Publication

Electrochemical Application For
Advanced Energy System Labortary.

Journal

Modeling Vanadium Redox Flow Batteries Using OpenFOAM
Author
Kim Sangwon
Co-author
Jeon Dong Hyup, Yoon Sang Jun, Kim Dong Kyu*
Journal
Lecture Notes in Energy
Status
Published
Vol
42
Page
169-192
Year
2022

This chapter establishes that OpenFOAM is applicable for analyzing the electrolyte flow in a vanadium redox flow battery (VFB) and the transport phenomena in these systems. The local porosity was controlled by inserting an extra layer of electrode at the inlet and outlet. The variations in electrochemical characteristics and energy conversion efficiency with porosity were obtained through VFB single cell experiments. Numerical analysis of the electrolyte flow and pressure distribution provided a theoretical explanation for the physical phenomenon, which depending on the local porosities. When the current density was 50 mA/cm2, the electrode with uniform porosity (UP) showed the best energy performance. However, at a high current density of 150 mA/cm2, the partial porosity-lowered electrode at inlet (designated as LPI) showed better efficiency than the UP electrode since the rate of electrochemical reaction increases, and the mass transfer of the reactant is enhanced accordingly. OpenFOAM is expected to contribute significantly to the optimization of this flow battery system. In the near future, it will also aid in achieving carbon neutrality by the virtue of collective intelligence. © 2022, Springer Nature Switzerland AG.