Advantages and Applications of Vanadium Redox Flow Batteries in

Sustainable Development

Jingfan Zhang

Shenzhen College of International Education, Shenzhen, 518000 China

Keywords: Vanadium Redox Flow Batteries, Sustainable Development, Energy.

Abstract: The current field of sustainable development is undergoing unprecedented changes, and the proposal of

various renewable energy sources is impacting people's existing environmental protection concepts and

ecological thinking. This makes the energy sector a subject of great attention. In the energy field, the battery

is of great concern, because the green development of the battery has become an important development goal

of future science and technology. This paper discusses the application in vanadium redox flow batteries in

sustainability. Results show that the vanadium redox flow batteries have the advantage inn areas mainly

include high density and stability, less environmental impact and shorter life span. Vanadium redox flow

battery could address three sustainable development goals: solving poverty, being a form of clean energy,

involving industrial development, and building a sustainable city. Poverty could be solved by promoting

renewable energy development, improving widespread accessity to electricity in rural areas (which need

vanadium redox flow batteries), and job creation. The battery can also can increase the usage of clean energy

as it is the major component in many kinds of clean energy. It could also used in industrial development with

the characteristics of energy conversion efficiency and quick response speed, which are also useful in

contributing to the plan for sustainable city in the future.

1 INTRODUCTION

The concept of sustainable development is a

significant theory put forward by the United Nations

to solve the problem of human development in the

future. It covers 19 fields, including tackling poverty,

renewable and clean energy, and industrial

development. These aspects can promote the

coordinated development of ecology and improve

energy efficiency, optimising resource allocation and

maximising resource upgrade. The world faces a

severe energy crisis in the current era, with soaring

energy prices and widespread shortages hindering

economic development. Storage inadequacies and

energy wastage contribute significantly to this crisis.

There is a pressing need to advance energy storage

technologies to mitigate these challenges (Pathak and

Gupta, 2018). The adoption of the Sustainable

Development Goals also marks the double cycle and

multi-dimensional cross-field cooperation between

countries from internal to external, which jointly

address the important directions of human

development that may challenge the future. Nations

have become acutely aware of the irreconcilable

contradiction between the availability of resources and

the inexhaustible desires of humanity. However, the

concept of sustainable development can largely

alleviate this contradiction.

Nowadays, in the energy field, many new energy

sources are rising, for example, photovoltaic, electric

panels, hydrogen energy, and various energy storage

methods are also frequently used. Among them, the

development of batteries in this process has been

large-scale usage and promotion. The batteries are

participating not only in areas that could be obvious

but also in areas related to sustainable development

goals. In this paper, batteries are chosen to be

vanadium flow batteries among various batteries such

as lithium-ion batteries, lithium iron phosphate

batteries, and hydrogen batteries. That is because

vanadium flow batteries have prosperous prospects

and a high vision in the future in promoting

sustainable development. This paper discusses the

different functions of vanadium redox flow batteries

in reducing poverty, promoting clean energy, and

intervening in industry and urban planning. The

engagement of batteries in these areas could be

analyzed from the perspective of battery energy

efficiency and life cycle aspects, which could

demonstrate the advantage of vanadium redox flow

Zhang, J.

Advantages and Applications of Vanadium Redox Flow Batteries in Sustainable Development.

DOI: 10.5220/0013937200004914

Paper published under CC license (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

In Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Renewable Energy and Ecosystem (ICREE 2024), pages 331-336

ISBN: 978-989-758-776-4

331

battery use in the practice area. This alignment

underscores the multifaceted benefits of addressing

global challenges and advancing sustainability

objectives (Parasuraman et al., 2013).

2 BACKGROUND OF VANADIUM

REDOX FLOW BATTERIES

A flow battery is one in which two liquids are

separated by a membrane and circulated to enable ion

exchange between them, including iron-chromium

flow battery, zinc-bromine flow battery, zinc-air flow

battery, and vanadium flow battery. It has

characteristics of a long lifetime, recyclable, good

reliability and safety, and high efficiency. To be more

specific in focusing on vanadium redox flow battery,

it is a form of flow battery which presents a

promising solution due to their extended lifespan,

reliability, and recyclable electrolytes. Currently, most

researches aim to enhance its efficiency and reduce

costs, positioning them as strong contenders,

particularly for large-scale energy storage

installations, competing with lithium batteries.

