INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
oxygen, and nitrogen, has been perhaps the most frustrating failure
Yet no one has been able to crack the organic battery
A young startup called XL Batteries has a new take on the chemistry that it says should be cheaper, safer, and more durable than previous
demonstration unit for Stolthaven Terminals, a company that specializes in petrochemical storage
The first unit will be small, relatively speaking, but once it works out the kinks, the company can quickly build larger batteries, Sisto
A basic flow battery consists of two tanks connected to pumps that flow two fluids past a membrane
Charging the battery pushes ions up a metaphorical hill, storing them in one of the fluids
When discharging, those ions flow back to the other side, releasing electrons in the process.Flow batteries are an old technology, first
invented in the late 1800s
But their bulk and relatively low energy storage held them back
necessitating costly materials for the pumps and other equipment.Organic batteries have been posited for a while, but they have proven
elusive because when most organic molecules are laden with extra electrons, they tend to quickly break apart
Those that have lasted longer have required refrigeration, and even then they fall apart in a couple months, Sisto said.Even with a more
stable molecule, Sisto knew that XL Batteries had to be cheaper if the company was to succeed
He got a glimmer of hope during his research at Columbia University when an organic compound he was investigating broke the record for the
highest number of electrons accepted into a single molecule
At the time, that molecule had to be suspended in an organic solvent, which was pricey and flammable
Eventually, he and his collaborators were able to make it stable in pH-neutral water
shipping container and two tanks
or discharge.Because the company is using so much off-the-shelf technology, Sisto says that XL Batteries can start building larger batteries
The company is working with an engineering firm that has designed other flow batteries before
producers to build batteries to support the grid, particularly in Texas where such installations have quickly become commonplace
