Lecture 3: Electrochemical Energy Storage: I. Equivalent Circuit Models
Lecture 3: Electrochemical Energy Storage: I. Equivalent Circuit Models
Lecture 3: Electrochemical Energy Storage: I. Equivalent Circuit Models
In this lecture, we will learn some examples of electrochemical energy storage. A general
idea of electrochemical energy storage is shown in Figure 1. When the electrochemical energy
system is connected to an external source (connect OB in Figure 1), it is charged by the source
and a finite charge Q is stored. So the system converts the electric energy into the stored
chemical energy in charging process. When the system is connected to an external resistive
circuit (connect OA in Figure 1), it releases the finite Q and drives a current through the external
circuit. The system converts the stored chemical energy into electric energy in discharging
process.
O
Stored Discharging
chemical I
energy A B
(finite Q)
Charging
A simple example of energy storage is capacitor. Figure 2 shows the basic circuit for
capacitor discharge. Here we talk about the integral capacitance. The capacitance is defined as a
constant
(1)
The current is
(2)
(3)
Plug (1) and (2) into (3) and use the total resistance , then we get
(4)
(5)
The relation between stored charge and time is shown in Figure 3, where is called decay
time.
C Rint
-Q +Q
Cell
e- I
Rext
Q0
0 τ = RC Time
1. Supercapacitors
Carbon aerogel
Double
layer
Electrolyte
Vext
A
O
Rext B
Φ=0 Metal
cdx
rdx
Separator Φ(x) Pores
(6)
If we apply a sudden change of voltage V for t>0 at x=0, the current response can be estimated
as
2. Primary Batteries
A primary cell is any kind of battery in which the electrochemical reaction is not reversible.
Primary batteries can produce current immediately on assembly. A primary cell is not
rechargeable because the chemical reactions are not reversible and active materials may not
return to their original forms. Leclanche cell is a typical primary battery. The modern
commercial Leclanche cell packaging and the basic structure are shown in Figure 6. The
detailed reactions are
Net reaction:
-
OH
Electrolyte
Anode Cathode
e-
Rext
3. Secondary Batteries
Secondary batteries are also known as rechargeable batteries because their electrochemical
reactions are electrically reversible. Li-ion battery shown in Figure 7 is a typical example of
secondary battery. Li ions move from the negative electrode to the positive electrode during
discharge, and reversely when charging. During discharge the negative electrode is the anode
where oxidation takes place and during charge it turns into the cathode where reduction takes
place. The half-reactions of discharging are
Carbon
LiyCoO2
powder
+
e- Li
LiyCoO2
LixC6
Electrolyte
Anode Cathode
Rext
Ca Va 0 Rint Vc0 Cc
-Qa +Qa
Rext A
O
B
Vext
The relation between V and Q of Li-ion battery is often highly nonlinear, as shown in Figure
9. The detail will be discussed in Lecture 9.
V V
I<0, charging
I<0, charging
I=0
I=0
I>0, I>0,
discharging discharging
0 Qmax Q 0 Qmax Q
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