Development of robust cathodes for pressurized, gravity-driven zinc-air batteries

开发用于加压重力驱动锌空气电池的坚固阴极

• 批准号: 560197-2020
• 负责人: Pope, Michael
• 金额: $ 2.19万
• 依托单位: University of Waterloo
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Alliance Grants
• 财政年份: 2020
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2020-01-01 至 2021-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=706834
• 关键词: Development; robust; cathodes; pressurized; gravity

Off-grid communities and industrial sites, such as those in Northern Ontario, often rely on diesel powered generators for both primary and back-up power. These generators contribute to air and noise pollution and emit greenhouse gases. e-Zinc, located in Toronto-Ontario, is commercializing a low cost, safe and environmentally benign, zinc-air battery which can be integrated into micro-grids with solar/wind power and are designed to deliver energy for long-durations (> 24h). These systems can eliminate the need for diesel generators altogether. The gravity driven design of e-Zinc's battery reduces pumping and overall storage costs but leads to a unique challenge in that the air-breathing cathodes must operate under large hydrostatic pressures which can cause early mechanical failure of commercially available cathodes. In collaboration with the Pope Group at the University of Waterloo, e-Zinc aims to design a completely new cathode which can resist even higher pressures while maintaining performance. The team will investigate failure modes of the current and new cathode designs in order to map out performance limits of scaled systems. The success of this project will help e-Zinc to more rapidly commercialize which will enable improved energy utilization efficiency of micro-grids - in particular for off-grid communities. In addition to the expected economic benefits and increased job opportunities that will arise in manufacturing the new air cathodes and scaled zinc-air batteries, the expected reduction in pollution and greenhouse gases are expected to positively impact all Canadians - in particular those in off-grid communities.

离网社区和工业场所（例如安大略省北部的社区和工业场所）通常依靠柴油发电机提供主要和备用电源。这些发电机会造成空气和噪音污染，并排放温室气体。 e-Zinc 位于安大略省多伦多市，正在将一种低成本、安全且环保的锌空气电池商业化，该电池可以集成到太阳能/风能微电网中，旨在长期提供能源 (> 24 小时）。这些系统可以完全消除对柴油发电机的需求。 e-Zinc 电池的重力驱动设计降低了泵送和总体存储成本，但也带来了一个独特的挑战，即呼吸空气的阴极必须在大的静水压力下运行，这可能会导致市售阴极的早期机械故障。 e-Zinc 与滑铁卢大学 Pope 集团合作，旨在设计一种全新的阴极，可以在保持性能的同时承受更高的压力。该团队将研究当前和新阴极设计的故障模式，以便找出规模化系统的性能极限。该项目的成功将帮助 e-Zinc 更快地实现商业化，从而提高微电网的能源利用效率，特别是对于离网社区。除了制造新型空气阴极和规模化锌空气电池带来的预期经济效益和增加的就业机会外，预期污染和温室气体的减少预计将对所有加拿大人产生积极影响，特别是那些离网的加拿大人社区。