The Trailblazer for Recycling and Clean Energy (TRaCE) is supporting vanadium flow battery research and development being conducted by Tivan, a Northern Territory based critical minerals company.
Tivan is focused on supporting Australia’s renewable energy transition and strengthening supply chains in Asia. The company’s Speewah Fluorite project is in a strategic alliance with Japan’s Sumitomo Electric Industries.
Associate Professor Chris Menictas from the UNSW School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering and Emeritus Professor Maria Skyllas-Kazacos from the UNSW School of Chemical Engineering are leading research with the aim of developing a proof of concept for the electrolyte solution.
Dr Vijayaratnam is conducting crucial work in the research partnership. He explains, ‘I first started working with Professor Menictas in 2017. It has been a wonderful experience to transition from working on the mechanical engineering design of the batteries to developing the electrolyte under the guidance of Chris and Maria.’
‘Working in partnership with Tivan has deepened my understanding of electrochemistry and the rigorous processes required to produce electrolyte that meets commercial specifications. Each ten-hour electrolysis experiment required our team – Dr Jiangzhou Xie, Dr Benjamin Tynan, Dr Yuheng Tian and myself – to work in shifts and maintain strict laboratory protocols to avoid contaminating the electrolyte’.
The TRaCE x Tivan R&D Voucher aims to determine the suitability and performance of vanadium electrolyte and help support a production pathway in Australia.
Speaking about the project, Professor Menictas recently told TRaCE:
‘Flow batteries provide significant benefits for long-duration energy storage. They are safe, efficient and have a very long life cycle. In vanadium flow batteries, the electrolyte life is practically indefinite.’
‘Working alongside Tivan provides a great opportunity for Australia to become self-sufficient in energy storage technologies such as flow batteries. We could not only manufacture and supply locally but also act as a global supplier.’
‘Collaboration with industry through TRaCE has many benefits. We are helping accelerate the transfer of research from lab scale to commercial application.’
Emeritus Professor Maria Skyllas-Kazacos added, ‘It has been a great pleasure to contribute to Tivan’s efforts. The project will help reduce raw material costs and expand the implementation of the UNSW vanadium flow battery technology in Australia and around the world.’
Expressions of interest for co-funding up to $100,000 through TRaCE R&D Voucher program are now open. If you are a small-to-medium enterprise, start-up or scale-up seeking easy access to co-designed and co-funded R&D projects in recycling and clean energy sectors, learn more and apply here: https://trace.org.au/access-co-funding/
