Chemical reactions of aluminum air batteries. The aluminum-air battery uses salt water to charge

Batteries are devices that convert chemical energy into electrical energy... They have 2 electrodes, a chemical reaction takes place between them, which is used or produced by electrons. The electrodes are connected to each other by a solution called an electrolyte, with the help of which the ions can move, making an electrical circuit. Electrons are formed at the anode and can pass through an external circuit to the cathode, this is the movement of electrons in an electric current that can be used to make simple devices work.
In our case battery can be formed using two reactions: (1) reactions with aluminum, which generates electrons per electrode, and (2) reactions with oxygen, which uses electrons at the other electrode. To help the electrons in the battery access the oxygen in the air, you can make the second electrode a material that can conduct electricity but is not active, such as carbon, which is mostly carbon. Activated carbon is very porous and this sometimes results in a large surface area that is exposed to atmospheres. One gram of activated carbon can be larger than an entire football field.
In this experience, you can build battery which uses these two reactions and the most amazing thing is that these batteries can power a small motor or light bulb. To do this, you will need: aluminum foil, scissors, activated carbon, metal spoons, paper towels, salt, a small cup, water, 2 clip-on electric wires, and a small electrical device such as a motor or LED. Cut a piece of aluminum foil to about 15X15cm., prepare a saturated solution, mix salt in a small cup of water until the salt stops dissolving, fold a paper towel in a quarter and soak it with brine. Place this towel on the foil, add about a spoonful of activated charcoal to the top of a paper towel, pour the brine over the charcoal to moisten it. Rest assured the coal is wet all over the place. In order not to touch the water directly, you should put 3 layers like in a sandwich. Prepare your electrical devices for use, one end electrical wire attach to the boot, and connect the other end of the wire to the aluminum foil. Press the second wire firmly against the pile of coal and see what happens, if the battery is working properly, then it is likely that you will need another element to turn on your device. Try increasing the contact area between your wire and the charcoal by folding the battery and squeezing hard. If you are using an engine, you can also help start it by rotating the shaft with your fingers.
The first modern electric battery was made from a series of electrochemical cells and is called a voltaic pillar. Repeat steps one and three to build additional aluminum-air element by connecting 2 or 3 air-aluminum element with each other, you will get a more powerful battery. Use a multimeter to measure the voltage and current drawn from your battery.
How you need to change your battery to give more voltage or more current - Calculate the power output from your battery by multiplying its voltage and current. Try connecting other devices to your battery as well.

Usage: air-metal batteries as an autonomous small-sized rechargeable current source. The essence of the invention: an air-metal galvanic box-type cell, including an electrolyte container with a filling hole in its upper part, a cover, a flat-shaped consumable metal anode placed in an electrolyte container, a gas diffusion cathode located at some distance from the working surface of the anode and freely washed outside gas, for example air, gas collection chamber. In the upper part of the electrolyte container around the filling hole there is a continuous conical protrusion that acts as a labyrinth seal, in the middle part of the side walls of the electrolyte container and in its lower part there are two limiting protrusions, in the lower part of the electrolyte container V there is a chamber for collecting sludge V sl the volume ratio V: V shl = 5-15, the anode thickness is within 1-3 mm and is 0.05-0.50 of the cathode gap, the volume of the electrolyte container is determined by the expressions: V = V el + V an; V el = q el QnK 1; V an = q ec + q cor QnK 2, V an is the volume of the anode, cm 3;
n is the number of cycles;
K 2 = (1.97-1.49) -constructive coefficient,
and the ratio of length a, width b and height c is: 1: 0.38: 2.7; 1: 0.35: 3.1; 1: 0.33: 3.9. The air-metal battery contains a housing, a cover with commutation, at least one air-metal galvanic cell of the proposed design. The method of operation of an air-metal galvanic cell and a battery based on it includes discharge, replacement of anodes and electrolyte with fresh ones, and flushing of the cells. Before use, the anodes are pretreated in an aqueous solution of sodium hydroxide with a concentration of (2-5) mol / l with the addition of sodium metastannate trihydrate with a concentration of (0.01-0.10) mol / l. 3 s.p. f-crystals, 5 dwg., 2 tbl.

