Performance and stability of a liquid anode high-temperature metal-air battery

A High-Temperature Metal-Air Battery (HTMAB) that operates based on a simple redox reaction between molten metal and atmospheric oxygen at 600-1000 C is presented. This innovative HTMAB concept combines the technology of conventional metal-air batteries with that of solid oxide fuel cells to provide a high energy density system for many applications. Electrochemical reversibility is demonstrated with 95% coulomb efficiency. Cell sealing has been identified as a key issue in order to determine the end-of-charge voltage, enhance coulomb efficiency and ensure long term stability. In this work, molten Sn is selected as anode material. Low utilization of the stored material due to precipitation of the SnO₂ on the electrochemically active area limits the expected capacity, which should theoretically approach 903 mAh g ^-1. Nevertheless, more than 1000 charge/discharge cycles are performed during more than 1000 h at 800 C, showing highly promising results of stability, reversibility and cyclability.