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Comparing velocities and pressures in redox flow batteries with interdigitated and serpentine channels
Author(s) -
Macdonald Malcolm,
Darling Robert M.
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
aiche journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.958
H-Index - 167
eISSN - 1547-5905
pISSN - 0001-1541
DOI - 10.1002/aic.16553
Subject(s) - electrode , flow (mathematics) , materials science , mechanics , redox , fluid dynamics , porosity , porous medium , pressure drop , chemistry , composite material , physics , metallurgy
Serpentine channels adjacent to a thin, porous medium are a potentially attractive alternative to a conventional thick flow‐through electrode for redox flow batteries. The hydrodynamics of serpentine flow fields were investigated with computational fluid dynamics, a two‐dimensional model of the porous electrode based on Darcy's law, and a resistance network model at the scale of the active area. Predictions from the three models were used to map the available design space. The optimal electrode thickness, in terms of minimizing nonuniformity, was identified and compared to the result for an interdigitated flow field. Serpentine favors thicker electrodes and higher flows than interdigitated, in qualitative agreement with experimental findings. Furthermore, interdigitated designs deliver more uniform intraelectrode velocities and lower overall pressure drops than serpentine flow fields.