3 CHARACTERISTICS OF

VANADIUM REDOX FLOW

BATTERY

The first technique of vanadium redox flow battery is

it can reduce environmental impact and enhances

safety. Using vanadium ions in aqueous solutions

minimizes environmental repercussions in production,

operation, and disposal, diminishing the ecological

footprint. This approach also mitigates safety

concerns tied to battery usage. Using non-toxic

materials significantly lowers risks to human health

and the environment during handling and

transportation. The second technique is thermal

storage technology, which is the storage of heat for

later use. Heat can be stored from hours to months and

the storage scale is small to large. For example, heat

energy stored in the summer can be used in the winter.

The third technique is electrochemical energy storage,

which transforms the electric energy into chemical

energy for later use. Superconducting magnetic

energy storage is an electric energy storage device

because of the zero resistance of superconductors,

improving the stability of the whole power system. A

sodium-sulfur battery is a molten battery that has the

characteristic of high energy density.

3.1 Advantages of Vanadium Redox

Flow Battery

Vanadium redox flow battery excels in energy storage,

offering independent power and energy adjustment for

tailored output based on practical needs (Alotto et al.,

2014). Its rapid energy release meets high-power

demands, enhancing system flexibility and

adaptability.

The vanadium redox flow battery reduces

environmental impact and enhances safety (Table 1).

Using vanadium ions in aqueous solutions minimizes

environmental repercussions in production, operation,

and disposal, diminishing the ecological footprint.

This approach also mitigates safety concerns tied to

battery usage. Using non-toxic materials significantly

lowers risks to human health and the environment

during handling and transportation.

Table 1: The environmental impact and safeness issue of

energies (original)

Technology W-W h

independ

enc

Environ

mental

impac

Safen

ess

issue

Thermal energy

stora

Yes Mild Mild

Electrochemical

ener

stora

NO Low low

Superconducting

magetic energy

stora

NO Low Low

Sodium sulfur No Low Low

The vanadium redox flow battery excels in rapid

charging and extended lifespan. Its swift charging is

crucial for applications requiring quick energy influx.

The prolonged lifecycle enhances system reliability

and cost-effectiveness, reducing the need for frequent

replacements and maintenance (

Koçak et al., 2020)

(Table 2).

Table 2: The response time and lifespan of energies

(original)

Technology Response

time

Cycle life

x10

Thermal ener

stora

emin 10

Superconducting

netic ener

stora

ms none

Electrochemical energy

stora

ms 3

Sodiu

sulfu

s 6

ICREE 2024 - International Conference on Renewable Energy and Ecosystem

332

Vanadium redox flow batteries have the following

characteristics:

(1) Power: 0.03-7 MV

(2) Capacity: <10 MVh

(3) Specific energy: 10-30kWh/m

(4) Efficiency: 75-85%

(5) Lifetime: 12,000 cycles

3.2 Disadvantages of Vanadium Redox

Flow Battery

Despite the advantages of the all-vanadium redox flow

battery, certain drawbacks must be acknowledged.

Firstly, its relatively low energy density implies

limited energy storage within the same volume. For

instance, compared to high-energy-density batteries,

the vanadium redox flow battery may require a larger

physical footprint to achieve equivalent energy

storage, presenting a challenge in space-constrained

applications.

Secondly, the vanadium redox flow battery's

substantial size and complex installation pose

challenges. The design, relying on liquid flow,

necessitates sizable storage tanks and intricate

pipeline systems, complicating the installation process

and demanding additional space (Figure 1). This could

limit the deployment of vanadium redox flow batteries

in urban environments where land and space are at a

premium

Figure 1: Workflow of the energy application (original)

Thirdly, the energy conversion process of vanadium

redox flow battery introduces the efficiency loss of

charge, discharge and total energy conversion. While

technological advances can mitigate these losses,

addressing this issue is critical to prevent system

performance degradation, increased operating costs

and energy system complexity. In addition, the

technical complexity of vanadium redox flow battery

exceeds that of conventional batteries, requiring

complex control and monitoring systems for proper

operation and maintenance (Zhang et al., 2012). This

complexity requires greater technical expertise and

investment, presenting challenges in building and

sustaining systems.

