STRUCTURE-INTEGRATED ELECTROCHEMICAL CELL AND STRUCTURE-INTEGRATED STACK CONSTRUCTED THEREFROM

Abstract

An electrochemical cell, more particularly a redox flow battery, and to a stack having a cell assembly composed of two or more electrochemical cells of this type. The cell includes at least one cell frame and at least one electrode, wherein the cell frame peripherally surrounds a cell interior, and wherein the cell frame has at least one supply channel for supplying a fluid into the cell interior and at least one discharge channel for discharging the fluid from the cell interior, and optionally at least one semipermeable membrane and optionally at least one bipolar plate. The cell frame, the electrode, the optional semipermeable membrane and the optional bipolar plate are substantially connected in a form-fitting manner to each other, more particularly substantially connected in a form-fitting manner to each other in the region of the active cell area. A cell of this type is particularly suitable for applications in aviation, shipping and space travel.

Claims

1. An electrochemical cell, comprising: a cell frame and an electrode, the cell frame perimetrically encloses a cell interior, and the cell frame comprises at least one supply channel for supplying a fluid into the cell interior and at least one discharge channel for discharging the fluid from the cell interior; the cell frame and the electrode are substantially connected with a form-fit to one another, and are substantially connected with a form-fit to one another in a region of an active cell surface of the electrochemical cell.

2. The cell as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cell is disposed in at least one of a support or shaping structure of either a stationary element of space travel or a mobile element.

3. The cell as claimed in claim 2, wherein the cell is disposed in an outer shell of the stationary or mobile object.

4. The cell as claimed in claim 1, wherein the electrode in the cell interior has at least partially a porosity for flow of the fluid which comprises an electrolyte therethrough from the at least one supply channel to the at least one discharge channel.

5. The cell as claimed in claim 4, wherein the electrode is at least partially formed of an open-porous metal foam structure.

6. The cell as claimed in claim 4, wherein the electrode is formed from a porous, dimensionally stable carbon material.

7. The cell as claimed in claim 4, wherein the electrode is formed of a porous material and is at least partially formed from fibrous structural elements.

8. The cell as claimed in claim 1, wherein flow channels are formed in the electrode.

9. The cell as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cell is at least one of flexurally flexible or positionally flexible in at least one of an installed or uninstalled state.

10. The cell as claimed in claim 9, wherein at least the electrode is formed from at least one of a flexurally flexible or positionally flexible material.

11. The cell as claimed in claim 10, wherein the electrode has at least one of a flexurally flexible or positionally flexible geometry, provided by one or more material recesses in at least one surface enclosed by the cell frame.

12. The cell as claimed in claim 1, further comprising mechanical stabilization structures are disposed in the cell interior in addition to the electrode, the mechanical stabilization structures comprise a honeycomb in which individual honeycomb elements are perforated in order to allow the fluid to flow through or column-type stabilization structures disposed between a semipermeable membrane and a bipolar plate substantially in a direction of active compressive forces.

13. A stack comprising a cell composite of two or more of the electrochemical cells as claimed in claim 1.

14. A structural assembly comprising a structural element of a stationary element of space travel or of a mobile element, the structural element performs at least one of a support or shaping function for the stationary or mobile element, and the electrochemical cell as claimed in claim 1 is connected with a form fit to the structural element.

15. The structural assembly as claimed in claim 14, wherein the mobile element is a vehicle.

16. The structural assembly as claimed in claim 14, wherein the stationary element is a space station.

17. A structural assembly for at least one of aviation, shipping or space travel, the structural assembly comprising a structural element and the stack of claim 14 connected with the form-fit to the structural element.

18. The cell in claim 1, further comprising a semipermeable membrane and a bipolar plate in the cell interior, and the cell frame, the electrode, the semipermeable membrane and the bipolar plate are substantially connected with a form-fit to one another.