The invention relates to electrochemistry, concerns a method of operating metal-air batteries and can be used when using metal-air batteries as an autonomous small-sized rechargeable current source. Known galvanic cell, for example, air-metal type. The cell mainly contains an electrolyte container, a cover, a flat-shaped consumable metal electrode placed in an electrolyte container. At some distance from the working surface of the electrode, a gas diffusion cathode is located, which is freely washed from the outside by gas, in particular by air. To improve the circulation of the electrolyte and thereby increase the efficiency of electrochemical energy conversion, the hydrogen generated during the electrochemical reaction is accumulated in the electrolyte container and the increasing pressure is used to move the electrolyte. In this case, the electrolyte container contains a gas collection chamber, the gas pressure in which can affect the electrolyte. Through the tube system, the displaced electrolyte passes from the upper part of the electrolyte container to the lower one (European patent N 0071015 A2 dated 06.22.82 - prototype). The disadvantage of the known galvanic cell of the air-metal type is the low specific electric power characteristics due to the excess weight caused by the complication of the design. Known primary air-metal battery containing a housing, a cover with switching, at least one air-metal galvanic cell (US patent N 4626482, H 01 M 12/6, 1986 - prototype). The disadvantage of the known primary air-metal battery is low specific electric power characteristics. A known method of operating an air-metal galvanic cell and a battery based on it by discharging, replacing the anodes and electrolyte with fresh ones, flushing the cell (USSR AS 621041, H 01 M 10/42, H 01 M 12/08). The disadvantage of this method is the long period of the battery reaching the specified mode (10-20) minutes. The aim of the invention is to increase the specific electric power characteristics of air-metal cells and batteries based on them, to increase the stability of the characteristics in time, as well as to reduce the time to reach the mode up to (1-3) minutes. This goal is achieved by the fact that in the known air-metal galvanic box-type cell, including an electrolyte container with a filling hole in its upper part, a cover, a flat-shaped consumable metal anode placed in an electrolyte container, a gas diffusion cathode located at some distance from the working surface the anode and the gas collection chamber freely washed outside by gas, for example, air, in the upper part around the filling hole there is a continuous conical protrusion that acts as a labyrinth seal, in the middle part of the side walls of the electrolyte container and in its lower part there are two restrictive protrusions, in the lower part electrolyte tank (V), a chamber for collecting sludge (V sl) is formed with a volume ratio V: V sl = 5 - 15, the thickness of the anode within (1-3) mm is 0.05-0.50 of the cathode gap, the volume electrolyte capacity is determined by the expression:
V = V el + V an;
V el = q el Qnk 1;
V an (q eh + q cor) Qnk 2;
where V is the volume of the electrolyte container, cm 3;
V el - electrolyte volume, cm 3;
V an is the volume of the anode, cm 3;
q el - specific consumption of water from the electrolyte, cm 3 / Ah;
q ec is the specific consumption of aluminum for the electrochemical reaction, cm 3 / Ah;
Q - cell capacity per cycle, Ah;
n is the number of cycles;
k 1 = (0.44-1.45) - design factor;

