All-vanadium redox flow battery is ready to go

As a new force in the field of energy storage, all-vanadium redox flow batteries are gaining momentum, providing new directions for energy storage solutions.

What is an all-vanadium redox flow battery?

The all-vanadium redox flow battery is a redox battery that uses vanadium as the active material in a circular flow format. It is stored in the sulfuric acid electrolyte of vanadium ions in different valence states in the form of chemical energy.

The electrolytic hydraulic pressure is injected into the battery stack through an external pump, under the action of mechanical power. Circulating it in a closed circuit of different reservoirs and half-cells collects and conducts current through dual electrodes.

Thus, the chemical energy stored in the solution is converted into electrical energy. Due to the physical separation of the stack and the liquid storage tank of the vanadium battery, the power and capacity of the battery can be configured independently, so the self-discharge attenuation is extremely low.

Advantages of flow batteries in energy storage

A flow battery is a battery technology in which the active material exists in a liquid electrolyte.

Flow batteries mainly include four technical routes: all-vanadium flow batteries, zinc-bromine batteries, iron-chromium batteries, and sodium-bromine polysulfide batteries.

Compared with other electrochemical energy storage technologies, flow batteries have intrinsic safety and long cycle life, and are especially suitable for large-scale energy storage power stations.

The application of large-capacity and high-voltage lithium batteries in the field of energy storage has achieved initial results.

Compared with before, the current industry chain construction and technology maturity of all-vanadium redox flow batteries are relatively high.

Unlike the logic of lithium batteries in energy storage applications, flow batteries are mainly due to their scalability.

The all-vanadium redox flow battery can break through the limitation of lithium-ion batteries in the power system in terms of energy storage time, and can be used for long-term energy storage, so it has a certain development space in the power system.

Under the multiple combined forces, the prospect of all-vanadium redox flow battery is relatively clear, and the relatively high cost in the initial stage of commercialization is expected to be alleviated with the increase in projects, large-scale production and technological breakthroughs.

Flow batteries have the characteristics of long life, good safety, high output power, large energy storage capacity and easy expansion.

The market space for all-vanadium redox flow batteries

The market space of vanadium redox flow battery mainly comes from the growth of energy storage demand and the improvement of its own penetration rate.

With the advancement of technology and the reduction of costs brought about by large-scale production, the market space for all-vanadium redox flow batteries will gradually open up.

By 2025, the global market space for vanadium redox flow batteries will grow to a level of 2 billion to 2.5 billion US dollars.

Under the dual effects of increasing demand for energy storage and increasing penetration rate of flow batteries, it is estimated that China’s all-vanadium flow battery market will reach about 8 billion yuan in 2025, with a compound growth rate of about 60%.

In general, the current demand for upstream vanadium products is growing considerably, and the future of midstream manufacturers can be expected.

The all-vanadium redox flow battery industry chain is simply divided into three parts: upstream raw materials, midstream manufacturing and downstream applications. Downstream applications can choose many technical paths, and the current main force of electrochemical energy storage is still lithium-ion batteries.

Lithium battery manufacturers are also constantly seeking the possibility of lithium batteries in the field of energy storage. The growth of all-vanadium redox flow batteries currently has little impact on the downstream.

Industry changes are mainly concentrated in the upstream and midstream. For existing listed companies, the application of all-vanadium redox flow batteries will first benefit upstream raw material suppliers. Mining production has a long investment cycle and it is difficult to expand production.

Once the increase in demand brought by all-vanadium redox flow batteries changes the supply and demand pattern, it will stimulate the price of vanadium products to rise and improve the performance of upstream raw material manufacturers.

For midstream manufacturing companies in the industry, the current overall scale of all-vanadium redox flow batteries is small, and the incremental performance brought by them in the short term will have little impact.

However, as the technology matures and the demand for energy storage continues to expand, all-vanadium redox flow batteries are expected to become a bright new business for midstream manufacturing companies.

All-vanadium redox flow battery technology has matured

At present, the all-vanadium redox flow battery technology has been completed, but the industrial chain has not yet been perfected, and the demand has not yet been developed. The production capacity of all-vanadium redox flow battery is developing vigorously, and the scale effect has not yet appeared.

With the maturity of technology and the start of downstream demand, the all-vanadium redox flow battery industry is rapidly entering the stage of large-scale and industrialization from the original small-scale and laboratory development stage.

Recently, a large number of all-vanadium redox flow battery manufacturers have actively expanded their own strength and expanded production capacity through financing, joint ventures, and signing strategic cooperation agreements. The industrialization process has been significantly accelerated compared to before.

It is estimated that the all-vanadium redox flow battery industry may still be in the stage of transition from the introduction period to the growth period in the next three years, and will usher in explosive growth in the future.

Summary

The all-vanadium redox flow battery energy storage technology is intrinsically safe, flexible in design, and highly mature. It is a technology that cannot be ignored in the field of long-term energy storage in the future.

After the industrial chain matures and the scale effect appears, the market penetration rate of all-vanadium redox flow battery will gradually increase, and it will gradually develop into a rising star in the energy storage track.