Inorganic Polymers as Electrolytes for Energy Storage and Conversion Technologies

Many present non-aqueous redox flow battery technologies are plagued by charge carrier decomposition (ligand dissociation, reaction with solvent) and species crossover at the membrane. These drawbacks can be eliminated or minimized by moving to electrochemically reversible, symmetric (one species with paired reductions and oxidations), heterogeneous systems. We study techniques for polymerization and/or immobilization of redox-active species on conductive supports to improve energy densities in non-aqueous redox flow batteries. We are particularly interested in expanding electrosynthetic techniques for polymers. Beyond battery systems, we study these materials as heterogeneous materials for photocatalysis and electrocatalysis.