energy storage have created a 100 billion dollar industry, and this industry is now converging on grid-scale applications due to the urgent need for resource conservation and our ever-increasing global demand for energy. Redox flow batteries (RFBs) are one method for grid-scale energy storage, being used for peak-shaving and renewable energy incorporation into the grid. Our lab has been using molecular structure as one method to influence electrolyte performance metrics such as Coulombic efficiency, charge-recharge cycling, and voltage window. This talk will describe the work in our lab that focuses on molecular design to address these specific issues in nonaqueous redox flow battery electrolytes.