Technion research finds method to harvest renewable energy
Cheaper batteries could make solar, wind and other renewable sources – that are not always present and require storage for reliable production – a more reliable option for energy production.
Illustration: A single-flow battery with multiphase flow.(photo credit: TECHNION SPOKESPERSON'S OFFICEWhile renewable resources promise unlimited and clean energy
production, that promise can't always be fulfilled. Varying factors,
such as wind and sunlight, are not always in constant supply, making energy storage a necessity in energy harvesting. In addition, the rechargeable batteries used to store such energy production are quite costly.
The
'flow batteries' that are ordinarily used consist of two electrolyte
liquids with opposite charges that are pumped through the battery. A
'selective membrane' keeps the battery from self-discharging so that the
chemicals interacting on the two electrode conductors can create a
current.
The
downside to the flow battery is that its membrane is expensive and
requires constant repair, amounting to 40% of the battery's cost.
M.Sc. student Lihi Amit (Photo Credit: Technion).
Amit
used bromine and zinc – both cheap materials – and coupled them with a
generic complexing agent to trap bromine in droplets, mimicking an
oil-and-water effect in the battery, to prevent the electrolytes from
flowing together, mixing and self-discharging, the same way the membrane
does.
This allowed for a controlled release of the bromine to keep the
electric current flowing, creating a fluid membrane of single droplets.
Cheaper batteries could make solar, wind, and other renewable sources, that are not always present and usually require special storage, a more reliable option for energy production.
Amit
conducted the study with the help of Technion Faculty of Mechanical
Engineering Professor Matthew Suss, Danny Naar, Dr. Robert Gloukhovski
and Dr. Gerardo Jose la O’ from Primus Power Inc, which was published in
ChemSusChem.
Professor Matthew Suss (Photo Credit: Technion). 
Illustration: A single-flow battery with multiphase flow.(photo credit: TECHNION SPOKESPERSON'S OFFICE
While renewable resources promise unlimited and clean energy
production, that promise can't always be fulfilled. Varying factors,
such as wind and sunlight, are not always in constant supply, making energy storage a necessity in energy harvesting. In addition, the rechargeable batteries used to store such energy production are quite costly.
The
'flow batteries' that are ordinarily used consist of two electrolyte
liquids with opposite charges that are pumped through the battery. A
'selective membrane' keeps the battery from self-discharging so that the
chemicals interacting on the two electrode conductors can create a
current.
The
downside to the flow battery is that its membrane is expensive and
requires constant repair, amounting to 40% of the battery's cost.
M.Sc. student Lihi Amit (Photo Credit: Technion).Amit
used bromine and zinc – both cheap materials – and coupled them with a
generic complexing agent to trap bromine in droplets, mimicking an
oil-and-water effect in the battery, to prevent the electrolytes from
flowing together, mixing and self-discharging, the same way the membrane
does.
This allowed for a controlled release of the bromine to keep the
electric current flowing, creating a fluid membrane of single droplets.
Cheaper batteries could make solar, wind, and other renewable sources, that are not always present and usually require special storage, a more reliable option for energy production.
Amit
conducted the study with the help of Technion Faculty of Mechanical
Engineering Professor Matthew Suss, Danny Naar, Dr. Robert Gloukhovski
and Dr. Gerardo Jose la O’ from Primus Power Inc, which was published in
ChemSusChem.
Professor Matthew Suss (Photo Credit: Technion). 
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