Project Grant 20223353037068

THE U.S. CENSUS BUREAU ESTIMATED THAT IN 2020, APPROXIMATELY 57.23 MILLION PEOPLE LIVE IN RURAL REGIONS, COMPARED TO ABOUT 272.91 MILLION PEOPLE LIVING IN URBAN AREAS.ON THE OTHER HAND, URBAN AREAS MAKE UP ONLY 3 PERCENT OF THE ENTIRE LAND AREA OF THE U.S. CONVERSELY, 97 PERCENT OF THE COUNTRY'S LANDMASS IS RURAL BUT ONLY 19.3 PERCENT OF THE POPULATION LIVES THERE.DURING RECENT YEARS, THE RAPID ADOPTION OF ELECTRIC VEHICLES, ESPECIALLY IN URBAN AREAS, HAS INCREASED THE DEMAND FOR ELECTRIC POWER. CLIMATE CHANGE HAS DRIVEN THE INCREASED PRODUCTION OF CLEAN AND RENEWABLE ENERGY. RURAL AREAS CONTRIBUTE TO 97 PERCENT OF THE NATION'S LANDS, WHICH CAN BE UTILIZED FOR HARVESTING SOLAR AND WIND ELECTRICITY. UNFORTUNATELY, THIS ALSO CREATES A GEOGRAPHIC MISMATCH BETWEEN CLEAN ENERGY PRODUCTION AND CONSUMPTION. THE FIRST GRID IN THE U.S. WAS BUILT IN 1882 IN MANHATTAN AND NEW JERSEY, AND OUR POWER DISTRIBUTION SYSTEMS WERE EXPANDED SINCE THEN AND UNTIL THE 1960S.FOR A POWER GRID TO REMAIN STABLE, IT NEEDS TO RESPOND TO VOLATILITY IN VOLTAGE AND FREQUENCY DISTURBANCES. IF THERE IS A MISMATCH OF POWER GENERATION AND CONSUMPTION, COMPLETE ADJUSTMENTS ARE NECESSARY WITHIN AN ACCEPTABLE TIMEFRAME TO BALANCE THE FREQUENCY DISTURBANCES AND POWER OUTAGES. EQUILIBRIUM IS WHAT IS MOST IMPORTANT FOR GRID SYSTEMS. IN OTHER WORDS, OUR NATIONWIDE GRID SYSTEMS WERE BUILT BASED ON THE CONTINUOUS AND STEADY SUPPLY OF POWER FROM COAL-FIRED POWER PLANTS--NOT FROM RENEWABLE SOURCES. OUR EXISTING GRID INFRASTRUCTURES ARE NOT WELL SUITED FOR TRANSMITTING AND DISTRIBUTING CLEAN ELECTRICITY FROM RURAL AREAS TO URBAN CITIES. CLIMATE CHANGE AS WELL AS THE SIGNIFICANT REDUCTION OF LITHIUM-ION BATTERY COSTS HAVE LED TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF ELECTRIC VEHICLES FOR AGRICULTURAL APPLICATIONS. A DETACHABLE IRON-TITANIUM BATTERY INSTEAD OF A LITHIUM-ION BATTERY CAN BE USED FOR POWERING AGRICULTURE VEHICLES. A DISTINCTIVE ADVANTAGE IS THAT A FLOW BATTERY CAN BE RECHARGED BY SIMPLY SWAPPING THE ELECTROLYTE STORAGE TANKS--ALLOWING THE CONTINUOUS OPERATIONS OF THE EQUIPMENT IN FARM FIELDS. IN THIS PROJECT, WE AIM TO DEVELOP A NOVEL IRON-TITANIUM REDOX FLOW BATTERY WITH TWO DETACHABLE ELECTROLYTE STORAGE TANKS. IRON-TITANIUM BATTERIES COST $80/KWH FOR ENERGY STORAGE--LOWER THAN $369/KWH OF LITHIUM-ION BATTERIES, AND $399/KWH OF VANADIUM FLOW BATTERIES. AN IRON-TITANIUM BATTERY EMPLOYS NO SELF-IGNITING MATERIALS AND ITS ELECTROLYTES ARE COMPRISED OF ~60% WATER--DEEMING IT FIRE SAFE. AS A RESULT, IRON-TITANIUM BATTERIES COULD BE IDEAL DEVICES FOR FIRE-SAFE, LOW-COST, AND LONG-DURATION (>10 H) STORAGE OF CLEAN ENERGY GENERATED IN RURAL AREAS. THIS PROJECTALSO WANTS TO EXPLORE THE POSSIBILITY OF USING FREIGHTS AND PIPELINES FOR TRANSPORTING CLEAN ELECTRICITY FROM COUNTRYSIDES TO END-USERS IN METROPOLISES. A FLOW BATTERY SEPARATES ELECTROLYTE RESERVOIRS FROM TWO ELECTRODES. WHEN IT IS CHARGED, ELECTRICITY IS CONVERTED TO CHEMICAL ENERGY, WHICH IS STORED IN IRON (III) AND TITANIUM (III)SALTS THAT ARE DISSOLVED IN TWO AQUEOUS SOLUTIONS, RESPECTIVELY. SUCH WATER-BASED ELECTROLYTES CAN BE TRANSPORTED FROM A RURAL AREA VIA, FOR EXAMPLE, TRUCKS, TRAINS, BOATS, OR PIPELINES TO ANOTHER BATTERY CELL IN A DIFFERENT LOCATION, WHERE CHARGED ELECTROLYTES WILL BE PUMPED THROUGH THE ELECTRODE COMPARTMENTS OF THE SECOND CELL--CONVERTING CHEMICAL ENERGY BACK TO ELECTRICITY. THE SPENT ELECTROLYTES COMPRISED OF IRON (II) AND TITANIUM(IV) WILL BE BROUGHT BACK TO THE ORIGINAL CELL IN THE RURAL AREA FOR RECHARGING. IF IT WORKS, THIS STRATEGY COULD SOLVE THE TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION PROBLEM OF RENEWABLE ENERGY--POTENTIALLY TRANSFORMING RURAL AREAS INTO THE ENERGY PRODUCTION CENTERS OF THE U.S., AND ENABLING THE EXPORT OF CLEAN ENERGY TO THE LARGER GLOBAL MARKET. THE MAJOR GOALS OF THIS PROJECT INCLUDE: (1) INCREASING THE ENERGY DENSITY OF CHARGED ELECTROLYTES BY VARYING THE COMPOSITION OF IRON AND TITANIUM WATER SOLUTIONS, RESPECTIVELY, FOR REDUCING ELECTROLYTE TRANSPORTATION COSTS; AND (2) OPTIMIZING THE CELL STRUCTURE FOR IMPROVED BATTERY PERFORMANCE.