A Kinetic Study of the Platinum/Carbon Anode Catalyst for Vanadium Redox Flow Battery

Abstract

This study investigates the effects of platinum/carbon (Pt/C) catalysts on the performance of a vanadium redox flow battery. The Pt/C catalysts were synthesized using the impregnation-reduction method. The activity of these catalysts on the V(IV)/V(V) redox reaction was investigated using cyclic voltammetry, linear sweep voltammetry, and the rotating disk electrode (RDE) technique. The reaction rate constant K0 and exchange current density i0 were calculated from the RDE data. The Ko increased from 3.37 × 10−6 cm·s−1 to 6.86 × 10−6 cm·s−1, and i0 increased from 13.79 μA to 72.96 μA as the Pt loading increased. Single-cell charge-discharge tests were performed with Pt/C on carbon felt as the positive electrode and raw carbon felt as the negative electrode. The energy efficiency of cells increased from 51.8% to 72.3% as the electrode material changed from carbon felt to Pt/C on carbon felt at a constant current density of 10 mA·cm−2. The best Cell-D energy efficiency was 20.5% higher than that without an electrocatalyst (Cell-A). The Pt/C catalyst can also effectively reduce the cell internal resistance. The charge/discharge efficiency of a single cell with different anode catalyst is increased in the following order: Pt/C 15 wt% Pt/C 10 wt% Pt/C 5 wt% carbon felt.