4 APPLICATIONS AND

INFLUENCE OF VANADIUM

REDOX FLOW BATTERY

4.1 Economic-Society Influence

Vanadium flow batteries can play a significant role in

reducing poverty and absolute poverty. Some poor

countries and regions need more effective and

efficient resource allocation. As a kind of energy

storage battery with high efficiency and high energy

conversion functions, vanadium flow batteries can

better contribute to the power system in poor areas at

higher levels. This can be broken down into several

aspects, including promoting renewable energy

development, improving access to electricity in rural

and remote areas, and creating jobs.

Firstly, it could promote renewable energy

development: It could provide a stable power supply

for residents in rural and remote areas. Energy costs

and dependence on fossil fuels can be reduced,

providing economical energy solutions for poor areas.

As an important part of renewable energy, energy

storage flow batteries can help local energy sources to

be more diversified, as well as better ecological

balance, and make full use of energy efficiency. The

local application of renewable energy helps to reduce

the use and mining of coal as the main energy source,

which can greatly reduce local pollution. The cost of

environmental treatment caused by pollution may

bring great difficulties to local industrial upgrading

and investment promotion, thus further increasing the

local poverty rate. When renewable energy comes to

the region, there would be more emerging industries

in the energy sector, opportunities to help the local

economy, and real resources, productivity and

productivity would be largely improved. At the same

time, a stable supply of electricity from the power

system can help increase electricity consumption in

poor areas. This means that the electricity demand of

the local people can be guaranteed, and the people's

livelihood can also provide support for the local

people, which is quite useful for consolidating the

local energy base and energy development and

economic prospects.

Secondly, it can improve access to electricity in rural

and remote areas. It could be used as a backup power

Advantages and Applications of Vanadium Redox Flow Batteries in Sustainable Development

333

supply or tool to adjust the power grid load to improve

the stability and reliability of power supply in rural

areas. Having a stable power supply in remote areas

can help local industries develop. Because industrial

development requires a large amount of electricity for

a long time, if large-scale industrial development is

carried out in the countryside, it can improve the local

industrial appreciation, which attracts more

investment because there is a better industrial cluster

here. This industrial cluster can help create local

characteristic industries, stimulating investment and

consumption. Therefore, it can help lift local people

out of poverty. Many countries, including China, are

now integrating rural power grids in this way to boost

local industrial efficiency and capacity. Therefore, the

scale of rural electricity consumption will gradually

develop in the direction of the city. This could slowly

integrate the rural power system and integrate the

economic development of each rural area into one

piece.

Thirdly, in this production of battery, it has job

creation. Jobs can be created in the manufacturing and

recycling of batteries. An important way to get rid of

poverty is to boost the employment of residents. If the

employment problem is solved, local consumption

and investment will flood. The premise of

employment is to allow local people to have more job

opportunities, which requires more industries to join

the development of rural areas. The packaging and

assembly of flow batteries, as well as the

manufacturing aspects, can be done locally, which

could reduce transportation costs and help local

businesses grow. In the process, it can also slowly

form a unified large market and encourage

competition, learn advanced technology and

management experience from other places, and carry

out technology integration so that residents can have

more jobs and thus have more disposable income to

improve the local economy.

4.2 Introducing Clean Energy

The battery can balance the power grid load by storing

and releasing energy, promoting utilization of

renewable energy and providing technical support for

large-scale grid-connected power generation of

renewable energy. Vanadium flow batteries reduce

greenhouse gas and air pollutant emissions and

improve environmental and climate conditions.

Taking the Hongsha Hydropower Station in Hunan as

an example (Tang, 2019), it can be known that the

purpose of this hydropower station includes:

(1) To accelerate the development and utilization of

hydropower resources, vigorously develop rural

hydropower, and actively construct new rural

hydropower electrification, small hydropower

generation ecological protection projects and rural

hydropower efficiency expansion and transformation

projects.

(2) To optimize the allocation of water resources

(Chakraei et al., 2021), improve the structure of water

supply sources, and improve the allocation capacity of

water resources and the degree of water supply

security. Effective use of surface water and

groundwater, air cloud water resources and reclaimed

water according to local conditions.