a: b: c = 1: 0.38: 2.7;
a: b: c = 1: 0.35: 3.1;
a: b: c = 1: 0.33: 3.9. In the known primary air-metal battery containing a housing, a cover with switching, one or more air-metal galvanic cells, the proposed cell is used as such a cell; in the known method of operating an air-metal cell and a battery based on it by discharging, replacing the anodes and electrolyte with fresh ones, washing the cell, the anodes are pretreated in an aqueous solution of sodium hydroxide with a concentration of (2-5) mol / l with the addition of trihydrate sodium metastannate with a concentration of (0, 01-0.10) mol / l. A common feature is the presence in an air-metal galvanic cell of a box-type electrolyte container with a filling hole in its upper part, a cover, a flat-shaped consumable metal anode placed in an electrolyte container, a gas diffusion cathode located at some distance from the working surface of the anode and freely washed outside gas, for example, air, a gas collection chamber, the presence in the battery of a housing, a cover with commutation, one or more cells, battery operation by discharging, replacing the anodes and electrolyte with fresh ones, flushing the cell. A distinctive feature is that in the upper part of the electrolyte container around the filling hole there is a continuous conical protrusion that acts as a labyrinth seal, in the middle part of the side walls of the electrolyte container and in its lower part there are two limiting protrusions, in the lower part of the electrolyte container (V) a chamber for collecting sludge (V sl) is formed with a volume ratio V: V sl = 5 - 15, the anode thickness within (1 - 3) mm is 0.05-0.50 of the cathode gap, the volume of the electrolyte chamber is determined by the expression:
V = V el + V an;
V el = q el Qnk 1;
V an = (q eh + q cor) Qnk 2;
where V is the volume of the electrolyte container, cm 3;
V el - electrolyte volume, cm 3;
V an is the volume of the anode, cm 3;
q el - specific consumption of water from the electrolyte, cm 3 / Ah;
q ec is the specific consumption of aluminum for the electrochemical reaction, cm 3 / Ah;
q cor - specific consumption of aluminum for corrosion, cm 3 / Ah;
Q - cell capacity per cycle, Ah;
n is the number of cycles;
k 1 = (0.44-1.45) - design factor;
k 2 = (1.97-1.49) - design factor;
and the ratio of length (a), width (b) and height (c) is:
a: b: c = 1: 0.38: 2.7;
a: b: c = 1: 0.35: 3.1;
a: b: c = 1: 0.33: 3.9. In the battery, the proposed cell is used as an air-metal galvanic cell; during operation of an air-metal galvanic cell and a battery based on it, the anodes are pretreated in an aqueous solution of sodium hydroxide with a concentration of (2-5) mol / l with the addition of trihydrate sodium metastannate with a concentration of (0.01-0.10) mol / l. The claimed set and the relationship of distinctive features in the known sources of patent and scientific and technical literature were not found. Thus, the proposed technical solution has a novelty and an inventive level. The invention is industrially applicable because can be used as an environmentally friendly autonomous power source as part of the following systems:
- portable portable tape recorder of the "player" type with recording and playback functions through an external speaker system;
- portable television receiver on liquid crystals;
- portable flashlight;
- electric fan;
- children's video games on liquid crystals;
- children's radio-controlled electric vehicles;
- portable radio receiver;
- Charger for batteries;
- portable measuring device. The proposed current source provides high specific electric power characteristics, keeping them stable throughout its entire resource, and also allows to reduce the time to reach the design mode from 10 - 20 to 1-3 minutes. The state of the indicators allows us to conclude that it is advisable to use the obtained geometric relationships in the design of air-aluminum batteries. The invention is illustrated by a drawing, where FIG. 1 shows an air-aluminum element - view No. 1, FIG. 2 - air-aluminum element - type No. 2, in Fig. 3 - air-aluminum element - view No. 3. FIG. 4 shows the electrolyte capacity of an air-aluminum cell, and FIG. 5 - battery based on air-aluminum cells. The air-aluminum galvanic cell consists of an electrolyte container 1, which has windows 3 on the outer side walls 2, a filling hole 5 in the upper part 4, surrounded by a continuous conical protrusion 6, acting as a labyrinth seal, on the inner side of the electrolyte container 1 on the middle part of the side walls 2 and in its lower part there are two limiting protrusions 7, in the lower part of the electrolyte container 1 a chamber 8 is formed for collecting sludge, which is accumulated during operation. Gas diffusion cathodes 9 are hermetically inserted into the electrolyte container 1 into the windows 3 of the frame 10. The tightness of the electrolyte container 1 is achieved using a sealant that is neutral with respect to the aqueous electrolyte solution. The electrical connection of the cathodes 9 with the consumer when using the air-aluminum cell both outside the battery, as well as in its composition, is carried out using a cathode current collector 11, covering the electrolyte