• Journal of Energy Engineering
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.150-156
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• 2014

In this study, we implemented a research for improving performance of redox flow battery (RFB) via enhancing reaction rate of vanadium reaction ($[VO]^{2+}/[VO_2]^+$) that was a rate determining step. For doing that, porous catalyst, CMK3 was employed and its perfoamance was compared with that of Vulcan(XC-72) and commercial Pt/C (Johnson-Matthey Pt 20wt.%). Cyclic voltammetry (CV) was used for inspecting reactivity, while its structural feature was measured by TEM and BET&BJH. Also, Charge-discharge trend was evaluated by single cell tests. As result, CMK3 showed 6 times better catalytic activity and twice better reversibility than Vulcan(XC-72), while it showed larger surface area than Vulcan XR due to its porous structure. Furthermore, CMK3 indicated 85% of reactivity and reversibility of commercial Pt/C despite its Pt-less situation. In single cell tests, when RFB adopted CMK3 as catalyst for positive electrode, its charge-discharge curve result was better than that adopted commercial Pt/C.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers B
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• v.35 no.6
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• pp.585-592
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• 2011

The enhancement of the cold-start capability of polymer electrolyte fuel cells is of great importance in terms of the durability and reliability of fuel-cell vehicles. In this study, vanadium oxide films deposited onto the flat surface of metallic bipolar plates were synthesized to investigate the feasibility of their use as an efficient self-heating source to expedite the temperature rise during startup at subzero temperatures. Samples were prepared through the dip-coating technique using the hydrolytic sol-gel route, and the chemical compositions and microstructures of the films were characterized by X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and field-emission scanning electron microscopy. In addition, the electrical resistance hysteresis loop of the films was measured over a temperature range from -20 to $80^{\circ}C$ using a four-terminal technique. Experimentally, it was found that the thermal energy (Joule heating) resulting from self-heating of the films was sufficient to provide the substantial amount of energy required for thawing at subzero temperatures.

• Clean Technology
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.308-313
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• 2017

In this study, we investigated the electrocatalytic effects of the N and O co-doping of Graphite Felt (GF) electrode for the vanadium redox flow battery (VRFB) at the cathode and the anode reaction, respectively. The electrodes were prepared by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) with $NH_3-O_2$ at 773 K, and its effects were compared with an electrode prepared by an O doping treatment. The surface morphology and chemical composition of the electrodes were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The electrocatalytic properties of these electrodes were characterized in a VRFB single cell comparing the efficiencies and performance of the electrodes at the cathode, anode, and single cell level. The results exhibited about 2% higher voltage and energy efficiencies on the N-O-GF than the O-GF electrode. It was found that the N and O co-doping was particularly effective in the enhancement of the reduction-oxidation reaction at the anode.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.20 no.6
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• pp.80-85
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• 2019

Vanadium dioxide is a well-known metal-insulator phase transition material. Lots of researches of vanadium redox flow batteries have been researched as large scale energy storage system. In this study, vanadium oxide($VO_x$) thin films were applied to cathode for lithium ion battery. The $VO_x$ thin films were deposited on Si substrate($SiO_2$ layer of 300 nm thickness was formed on Si wafer via thermal oxidation process), quartz substrate by RF magnetron sputter system for 60 minutes at $500^{\circ}C$ with different RF powers. The surface morphology of as-deposited $VO_x$ thin films was characterized by field-emission scanning electron microscopy. The crystallographic property was confirmed by Raman spectroscopy. The optical properties were characterized by UV-visible spectrophotometer. The coin cell lithium-ion battery of CR2032 was fabricated with cathode material of $VO_x$ thin films on Cu foil. Electrochemical property of the coin cell was investigated by electrochemical analyzer. As the results, as increased of RF power, grain size of as-deposited $VO_x$ thin films was increased. As-deposited thin films exhibit $VO_2$ phase with RF power of 200 W above. The transmittance of as-deposited $VO_x$ films exhibits different values for different crystalline phase. The cyclic performance of $VO_x$ films exhibits higher values for large surface area and mixed crystalline phase.

• 한국전기화학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2002.10a
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• pp.56-56
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• 2002

• 한국전기화학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2000.10a
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• pp.34-34
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• 2000

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers B
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• v.40 no.12
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• pp.777-784
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• 2016

All-vanadium redox flow batteries (VRFBs) are used as energy storage systems for multiple intermittent power sources. The performance of the VRFBs depends on the materials and operating conditions. Hence, performance characterization is of great importance in the development of the VRFBs. This paper proposes a method for determining the maximum current density based on stoichiometric ratios. A laboratory-scaled VRFB with a projected electrode area of $25cm^2$ is electrically charged when the state of the charge has begun from 0.6. The operating conditions, such as current density and volumetric flow rate are important in the test, and the maximum current density is influenced by the mass transfer coefficient. The results show that increasing the electrolyte flow rate from 5 mL/min to 60 mL/min enhances the maximum current density up to $520mA/cm^2$.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.57 no.3
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• pp.408-412
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• 2019

In this study, nitrogen doped carbon felt was prepared by pyrolysis of urea at high temperature and applied as an electrode for vanadium redox flow cell. Urea is easier to handle than ammonia and forms $NH_2$ radicals at higher temperatures, creating a nitrogen functional group on the carbon surface and acting as an active site in the vanadium redox reaction. Therefore, the discharge capacity of activated carbon felt electrodes using urea was 14.9 Ah/L at a current density of $150mA/cm^2$, which is 23% and 187% higher than OGF and GF, respectively. These results show the possibility that activated carbon felt electrode using urea can be used as electrode material for redox flow battery.

• Composites Research
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.148-154
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• 2021

Carbon/epoxy composite bipolar plate (BP) is a BP that is likely to replace existing graphite bipolar plate of vanadium redox flow cell (VRFB) due to its high mechanical properties and productivity. Multi-functional carbon/epoxy composite BP requires graphite coating or additional surface treatment to reduce interfacial contact resistance (ICR). However, the expanded graphite coating has the disadvantage of having low durability under VRFB operating conditions, and the surface treatments incur additional costs. In this work, an excessive resin absorption method is developed, which uniformly removes the resin rich area on the surface of the BP to expose carbon fibers by applying polyester fabric. This method not only reduces ICR by exposing carbon fibers to BP surfaces, but also forms a unique ditch pattern that can effectively hold carbon felt electrodes in place. The acidic environmental durability, mechanical properties, and gas permeability of the developed carbon/epoxy composite BP are experimentally verified.

• Composites Research
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• v.36 no.6
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• pp.422-428
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• 2023

The electrical contact resistance between the bipolar plate (BP) and the carbon felt electrode (CFE), which are in contact by the stack clamping pressure, has a great impact on the stack efficiency because of the relatively low clamping pressure of the vanadium redox flow battery (VRFB) stack. In this study, a polyethylene (PE) composite-CFE hybrid bipolar plate structure is developed through a local heat welding process to reduce such contact resistance and improve cell performance. The PE matrix of the carbon fiber composite BP is locally melted to create a direct contact structure between the carbon fibers of CFE and the carbon fibers of BP, thereby reducing the electrical contact resistance. Area specific resistance (ASR) and gas permeability are measured to evaluate the performance of the PE composite-CFE hybrid bipolar plate. In addition, an acid aging test is performed to measure stack reliability. Finally, a VFRB unit cell charge/discharge test is performed to compare and analyze the performance of the developed PE composite-CFE hybrid BP and the conventional BP.