Major progress in aluminum fuel cells

The world's first fuel cell was invented by William Grove in 1939. It has a history of 78 years. After years of development, it has evolved from a single aluminum fuel cell to a variety of practical values. The power supply (power supply system), such as Deyang Dongshen New Energy Technology Co., Ltd.'s pile-up power station and mobile vehicle power station. The anode of the battery is an aluminum plate that undergoes an oxidation reaction. It is an electrode through which electrons flow out. The cathode is an electrode that undergoes a reduction reaction and is an electrode through which electrons flow.

China's aluminum fuel cell development

The large-scale research and development of aluminum fuel cells in the world began in the United States in the 1960s. In the 1970s, they focused on the research of power supply batteries such as navigation buoy lights and mine lighting lamps; in the 1980s, Aluminum Power Company of the United States (Aluminum Power) The battery system made of aluminum alloy anode and effective air (oxygen) electrode was introduced to the market for portable power supply and backup power supply, and made great contribution to the commercial application of aluminum fuel cell; foreign media reports in June 2014. Aluminium power plant developed jointly by Alcoa and Israel's Phinergy (Phinergy) was used to conduct road test run on the vehicle. The cruising range reached a world record of 1600km. It is a milestone in the history of fuel cell development. It is powered by aluminum fuel. The development of the battery has made a great contribution, making the company become the world leader in aluminum fuel cells. The anode of this aluminum fuel cell system consists of 50 aluminum plates, each with a mass of 500g and a total mass of 25kg. The power provided by each aluminum plate allows the electric vehicle to travel 32km. In February 2014, Alcoa signed a cooperation agreement with Fregene Company on the further development of aluminum fuel cells. In early June, it conducted a test drive on aluminum fuel cell electric vehicles on the Formula One race track in Montreal, Canada. In 2017, mass production of aluminum fuel cells for electric vehicles will be realized and will be introduced to the world market.

The development of aluminum fuel cells in China started in the 1990s and has now become the world’s largest aluminum fuel cell research and development and production country. However, there are still gaps in R&D technology compared to the United States and Israel. The units engaged in relevant technology research in China mainly include Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Dalian Institute of Physical Chemistry, 712 Shipbuilding Heavy Industry, Peking University, Harbin Institute of Technology, Wuhan University, Tianjin University, Beijing Nonferrous Metal Research Institute, and Deyang East, Sichuan Province. Shenzhen New Energy Technology Co., Ltd., Taizhou Very New Energy Technology Co., Ltd., and Yunnan Metallurgical Group Innovative Metal Fuel Cell Co., Ltd. As of 2016, there are about 150 large and small enterprises producing new energy power batteries in China.

Dongshen New Energy Technology Co., Ltd.

The company was established in October 2011. It is located in the high-tech industrial zone of Luyang District, Deyang City, Sichuan Province. It is a national high-tech enterprise with independent knowledge and a number of invention patents from the European Union and the United States. Currently, it is the only domestic aluminum-air metal power generation reactor. Standard filing companies, together with UL headquarters and Hong Kong Productivity Council (HKPC), have formulated UL international standards for aluminum fuel cells, and have taken the lead in realizing the industrialization of aluminum fuel cells. This has made the development and marketization of aluminum fuel cells in China significant progress.

Since the establishment of Dongshen New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. in 2011, the following achievements have been achieved: 2012, the transfer of patents for the “Structure and Preparation Method of Fuel Cells”, and the production of 50kW aluminum fuel generator prototypes in 2013; Substantive breakthroughs have been made in key technologies; in 2015, the key technology projects for high-powered aluminum battery systems for power battery systems for new energy vehicles were included in the Provincial Science and Technology Agency support plan, and the Aluminum Fuel Cell Uninterruptible Power System (UPS) was certified by the Provincial Economic Commission and the Provincial Department of Finance. It is the first (set) product in Sichuan Province for major technical equipment; the “High-power aluminum fuel cell system” in 2016 was authorized by the PCT (patent cooperation agreement) in the European Union; UK, France, Germany, and Italy were effective; and in 2016 it was signed with the China Tower Corporation. The 1,000 base station uninterruptible power supply system contract achieved commercial production of aluminum fuel cells.

