Embodiments of the invention provide batteries, electrodes, and methods of making the same. According to one embodiment, a battery may include a positive plate having a grid pasted with a lead oxide material, a negative plate having a grid pasted with a lead based material, a separator separating the positive plate and the negative plate, and an electrolyte. A nonwoven glass mat may be in contact with a surface of either or both the positive plate or the negative plate to reinforce the plate. The nonwoven glass mat may include a plurality of first coarse fibers having fiber diameters between about 6 μm and 11 μm and a plurality of second coarse fibers having fiber diameters between about 10 μm and 20 μm.

Provided is a method of producing a patterned flexible electrode including: a nanowire formation step of applying a first dispersion containing a metal nanowire to a first sheet which is unwound from a wound state to form a nanowire network; a fiber formation step of electrospinning a second dispersion containing metal nanoparticles on the nanowire network to form a fiber-nanowire network in which a metallic fiber of the metal nanoparticles being agglomerated is incorporated into the nanowire network; a sintering step of photonically sintering the fiber-nanowire network to form a conductive network; and a patterning step of patterning the fiber-nanowire network before the sintering step or patterning the conductive network after the sintering step.

A high performance electrode for an electrochemical cell including electroactive materials having a large charge capacity and that undergo substantial volumetric expansion and contraction during cycling of the electrochemical cell and a method for making the high performance electrode are provided. The electroactive material of the high performance electrode may have a thickness greater than or equal to about 1 m. Methods of forming the high performance electrodes includes patterning the electroactive material to form a plurality of void spaces using a high-speed process selected from the group consisting of: laser ablation, electron beam machining, ion beam milling, roll forming, embossing, lithography, and combinations thereof. The plurality of void spaces accommodates the volumetric expansion and contraction to minimize cracking and damage to the electrode during cycling of the electrochemical cell.

An electrode for use in an electrochemical cell, especially a zinc-bromine flow battery or a hydrogen/bromine flow battery, and methods for manufacturing and using the electrode is provided. The electrode has a metal substrate and a catalytic coating applied onto the substrate wherein the catalytic coating has a Ru-rich mixture of ruthenium and having 70-80 mol % Ru, 1-5 mol % Pt and 17-25 mol % Ir. The catalytic coating composition exhibits a surprisingly high voltage efficiency and operating lifetime despite its relatively low Ir/Ru and Pt/Ru ratios. The underlying metal substrate is for example a porous Ti layer or a layer with titanium suboxides Ti.sub.xO.sub.y.

According to one embodiment, a nonwoven fiber mat includes between 10% and 50% by weight of a plurality of first glass fibers having an average diameter of less than 5 m and between 50% and 90% by weight of a plurality of second glass fibers having an average diameter of greater than 6 m. The nonwoven fiber mat also includes an acid resistant binder that binds the first and second glass fibers together. The nonwoven fiber mat has an average pore size of between 1 and 100 m and exhibits an air permeability of below 100 cubic feet per minute per square foot (cfm/ft.sup.2) as measured by the Frazier test at 125 Pa according to ASTM Standard Method D737.

According to one embodiment, a nonwoven fiber mat includes between 10% and 50% by weight of a plurality of first glass fibers having an average diameter of less than 5 m and between 50% and 90% by weight of a plurality of second glass fibers having an average diameter of greater than 6 m. The nonwoven fiber mat also includes an acid resistant binder that binds the first and second glass fibers together. The nonwoven fiber mat has an average pore size of between 1 and 100 m and exhibits an air permeability of below 100 cubic feet per minute per square foot (cfm/ft.sup.2) as measured by the Frazier test at 125 Pa according to ASTM Standard Method D737.