Abstract
This work demonstrates a quantitative method to determine the hydrogen evolution rate occurring at the negative carbon electrode of the all vanadium redox flow battery (VRFB). Two carbon papers examined by buoyancy measurements yield distinct hydrogen formation rates (0.170 and 0.005 μmol min -1 g-1). The carbon papers have been characterized using electron microscopy, nitrogen gas adsorption, capacitance measurement by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). We find that the specific electrochemical surface area (ECSA) of the carbon material has a strong influence on the hydrogen generation rate. This is discussed in light of the use of high surface area material to obtain high reaction rates in the VRFB.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 560-564 |
| Number of pages | 5 |
| Journal | Journal of Power Sources |
| Volume | 248 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 2014 |
Funding
The authors gratefully acknowledge the support of the US Department of Energy Office of Electricity Storage Systems Program directed by Dr. Imre Gyuk and the University of Tennessee Governor's Chair Fund for support of this work. Dr. Hui Zhou is gratefully acknowledged for his support during SEM collection. This work was partially supported by the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Office of Basic Energy Sciences (BES), Materials Sciences and Engineering Division (LB, GMV).
| Funders | Funder number |
|---|---|
| University of Tennessee Governor | |
| U.S. Department of Energy | |
| Basic Energy Sciences | |
| Division of Materials Sciences and Engineering |
Keywords
- Electrochemical surface area
- Hydrogen evolution
- Redox flow battery
- Side reaction