Currently, Dongshen New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. manufactures aluminum fuel cell systems in two major categories: capacity-type (STK-X), which is mainly applied to uninterrupted power supplies, and has large capacity and low specific power. It is used in communication base stations and mobile charging stations. , smart micro-grid, etc.; power type (FMG-X), this kind of power supply is large, small capacity, mainly used for traction power, used in vehicles, aerospace vehicles, ships and so on.

On February 24, 2017, Chen Quanxun, president of the China Nonferrous Metals Industry Association, and the deputy chairman of the literature army, etc., excited when they visited Deyang Dongshen New Energy Technology Co., Ltd.: “You have done a very meaningful thing. The theoretical discussion of aluminum fuel cells has come to industrialization. This is a breakthrough in the new energy revolution. You are pioneers.” Chen Quanxun placed great expectations on the company. He said to the company’s R&D team: “Aluminium fuel cells are a good project, but they need to be formed. There will be a lot of work to be done in commercialization and marketization. You are pioneers, and the China Non-Ferrous Metals Industry Association will support your product development and application, make full use of the advantages of our association, and provide assistance for you. We will continue to follow in the future. I hope your business will develop successfully."

Very New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. (SUPER)

The company is located in Taizhou City, Zhejiang Province, and has achieved remarkable results in the research and development of aluminum fuel cells. It has developed a variety of large, medium and small power input markets, and established the "Taizhou City Very Metallic Fuel Cell Research" in cooperation with Peking University and Taizhou City Government. Center" is committed to the promotion of aluminum fuel cell systems and industrialization, development of hybrid systems and applications in the field of electric vehicles and new metal fuel cell systems.

A number of aluminum fuel cells produced by the company participated in the 2016 Las Vegas exhibition. Has a series of core technologies: preparation of aluminum alloy electrodes, suppression of anode corrosion and passivation inhibition and improvement of discharge activity; preparation of oxygen reduction catalytic materials and continuous production of air diffusion electrodes; preparation of electrolytes containing active additives and Electrolyte treatment system, can inhibit anode corrosion, reduce polarization, improve battery efficiency; electrolyte circulation system, air circulation protection system and battery group thermal management system; battery system mechanical recharging, alloy anode discharge after mechanical exchange; discharge The product and electrolyte are regenerated in a concentrated manner to produce high-purity nano-alumina, which enhances the product value and recycles all substances.

The air electrode is prepared using a new catalyst formulation, which has low cost and high performance. Its discharge density per unit area has reached the level of similar foreign products, filling the domestic blank of such products. In 2013, it took the lead in building the first continuous air electrode production line in China.

The company has obtained more than 10 invention patents and has domestic and international patent authorizations, forming a core technology system with independent intellectual property rights. The use of electrochemical methods to produce products with high value-added nano-alumina, or will be a revolutionary new technology for the production of nano-alumina, has been applied in the military industry, won the third prize for scientific and technological progress of the entire military.

Yunnan Metallurgical Group Chuangneng Metal Fuel Cell Co., Ltd.

The company's independent research and development of key materials for aluminum fuel cells and its preparation technology fill the gaps in this field in Yunnan Province: The air is extremely low cost, and its service life is up to 7000h, which has reached the international advanced level; the independent production of special aluminum alloy anode plates not only The production cost is low, and its performance can be compared with that of Okoninco Aluminium Company's high-purity aluminum sheet; the electrolyte performance reaches the world's leading level, and the waste electrolyte is recovered in a comprehensive manner to prepare high-value-added ultra-fine alumina powder and flame-retardant Production of various products such as pharmaceuticals; 4 granted patents and 5 enterprise standards; 20MW aluminum fuel cell assembly production line has been completed; leading products include portable power supplies, medium and large standby power supplies, power supplies, auxiliary materials, etc. Ability to reach 200,000 units/year.