(3) To rationally allocate the water resources needs of

urbanized areas, major agricultural production areas

and key ecological functional, coordinate the

allocation of water resources in river basins and

regions and comprehensively balance the water

resources needs of different regions and industries and

the requirements of ecological environmental

protection.

(4) To focus on ensuring the safety of water supply for

urban and rural residents, major grain-producing

areas, energy bases and important cities, and improve

the capacity of emergency water supply in response to

droughts and emergencies.

This goal is also the goal of most hydropower stations.

Combined with vanadium redox flow battery, the goal

is easier to achieve, and the main realization process

is as follows:

Aiming at the efficiency and energy saving of the first

target flow battery, it can greatly help develop and

utilize hydropower resources. It can be installed in the

power system. To help increase the efficiency of

converting water energy to electricity, to increase the

power generation rate, which could help industrial

production. The flow battery cost is relatively

inexpensive, in line with the regional requirements of

vigorously developing rural hydropower. The

electrification of new rural areas and the expansion of

rural hydropower efficiency are very suitable for the

flow vanadium battery because the whole sail flow

battery can carry much power to undertake many

industrial production tasks.

To solve the second goal, improving the deployment

capacity of water resources and the degree of water

supply security, the long life cycle of the vanadium

flow battery could be more stable. It can be recycled,

but also through effective maintenance, to ensure it

continues working. The water recovery of this

vanadium flow battery can also be done.

The application of vanadium flow batteries can also

help solve the water resources needs of the third

urbanized area and coordinate the allocation of water

resources in the basin region, balancing the water

ICREE 2024 - International Conference on Renewable Energy and Ecosystem

334

resources needs of various industries in various

regions, because vanadium flow batteries can be used

in various production links. Similarly, much energy

will be consumed in water demand scheduling,

whether it is a city or a country. At this time,

introducing the all-vanadium flow battery clean

energy can help ecological reorganization and

improve efficiency. The durability of all-vanadium

flow batteries is very long, so the flow battery will also

play a vital role in long-distance transportation to

balance the links between various industries in various

regions.

For the fourth goal, the main field of all-vanadium

flow batteries is to ensure water supply safety and

emergency water supply support capacity. All-

vanadium flow batteries can be subject to emergency

dispatch and rapid production. Similarly, only one

flow battery is required to bear the working power of

millions of watts. Therefore, the rapid response of

vanadium flow batteries in response to huge floods

and various disasters in the field of clean energy

applications can also help the ecological environment

better recovery.

4.3 Influence in Industry Development

and Building a Sustainable City

The broad scope and scalability of industrial

applications allow vanadium flow batteries to

participate in various assembly steps of industrial

production (Kear et al., 2012). In other words,

vanadium flow batteries have the characteristics of

energy saving, high efficiency and wide application in

industry. Productivity in the field of industry

emphasizes that efficiency is crucial. Therefore, with

vanadium solution by the battery as a part of clean

energy, efficiency can also be guaranteed, making the

pace of industrial production faster and obtaining

higher output—minimum energy consumption.

Strengthen the allocation of total factor resources. The

future is also promising in the industrial sector. It can

ensure a stable energy supply. In the case of peak

energy demand or insufficient renewable energy

generation, vanadium flow batteries can provide a

stable power supply and ensure the continuity of

industrial production. Vanadium redox flow battery

can Improve production efficiency. The rapid

charging and discharging ability of vanadium flow

batteries can reduce the uptime of industrial

equipment and improve production efficiency.

Vanadium redox flow batteries have the

characteristics of reducing energy consumption and

operating costs: The energy conversion efficiency of

vanadium flow batteries can reduce energy waste and

loss.

The transformation of results in industry can also

empower the construction of sustainable cities. Some

of their experiences are shared because an important

part of building sustainable cities is building

sustainable industries, which is down to specific

applications. Every aspect of the city contains the

shadow of the application of clean energy. For

example, the construction of energy storage systems,

energy distribution and allocation systems and better

management skills are important parts of the layout for

the city's future development. The intervention of

sustainable clean energy can help resources not be

wasted effective use, and in the future, there can be

better results transformation so that people will not be

excessive development and waste, and ignore the

current energy gap in the future so that the field of

energy attention will become relatively small.

