High-temperature conductive binder for an integrated electrode bipolar plate and its application in vanadium redox flow battery

A high-temperature conductive binder for preparing an integrated electrode bipolar plate (IEBP) was proposed. The electrical resistance and stability of IEBP samples with different component proportions were tested after treated at different temperatures. The results showed that the mass ratio of phenolic resin, graphite powder, B4C, and SiO2 in the conductive binder was 1:0.5:0.5:0.1, and the IEBP prepared by it had the lowest electrical resistance and the highest stability in vanadium solution after treated at 800 degrees C. The characterization results of thermogravimetry-differential scanning calorimetry (TG-DSC), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transformed infrared radiation (FTIR), and scanning electron microscope (SEM) indicated that the bonding strength was closely related to the formation of borosilicate glass and the volume compensation from B4C's oxidation. The battery with IEBP had better performance than those with no binder, and it operated well at a current density up to 150 mA cm(-2). Furthermore, the battery with IEBP had a stable cycling performance and the IEBP remained integrated after up to 100 charge-discharge cycles.