An Aqueous Redox-Flow Battery with High Capacity and Power: The TEMPTMA/MV System

Redox-flow batteries (RFB) can easily store large amounts of electric energy and thereby mitigate the fluctuating output of renewable power plants. They are widely discussed as energy-storage solutions for wind and solar farms to improve the stability of the electrical grid. Most common RFB concepts are based on strongly acidic metal-salt solutions or poorly performing organics. Herein we present a battery which employs the highly soluble N,N,N-2,2,6,6-heptamethylpiperidinyl oxy-4-ammonium chloride (TEMPTMA) and the viologen derivative N,N'-dimethyl-4,4-bipyridinium dichloride (MV) in a simple and safe aqueous solution as redox-active materials. The resulting battery using these electrolyte solutions has capacities of 54 Ah L^-1 , giving a total energy density of 38 Wh L^-1 at a cell voltage of 1.4 V. With peak current densities of up to 200 mA cm^-2 the TEMPTMA/MV system is a suitable candidate for compact high-capacity and high-power applications.