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New battery tech revives vanadium interest

[SKiamforsure]

https://www.miningnewsnorth.com/page/new-battery-tech-revives-vanadium-interest/5765.html

Batteries could be the future

While alloys currently drive the market for vanadium, emerging battery technologies will likely add to the demand for this critical metal.

One such technology, is vanadium redox-flow batteries (VRBs). These batteries, which use vanadium in solution as both the anode and cathode, could be the answer for storing large amounts of electricity that could be fed into power-grids when the need arises.

"Because of their large-scale storage capacity, development of VRBs could prompt increases in the use of wind, solar, and other renewable, intermittent power sources," USGS wrote.

Taking advantage of vanadium's ability to exist in solution in four different oxidation states, the vanadium redox battery uses vanadium in two of these states as electroactive elements, instead of separate elements for the cathode and anode.

The amount of energy a VRB can store is really only limited by the size of the storage tank built to hold the vanadium solutions, which are separated by a proton-exchange membrane.

These batteries can also remain completely uncharged over an extended period without major effects, another advantage that makes them particularly well suited for backup electrical storage.

The disadvantages are that these VRBs store relatively small amount of energy for their size and weight, making them less useful for mobile applications such as electric vehicles.

This does not mean vanadium will not be used to power future cars.

"Lithium-vanadium-phosphate batteries produce high voltages and high energy-to-weight ratios, which make them ideal for use in electric cars," USGS penned.

In these batteries, the lithium-vanadium phosphate serves as the cathode, and lithium metal serves as the anode.

While still early stage, this adds to the reason mining companies are looking for new supplies of vanadium.