container 1 with two horizontal clamps 12, which are electrically connected with two vertical clamps 13. Into the electrolyte container 1 through the filling hole 5 a flat metal anode 14 is inserted with a projection 15 of a rectangular shape, designed to carry out current collection. The plane of the projection 15 also serves to seal along the line "anode 14 - cover 16". The filling hole 5 is closed and sealed by a cover 16 containing one hole 17 for passing the anode 14 through it and one or more holes 18 for removing hydrogen from the electrolyte container 1 during the operation of the air-aluminum cell through the cover 16, which is at the same time a hydrophobic membrane. The presence of a conical protrusion 6 in the upper part of the electrolyte container 4 along the perimeter around the filling hole 5 makes it possible to enhance the sealing properties of the cover 16. The geometric ratios of the structure, which make it possible to improve the specific electric power parameters, are as follows:
H1 / (H2 + H3 + H4) = 1.05-1.20
H3 / H2 = H3 / H4 = 5-15
H5 / H1 = 1.1-1.5
H6 / H3 = 1-1.1
L2 / LI = 1-1.1
L3 / LI = 1.1-1.5
L5 / L6 = 0.05-0.50
2xL4 / L6 = 0.95-0.75
A battery based on air-aluminum cells consists of a housing 19 with internal vertical slots 20 for holding the air-aluminum cells and windows 21 for organizing an external free flow of air into the battery, locks 22 for attaching the cover with switching 23 to the housing 19, one or more electrolyte containers 1 with installed cathode current collectors 11, with anodes 14 inserted into them and covered with covers 16, a current-carrying double-sided board 24 containing, on the side turned to the air-aluminum elements, conductive paths 25 for electrical connection from cathodes 9 to electrolyte tanks 1 through the cathode collectors 11 to the current-carrying double-sided board 24, several holes 26 of a rectangular shape for passing the projection 15 of the metal anode 14 in order to carry out electrical connection between the metal anode 14 and the anode current collector 27, several holes of arbitrary shape 28 for the drainage of hydrogen from the electrolyte total capacity 1 to the atmosphere through the cover 23, several connectors 29 located on the upper side of the current-carrying double-sided board 24, bridged by an electrically conductive jumper 30 for selecting the operating voltage by the consumer and communication with the electrically conductive tracks 25 and 31 on both sides, several connectors 32 located on the upper the side of the current-distributing double-sided board 24, serving to connect the consumer, as well as the cover 23, which covers the battery from above and contains several holes 33 for connectors 32, several holes 34 for connectors 29, one or more holes 35 for drainage of hydrogen, two longitudinal grooves 36 for locks 22, label 37 with Brief Operating Instructions. The principle of operation and method of operation of an air-metal galvanic cell and a battery based on it, for example, a 3 VA-24 battery, are as follows. Electrical energy in the battery is generated by the electrochemical reaction of oxidizing aluminum at the anode and reducing oxygen at the cathode. The electrolyte used is aqueous solutions of either caustic sodium (NaOH), or sodium chloride (NaCl), or a mixture of these solutions with inhibiting additives: Na 2 SnO 3 3H 2 O - in an alkaline electrolyte and NaHCO 3 - in saline. In the course of the reaction, along with the consumption of aluminum, oxygen is consumed from the air and water from the electrolyte, therefore, when operating the battery, as they are consumed during the discharge process, the anode and electrolyte are periodically replaced with fresh ones. The reaction products are aluminum hydroxide Al (OH) 3 and heat. The battery operates in the temperature range from -10 o C to +60 o C without additional heating when starting from sub-zero temperatures. One of the negative factors of an aluminum-air battery is anode corrosion. This leads to a decrease in the electrical performance of the battery and the release of a small amount of hydrogen. To a greater extent, the effect of corrosion is manifested on the starting characteristics, as a result of which the time to reach the specified mode is (10-20) minutes. The proposed treatment of the anodes, in which their surface is covered with tin, allows to reduce the corrosion current density and significantly improve the operating mode of the air-aluminum battery, as a result of which the electrical characteristics increase and the time to reach the mode is reduced to (1-3) minutes. The anode is coated before starting the battery operation. The anode is preliminarily defatted, and then treated in an aqueous solution of sodium hydroxide with a concentration of (2-5) mol / l with the addition of sodium metastannate trihydrate with a concentration of (0.01-0.10) mol / l at room temperature for 5-60 minutes. The test results of the proposed air-aluminum battery and the prototype are presented in table. 1 and 2. As can be seen from the tables, the proposed air-aluminum battery provides high specific and stable in time electric power characteristics with a short time to reach the mode.