Aluminum Fuel Cell Development Trend

At present, both the world's power supply R&D units and manufacturing companies are putting their efforts into fuel cells, and the development of aluminum fuel cells is a top priority because aluminum fuel cells have many advantages that can be compared: aluminum is rich in resources, and the price is reasonable. Aluminum fuel cell manufacturing costs about 500 yuan / kWh, lithium-ion battery production costs 4,000 yuan / kWh of 1/8; for automotive, operating costs and fuel vehicles is equivalent to or lower, aluminum fuel cell vehicle 100 kilometers About 3kg of aluminum, 5L of water and electrolyte are consumed, and the operating cost is about 59 yuan. The fuel consumption of ordinary passenger vehicles is about 8L/100km, which is about RMB 61 yuan at 7.63 yuan/L. The battery life is higher than that of lithium ion batteries and aluminum fuel. The specific energy of the battery can reach 350Wh/kg~500Wh/kg, which is 3 times that of lithium-ion battery 120Wh~150Wh/kg, so when the same quality, the aluminum fuel battery carries 3 times the lithium-ion battery, and the cruising range is also lithium ion. 3 times the battery; easy to replace, aluminum fuel cells consume aluminum and water, only need to change the aluminum plate and add the appropriate amount of water during operation, easy to operate; green, aluminum fuel cells during the operation of the main by-product of Al (O H)3, not only harmless to the environment, but also recyclable, made of nano-Al2O3 powder; absolutely safe, will not produce a combustion explosion.

Foreign brief

Okoninco Aluminium and Israel's Frenking are among the world leaders in the development of aluminum fuel cells, leading the field in technology and manufacturing engineering. The Toyota Research Institute of Japan will cooperate with Stanford University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), University of Michigan, Buffalo City University, New York State University, University of Connecticut and Ilika Research Institute in the United Kingdom. Artificial Intelligence (AI) new energy battery materials.

Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of the People's Republic of China formulates plans for the development of automotive power battery

In April 2017, the relevant departments of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Science and Technology, and the Ministry of Finance jointly issued the "Action Plan for Promoting the Development of Automotive Power Battery Industry" (hereinafter referred to as "Action Plan"). The "Action Plan" proposes to promote the development of China's power battery in three phases: In 2018, it will increase the cost-effectiveness of existing products and ensure the supply of high-quality batteries. In 2020, a new generation of lithium-ion power batteries based on existing technologies will be used for large-scale applications. In 2025, the new system battery adopting the new chemical principle will strive to achieve technological change and development and testing.

The “Action Plan” put forward five development goals: to substantially improve product performance, the power battery system will be twice as high as the current level to reach 260Wh/kg by 2020, and the cost will drop below RMB 1/Wh. The power will be 2025. The specific energy of the battery reaches 500Wh/kg. The second is that the product safety meets the requirements for large-scale use, achieving safe production and use throughout the entire life cycle. Third, the industrial scale is developed in a rational and orderly manner. In 2020, the total production capacity of the industry is 100 billion Wh. The leading enterprises with production and sales scale of 40 billion Wh or more; Fourth, major breakthroughs in key materials and parts and components; 2020, an innovative backbone enterprise with core competitiveness; Fifth, the development of high-end equipment support industries, and the realization of intelligent equipment development in 2020. Manufacturing costs are greatly reduced.

The “Action Plan” put forward nine key tasks to achieve the development goals: the construction of a power battery innovation center, the implementation of power battery upgrade engineering, the strengthening of the new system power battery research, promote the coordinated development of the entire industry chain, improve the level of product quality and safety, speed up the construction of the perfect Standard system, strengthen the test analysis and evaluation capacity building, establish and improve the safety supervision system, and accelerate the development and industrialization of key equipment.

The promulgation of the "Action Plan" will play a significant role in accelerating the development of China's automobile power battery industry.