19. The cell in claim 5, wherein the open-porous metal foam structure comprises a metal mesh.

20. The cell in claim 6, wherein the porous, dimensionally stable carbon material comprises a carbon-based rigid nonwoven or rigid felt, from at least one of graphite fibers, carbon nanotubes, or an electrically conductive polymer-based composite.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0053] FIG. 1 shows a view of a prior art electrochemical flow reactor;

[0054] FIG. 2 shows an electrochemical flow reactor according to the prior art composed of multiple electrochemical flow cells;

[0055] FIG. 3 shows in the bottom half of the picture, a bipolar sandwich structure of an electrochemical flow reactor, and in the top half shows a space station module with the bipolar sandwich structure in the outer shell;

[0056] FIGS. 4A-D show views of a cylindrical shaping structure in which an electrochemical flow reactor is integrated;

[0057] FIGS. 5A and 5B show a further embodiment of a cylindrical shaping structure;

[0058] FIG. 6 shows an electrode having a flexurally flexible structure;

[0059] FIGS. 7A-C show electrochemical flow cells having additional stabilization structures.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0060] The subject matter of the application will be more particularly elucidated below with reference to figures without restriction of generality:

[0061] FIG. 1 shows an electrochemical flow reactor according to the prior art comprising two half cells, each of which contains an end electrode (11, 12) and a half cell space with graphite nonwoven electrode (13, 14). Each half cell space is filled with a fluid, and the fluid can be circulated by means of a pump (20) in each case. The fluid comprises an electrolyte having a redox-active species; FIG. 1 therefore shows an electrolyte tank containing an electrolyte having a redox-active species A (22) and an electrolyte tank containing an electrolyte having a redox-active species B (23). The electrolyte allows charge exchange between anode and cathode, with ions being able to diffuse through a membrane (5) both during the charge process (1) and during the discharge process (2).

[0062] FIG. 2 shows an electrochemical flow reactor according to the prior art composed of multiple electrochemical flow cells connected to form a cell stack. The individual flow cells are connected to one another via bipolar plates (10); disposed between the half cells are membranes (15) in each case.

[0063] FIG. 3, in the bottom half of the picture, shows a bipolar sandwich structure of an electrochemical flow reactor (100) comprising porous electrodes (11, 12) (composed of a flexurally flexible metal foam in this embodiment), bipolar plates (10) and membranes (15), said bipolar sandwich structure being formed from electrochemical cells according to the application. The arrowheads point to the installation of this battery into the outer shell (51) of a space station module (50), said outer shell forming here at the same time, inter alia, a cylindrical support structure and shaping structure.

[0064] FIGS. 4A and 4B, top left and right, shows detail views of a cylindrical shaping structure (52). For example, this can be the shaping structure of a space station module (50). FIG. 4C, bottom left, shows the structural integration of the electrochemical flow reactor (100) into the shaping structure (52). In addition, strut elements (60) for mechanical stabilization can be seen here. In the detail view FIG. 4D, in the bottom right, it can be seen that the electrochemical flow reactor (100) is disposed in a form-fitting manner between an inner shell (61b) and outer shell (61a).

[0065] FIGS. 5A-5B show a further embodiment of a cylindrical shaping structure (52), which can be the shaping structure of a space station module (50). Here, in addition to the electrochemical flow reactor (100), an energy storage tank (70) is integrated into the shell of the spaceflight object.

[0066] FIG. 6 shows an electrode (20) having a flexurally flexible structure before and after installation into a structural element of a mobile or stationary object. Here, the flexural flexibility (before installation) is realized by V-shaped material recesses (30). After installation (bottom), the material recesses are only slit-shaped; the electrode (20) has the shape of a cylindrical segment, or has been adapted to the structure of the mobile or stationary object, which is cylindrical here, during installation. FIGS. 7A-C show electrochemical flow cells, through which flow is possible, having additional stabilization structures. The embodiments in FIGS. 7A and 7B show flow cells having stabilization structures in the manner of a honeycomb (40), having diamond-shaped stabilization structures (41) in FIG. 7A and having honeycombed stabilization structures (42) in FIG. 7B; the embodiment in FIG. 7C shows a flow cell having column-type stabilization structures (45) in which the column-type stabilization structures (46) allow force absorption in the direction of the compressive forces acting on the cell. The cells each have a plurality of inflow openings and outflow openings (both with reference sign 25). In addition, the stabilization structures in the manner of a honeycomb have a multiplicity of perforations (43) in the honeycomb elements in order to allow the fluid to flow through.