Claim

1. Air-metal galvanic box-type cell, including an electrolyte container with a filling hole in its upper part, a flat-shaped consumable metal anode placed in an electrolyte container, a gas diffusion cathode located at some distance from the working surface of the anode and freely washed from the outside by gas, for example air, a gas-collecting chamber, characterized in that in the upper part of the electrolyte container around the filling hole there is a continuous conical protrusion that acts as a labyrinth seal, in the middle part of the side walls of the electrolyte container and in its lower part there are two limiting protrusions, in the lower part of the electrolyte container V, a chamber V sl is formed for collecting sludge with a volume ratio V: V sl = 5 - 15, the anode thickness within 1 - 3 mm is 0.05 - 0.50 of the cathode gap, the volume of the electrolyte container is determined by the expression:
V = V el + V an;
V el = q el Q n k 1;
V an = (q eh + q cor) Q n k 2;
where V is the volume of the electrolyte container, cm 3;
V el - electrolyte volume, cm 3;
V an is the volume of the anode, cm 3;
q el - specific consumption of water from the electrolyte, cm 3 / Ah;
q ec is the specific consumption of aluminum for the electrochemical reaction cm 3 / Ah;
q cor is the specific consumption of aluminum for corrosion, cm 3 / A h;
Q - cell capacity per cycle, Ah;
n is the number of cycles;
K 1 = (0.44 - 1.45) - design factor;
K 2 = (1.97 - 1.49) - design factor;
and the ratio of length a, width b and height c is 1: 0.38: 2.7; 1: 0.35: 3.1; 1: 0.33: 3.9. 2. A primary air-metal battery containing a housing, a cover, at least one air-metal galvanic cell, characterized in that the cell according to claim 1 is taken as such a cell. 3. A method of operation of an air-metal galvanic cell and a battery based on it by discharging, replacing anodes and electrolyte with fresh sodium metastannate with a concentration of (0.01 - 0.10) mol / l.

Holders of the patent RU 2561566:

The invention relates to energy sources, in particular to air-aluminum power sources.

Known chemical current source (Pat. RU 2127932), in which the replacement of the aluminum electrode is also carried out by opening the battery case, followed by the installation of a new electrode.

A disadvantage of the known methods of inserting an electrode into a battery is that the battery must be removed from the power supply circuit for the period of electrode replacement.

Known fuel battery (application RU 2011127181), in which consumable electrodes in the form of strips are pulled through the battery case through the sealed leads and sealed leads as they are depleted using broaching drums, which ensures the input of consumable electrodes into the battery without interrupting the power supply circuit.

The disadvantage of this method is that the sealed leads and sealed leads do not remove the hydrogen released during operation from the battery.

The technical result of the invention is to provide automatic input of the electrode with an increased working area of ​​the consumable electrode in the fuel cell without interrupting the power supply circuit, increasing the energy performance of the fuel cell.

The specified technical result is achieved in that the method of introducing a consumable electrode into an air-aluminum fuel cell includes moving the consumable electrode as it is depleted inside the body of the fuel cell. According to the invention, a consumable electrode in the form of an aluminum wire is used, which is wound on a helical groove of a thin-walled rod made of a dielectric hydrophobic material and one end of which is introduced into the cavity of a thin-walled

rod through the hole in its lower part, and the movement of the consumable electrode is carried out by screwing a thin-walled rod into the covers of the fuel cell housing, located on both sides of the housing and made of a hydrophobic material, ensuring that the electrolyte is retained inside the fuel cell and evolved hydrogen is removed from its housing along the screw surfaces of hydrophobic caps.

The movement of a consumable electrode wound on a thin-walled rod with a screw groove occurs as a result of screwing it into covers, which are made of a hydrophobic material (fluoroplastic, ps, polyethylene), while the electrolyte remains inside the fuel cell, and the hydrogen released during operation is removed through the screw surfaces from the body of the fuel cell.

The cylindrical generatrix for the consumable electrode is made in the form of a thin-walled rod with a helical groove on which an aluminum wire electrode is wound. The rod is made of a dielectric hydrophobic material, which allows it not to interact with the electrolyte. A rod with an aluminum wire electrode increases the active area of ​​the consumable electrode and thus increases the energy characteristics (the amount of current removed) of the air-aluminum fuel cell.

The essence of the invention is illustrated by drawings, where:

in fig. 1 shows an air-aluminum power source;

in fig. 2 - view A in FIG. 1;

in fig. 3 is a view B in FIG. 1.

An air-aluminum fuel cell consists of a metal body 1 with holes 2 for air passage to the three-phase boundary, a gas diffusion cathode 3, an electrolyte 4, 2 hydrophobic covers 5 located on both sides of the metal body 1, an electrode in the form of a thin-walled rod 6, aluminum wire 7 wound on a helical groove.

As the aluminum wire 7 is consumed, corrosion and passivation of the electrode surface occurs, which leads to a decrease in the value of the removed current and attenuation of the electrochemical process. To activate the process, it is necessary to screw a thin-walled rod with a screw groove in which a consumable aluminum wire is wound into the hydrophobic caps 5. The release of hydrogen occurs through the screw surfaces of the hydrophobic caps 5, while the electrolyte remains inside the metal body 1 of the fuel cell.

