Redox flow battery

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10950879-B2
Application number	US-201716067190-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 2, 2017
Priority date	Nov 2, 2017
Publication date	Mar 16, 2021
Grant date	Mar 16, 2021

Abstract

A redox flow battery includes a positive electrolyte tank container which houses a positive electrolyte tank for storing a positive electrolyte; a negative electrolyte tank container which houses a negative electrolyte tank for storing a negative electrolyte; and a battery container which houses a battery cell including a positive electrode, a negative electrode, and a membrane, a positive electrolyte circulation mechanism configured to supply and circulate the positive electrolyte to the battery cell, and a negative electrolyte circulation mechanism configured to supply and circulate the negative electrolyte to the battery cell.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A redox flow battery comprising:
a positive electrolyte tank container which houses a positive electrolyte tank for storing a positive electrolyte;
a negative electrolyte tank container which houses a negative electrolyte tank for storing a negative electrolyte; and
a battery container which houses a battery cell including a positive electrode, a negative electrode, and a membrane, a positive electrolyte circulation mechanism configured to supply and circulate the positive electrolyte to the battery cell, and a negative electrolyte circulation mechanism configured to supply and circulate the negative electrolyte to the battery cell,
wherein the battery container is placed on the roof of the positive electrolyte tank container and the negative electrolyte tank container,
wherein, when the redox flow battery is viewed from the top, a first short side of the battery container overlaps with an outer long side of the positive electrolyte tank container and a second short side of the battery container overlaps with an outer long side of the negative electrolyte tank container, and
wherein long sides of the battery container are the same size or smaller than long sides of the positive electrolyte tank container and long sides of the negative electrolyte tank container, and
wherein the short sides of the battery container are the same size or smaller than short sides of the positive electrolyte tank container and short sides of the negative electrolyte tank container.

2. The redox flow battery according to claim 1 ,
wherein the positive electrolyte circulation mechanism includes a positive electrolyte supply pipe for supplying the positive electrolyte to the battery cell and a positive electrolyte discharge pipe for discharging the positive electrolyte from the battery cell, and the negative electrolyte circulation mechanism includes a negative electrolyte supply pipe for supplying the negative electrolyte to the battery cell and a negative electrolyte discharge pipe for discharging the negative electrolyte from the battery cell,
wherein the positive electrolyte tank includes a positive electrolyte outgoing pipe for sending the positive electrolyte from the positive electrolyte tank to the positive electrolyte supply pipe and a positive electrolyte return pipe for returning the positive electrolyte from the positive electrolyte discharge pipe to the positive electrolyte tank, and the negative electrolyte tank includes a negative electrolyte outgoing pipe for sending the negative electrolyte from the negative electrolyte tank to the negative electrolyte supply pipe and a negative electrolyte return pipe for returning the negative electrolyte from the negative electrolyte discharge pipe to the negative electrolyte tank, and
wherein the redox flow battery further comprises connection structures which connect, in a detachable manner, the positive electrolyte supply pipe, the negative electrolyte supply pipe, the positive electrolyte discharge pipe, and the negative electrolyte discharge pipe to the positive electrolyte outgoing pipe, the negative electrolyte outgoing pipe, the positive electrolyte return pipe, and the negative electrolyte return pipe, respectively.

3. The redox flow battery according to claim 1 , wherein the battery container extends over and between the positive electrolyte tank container and the negative electrolyte tank container and is placed evenly on the roofs of the positive electrolyte tank container and the negative electrolyte tank container.

4. The redox flow battery according to claim 3 , wherein the positive electrolyte tank container and the negative electrolyte tank container are arranged in parallel with a distance therebetween such that the longitudinal directions thereof are parallel to each other, and
the battery container is placed such that the longitudinal direction thereof is orthogonal to the longitudinal directions of the positive electrolyte tank container and the negative electrolyte tank container.

5. The redox flow battery according to claim 3 , wherein the positive electrolyte tank container and the negative electrolyte tank container are arranged in parallel such that the longitudinal directions thereof are parallel to each other, and the side surfaces thereof are in contact with each other, and
the battery container is placed such that the longitudinal direction thereof is parallel to the longitudinal directions of the positive electrolyte tank container and the negative electrolyte tank container.

6. The redox flow battery according to claim 3 , wherein the positive electrolyte circulation mechanism and the negative electrolyte circulation mechanism include a positive electrolyte pump and a negative electrolyte pump for circulating the positive electrolyte and the negative electrolyte, respectively, and
when the inside of the battery container is viewed from a long side of the battery container, the positive electrolyte pump and the negative electrolyte pump are arranged at positions that are symmetrical with respect to the center, in the longitudinal direction, of the battery container.

7. The redox flow battery according to claim 1 , wherein, when the redox flow battery is viewed from the top, a long side of the battery container overlaps with a short side of the positive electrolyte tank container and a short side of the negative electrolyte tank container.

8. A redox flow battery comprising:
a positive electrolyte tank container which houses a positive electrolyte tank for storing a positive electrolyte;
a negative electrolyte tank container which houses a negative electrolyte tank for storing a negative electrolyte; and
a battery container which houses a battery cell including a positive electrode, a negative electrode, and a membrane, a positive electrolyte circulation mechanism configured to supply and circulate the positive electrolyte to the battery cell, and a negative electrolyte circulation mechanism configured to supply and circulate the negative electrolyte to the battery cell,
wherein the battery container is placed on the roof of the positive electrolyte tank container and the negative electrolyte tank container,
wherein, when the redox flow battery is viewed from the top, a first short side of the battery container overlaps with a first short side of the positive electrolyte tank container and a first short side of the negative electrolyte tank container,
wherein, when the redox flow battery is viewed from the top, a first long side of the battery container overlaps with the roof of the positive electrolyte tank container and a second long side of the battery container overlaps with the roof of the negative electrolyte tank container, and
wherein the long sides of the battery container are the same size or smaller than long sides of the positive electrolyte tank container and long sides of the negative electrolyte tank container, and
wherein short sides of the battery container are the same size or smaller than short sides of the positive electrolyte tank container and short sides of the negative electrolyte tank container.

9. The redox flow battery according to claim 8 , wherein, when the redox flow battery is viewed from the top, a second short side of the battery container overlaps with a second short side of the positive electrolyte tank container and a second short side of the negative electrolyte tank container.

10. The redox flow battery according to claim 8 , wherein, when the redox flow battery is viewed from the top, a second short side of the battery container overlaps with the roof of the positive electrolyte tank container and the roof of the negative electrolyte tank container.

11. A red

Assignees

• Sumitomo Electric Industries

Inventors

• Ikeuchi Atsuo
• Hayashi Kiyoaki

Classifications

• Y02E60/50

  Fuel cells · CPC title

• H01M8/04201

  Reactant storage and supply, e.g. means for feeding, pipes · CPC title

• H01M8/04276

  Arrangements for managing the electrolyte stream, e.g. heat exchange · CPC title

• H01M8/04186 Primary

  of liquid-charged or electrolyte-charged reactants · CPC title

• H01M8/188

  by recharging of redox couples containing fluids; Redox flow type batteries · CPC title