Vanadium redox flow battery can be applied in many

areas: (1) Energy storage system: provide a stable and

reliable energy supply for the city. (2) Smart

microgrids: It’s a core component of smart microgrids

to integrate and optimize distributed energy sources

(Jefimowski et al., 2020). (3) Electric vehicle charging

facilities: vanadium flow batteries can be used in

electric vehicle charging facilities to provide fast

charging services. (4) Distributed energy system:

vanadium flow batteries can achieve decentralized

management and operation of energy. Distributed

energy systems can improve the management level so

that they are suitable for city construction (Li et al.,

2017).

5 CONCLUSION

This paper discusses the application of Vanadium

redox flow batteries in sustainability. Advantages

mainly include high energy density, long cycle life,

safety, durable cost-effective, and unwavering low

environmental impact. The typical advantage is high

energy efficiency. Take a 35kW vanadium flow

battery at 110 L/min flow as an example, the energy

efficiency can be maintained at a high level of more

than 70%. Another advantage is the long life cycle,

which can take up to 30 years. Its disadvantage is that

recycling large space due to its size requires a constant

flow of fluids to maintain its charge at a high

investment. In this paper, the social-economical

aspects are taken into consideration.

Vanadium redox flow battery could be applied in three

fields. For poverty, it could be achieved by promoting

renewable energy development, improving access to

Advantages and Applications of Vanadium Redox Flow Batteries in Sustainable Development

335

electricity in rural and remote areas and job creation.

For clean energy, it can promote the utilization of

renewable energy and provide technical support for

large-scale grid-connected power generation of

renewable energy. It can reduce greenhouse gas and

air pollutant emissions. For industry, it is a stable

energy supply, improving production efficiency and

reducing energy consumption and operating costs.

Sustainable cities could be achieved by energy storage

system, smart microgrids, electric vehicle charging

facilities and distributed energy system. These

features show that in sustainable development, the

vanadium flow battery has its advantages and

disadvantages, and the same can be applied in various

fields, which paved the way for his prospects.

REFERENCES

Alotto, P., Guarnieri M. and Moro, F., 2014. Redox flow

batteries for the storage of renewable energy: a review.

Renew. Sustain. Energy Rev. 29, 325–335.

Chakraei, I., Safavi, H. R., Dandy, G. C., and

Golmohammadi, M. H. 2021. Integrated simulation-

optimization framework for water allocation based on

sustainability of surface water and groundwater

resources. Journal of Water Resources Planning and

Management, 147(3), 05021001.

Jefimowski, W., Szeląg, A., Steczek, M., and Nikitenko, A.

2020. Vanadium redox flow battery parameters

optimization in a transportation microgrid: A case

study. Energy, 195, 116943.

Kear, G., Shah, A. A., and Walsh, F. C. 2012. Development

of the all‐vanadium redox flow battery for energy

storage: a review of technological, financial and policy

aspects. International Journal of Energy Research,

36(11), 1105-1120.

Koçak, B., Fernandez, A. I. and Paksoy, H. 2020. Review

on sensible thermal energy storage for industrial solar

applications and sustainability aspects. Solar Energy,

209, 135-169.

Li, M. J., Zhao, W., Chen, X., & Tao, W. Q. (2017).

Economic analysis of a new class of vanadium redox-

flow battery for medium-and large-scale energy storage

in commercial applications with renewable energy.

Applied Thermal Engineering, 114, 802-814.

Parasuraman, A., Lim, T. M., Menictas, C. and Skyllas-

Kazacos, M. 2013. Review of material research and

development for vanadium redox flow battery

applications. Electrochimica Acta, 101, 27-40.

Pathak P K, Gupta A R. 2018 Feb 9. Battery energy storage

system. In 2018 4th International Conference on

Computational Intelligence & Communication

Technology (CICT) pp 1-9.

Tang, L. 2019. China’s International Exchange and

Cooperation in the Field of Poverty Reduction. The

Evolution of China's Poverty Alleviation and

Development Policy (2001-2015), pp 283-315.

Zhang, M., Moore, M., Watson, J. S., Zawodzinski, T. A.,

and Counce, R. M. 2012. Capital cost sensitivity

analysis of an all-vanadium redox-flow battery. Journal

of The Electrochemical Society, 159(8), A1183.

ICREE 2024 - International Conference on Renewable Energy and Ecosystem

336