This method makes it possible to automate the process of replacing the anode (consumable electrode) in an air-aluminum current source (VAIT) without interrupting the power supply circuit, as well as removing hydrogen released during operation.

A method of introducing a consumable electrode into an air-aluminum fuel cell, comprising moving the consumable electrode as it depletes inside the body of the fuel cell, characterized in that a consumable electrode is used in the form of an aluminum wire, which is wound around a helical groove of a thin-walled rod made of a dielectric hydrophobic material and one end which is introduced into the cavity of a thin-walled rod through a hole in its lower part, and the movement of the consumable electrode is carried out by screwing the thin-walled rod into the lids of the fuel cell housing located on both sides of the housing and made of a hydrophobic material, ensuring that the electrolyte is retained inside the fuel cell and removed from it housings of evolved hydrogen along the screw surface of hydrophobic covers.

Similar patents:

The present invention relates to a fuel cell electric generator specially designed as a standby device in the absence of utility power.

The present invention relates to a gasifier for converting a fuel to an oxygen-depleted gas and / or a hydrogen-rich gas, which can be used in any process requiring an oxygen-depleted gas and / or a hydrogen-rich gas, preferably used to generate a shielding gas or a reducing gas for start, shutdown, or emergency shutdown of a solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) or solid oxide electrolysis cell (SOEC).

The invention relates to fuel cell technology, and more specifically to a prefabricated module of solid oxide fuel cell batteries. EFFECT: provision of compactness, easy battery / system transition and improvement of system characteristics.

The invention relates to power plants with solid polymer fuel cells (FC), in which electricity is obtained due to the electrochemical reaction of gaseous hydrogen with carbon dioxide, and the electrochemical reaction of carbon monoxide with atmospheric oxygen.

A fuel cell system (100) is proposed, including a fuel cell (1) for generating energy by performing an electrochemical reaction between an oxidant gas supplied to an oxidizer electrode (34) and a fuel gas supplied to a fuel electrode (67); a fuel gas supply system (HS) for supplying fuel gas to the fuel electrode (67); and a controller (40) for adjusting the fuel gas supply system (HS) to supply fuel gas to the fuel electrode (67), the controller (40) making a pressure change when the outlet of the fuel electrode (67) side is closed, while the controller (40 ) periodically changes the pressure of the fuel gas at the fuel electrode (67) based on the first pressure profile to implement the pressure change at the first pressure swing (DP1).

The invention relates to a method for manufacturing a metal steel separator for fuel cells, which has corrosion resistance and contact resistance not only in the initial stage, but also after the influence of conditions high temperature and / or high humidity in the fuel cell for an extended period of time.

SUBSTANCE: invention relates to solid oxide fuel cells with internal reforming ability. A solid oxide fuel cell typically includes a cathode, an electrolyte, an anode, and a catalyst bed in contact with the anode.

The present invention relates to an alkali cation conducting ceramic membrane, at least part of the surface of which is coated with a layer of organic cationic conducting polyelectrolyte that is insoluble and chemically stable in water at basic pH.

The invention relates to chemical current sources with a gas diffusion air cathode, a metal anode and aqueous electrolyte solutions. The metal-air current source contains a housing filled with electrolyte, a metal anode placed inside it, gas-diffusion air cathodes located on both sides of the metal anode. In this case, the gaseous diffusion air cathodes have central transverse bends and are separated from the metal anode by porous separators permeable to the electrolyte, made of a material with high ohmic resistance. The metal anode has the shape of a rectangular parallelepiped, conjugated with a wedge, and rests with a wedge on the above-mentioned porous separators. The proposed metal-air current source has an increased specific capacity, stable characteristics and an increased service life, since it makes it possible to increase the ratio of the mass of the dissolving part of the metal anode to the volume of the electrolyte, and, consequently, the specific energy consumption and operating time of the current source without replacing the metal anode. 10 ill., 2 ex.

The invention relates to energy sources, and in particular to methods of replacing a consumable electrode in an air-aluminum fuel cell without interrupting the power supply circuit. A consumable electrode is used in the form of an aluminum wire, which is wound on a helical groove of a thin-walled rod made of a dielectric hydrophobic material. One end of the wire is inserted into the cavity of the thin-walled rod through a hole in its lower part. The consumable electrode is moved by screwing a thin-walled rod into the fuel cell housing covers located on both sides of the housing and made of a hydrophobic material, ensuring that the electrolyte is retained inside the fuel cell and evolved hydrogen is removed from its housing along the screw surface of the hydrophobic covers. EFFECT: increased energy performance of the fuel cell. 3 ill.

