Coupled In Situ NMR and EPR Studies Reveal the Electron Transfer Rate and Electrolyte Decomposition in Redox Flow Batteries

Abstract

We report the development of in situ ( online) EPR and coupled EPR/NMR methods to study redox flow batteries, which are applied here to investigate the redox-active electrolyte, 2,6-dihydroxyanthraquinone (DHAQ). The radical anion, DHAQ ^3–•, formed as a reaction intermediate during the reduction of DHAQ ^2–, was detected and its concentration quantified during electrochemical cycling. The fraction of the radical anions was found to be concentration-dependent, the fraction decreasing as the total concentration of DHAQ increases, which we interpret in terms of a competing dimer formation mechanism. Coupling the two techniques—EPR and NMR—enables the rate constant for the electron transfer between DHAQ ^3–• and DHAQ ^4– anions to be determined. We quantify the concentration changes of DHAQ during the “high-voltage” hold by NMR spectroscopy and correlate it quantitatively to the capacity fade of the battery. The decomposition products, 2,6-dihydroxyanthrone and 2,6-dihydroxyanthranol, were identified during this hold; they were shown to undergo subsequent irreversible electrochemical oxidation reaction at 0.7 V, so that they no longer participate in the subsequent electrochemistry of the battery when operated in the standard voltage window of the cell. The decomposition reaction rate was found to be concentration-dependent, with a faster rate being observed at higher concentrations. Taking advantage of the inherent flow properties of the system, this work demonstrates the possibility of multi-modal in situ ( online) characterizations of redox flow batteries, the characterization techniques being applicable to a range of electrochemical flow systems.