The French company Renault proposes to use Phinergy aluminum-air batteries in future electric vehicles. Let's take a look at their perspectives.

Renault decided to bet on new type battery that can increase the range from one charge seven times. While maintaining the size and weight of today's batteries. Aluminum-air (Al-air) cells have a phenomenal energy density (8000 W / kg versus 1000 W / kg for traditional batteries), producing it during the oxidation reaction of aluminum in air. Such a battery contains a positive cathode and a negative anode made of aluminum, and a water-based liquid electrolyte is contained between the electrodes.

Battery company Phinergy said it has made great progress in developing such batteries. Their proposal is to use a catalyst made of silver that effectively utilizes the oxygen in normal air. This oxygen mixes with the liquid electrolyte and thereby releases the electrical energy that is contained in the aluminum anode. The main nuance is the "air cathode", which acts like a membrane in your winter jacket - only O2, not carbon dioxide, passes through.

What is the difference from traditional batteries? The latter have completely closed cells, while Al-air elements need outer element, "Triggering" the reaction. An important plus is the fact that the Al-air battery acts like a diesel generator - it only generates energy when you turn it on. And when you "cut off the air" of such a battery, all its charge remains in place and does not disappear over time, like with conventional batteries.

The Al-air battery uses an aluminum electrode, but it can be made replaceable like a cartridge in a printer. Charging needs to be done every 400 km, it will consist in adding new electrolyte, which is much easier than waiting for a regular battery to charge.

Phinergy has already created an electric Citroen C1, which is equipped with a 25 kg 100 kWh battery. It gives a cruising range of 960 km. With a 50 kW motor (about 67 Horse power), the car develops a speed of 130 km / h, accelerates to hundreds in 14 seconds. A similar battery is also tested on Renault Zoe, but its capacity is 22 kWh, the maximum speed of the car is 135 km / h, 13.5 seconds to “hundreds”, but only 210 km of power reserve.

The new batteries are lighter, half the price of lithium-ion batteries and, in the long term, easier to operate than modern ones. And so far, their only problem is the aluminum electrode, which is difficult to manufacture and replace. As soon as this problem is solved, we can safely expect an even greater wave of popularity of electric vehicles!

• , 20 Jan 2015

Fuji pigment showed an innovative type of aluminum air battery that can be charged with salt water. The battery has been modified to provide a longer battery life, now at least 14 days.

In the structure of the air-aluminum battery, ceramic and carbon materials were introduced as an inner layer. The effects of anode corrosion and accumulation of by-impurities were suppressed. As a result, a longer operating time has been achieved.

An air-aluminum battery with an operating voltage of 0.7 - 0.8 V, producing 400 - 800 mA of current per cell, has a theoretical energy level per unit volume of the order of 8100 W * h / kg. This is the second maximum indicator for rechargeable batteries of various types. The theoretical energy level per unit volume in lithium ion batteries is 120-200 W * h / kg. This means that the capacity of air-aluminum batteries can theoretically exceed this indicator of lithium-ion counterparts by more than 40 times.

Although commercial rechargeable lithium ion batteries are widely used today in mobile phones, laptops and others electronic devices, their energy density is still insufficient for industrial use in electric vehicles. To date, scientists have developed a technology for air-metal batteries with a maximum energy capacity. The researchers studied air-metal batteries based on lithium, iron, aluminum, magnesium and zinc. Among metals, aluminum as an anode is of interest due to its high specific capacity and high standard electrode potential. In addition, aluminum is the cheapest and most recyclable metal in the world.

An innovative type of battery should bypass the main obstacle to the commercialization of such solutions, namely, high level corrosion of aluminum during electrochemical reactions. In addition, side materials Al2O3 and Al (OH) 3 accumulate on the electrodes, impairing the course of the reactions.

Fuji pigment stated that a new type of air-aluminum batteries can be produced and can be operated under normal conditions the environment because the cells are resistant, unlike lithium-ion batteries, which can catch fire and explode. All materials used to assemble the battery structure (electrode, electrolyte) are safe and cheap to manufacture.

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