New big battery in town as Australia tests biggest iron flow system outside US

Australia’s National Battery Testing Centre (NBTC) has commissioned the biggest and first of its kind large-scale iron flow battery outside of the United States.

The NBTC, operated by the Queensland University of Technology (QUT), announced on Tuesday that it would collaborate with Energy Storage Industries – Asia Pacific (ESI) and the Future Battery Industries Cooperative Research Centre (FBICRC) on the development of 12-metre-long containerised iron flow battery system.

The Energy Warehouse iron flow battery being commissioned and tested at the NBTC is designed to be used for large-scale energy generation and distribution support for the electricity grid.

“Energy Warehouse systems have the potential to store solar energy generated by residential solar arrays to assist with the management of excess energy that the current electricity transmission infrastructure can’t handle,” said Dr Joshua Watts from the QUT Faculty of Science.

“It’s not the type of battery you would buy for the backyard, but more targeted toward large-scale solar and wind farms, or new community developments where they’re looking to build in more localised energy generation and distribution networks.

“Iron flow batteries are well suited for long-duration applications due to the nature of the energy storage mechanism, which is achieved through dissolved metal salts in aqueous solution. So, you just increase the electrolyte volume, and you increase the capacity. You only need to make the tank bigger.”

Other advantages of iron flow batteries are the fact that they are environmentally benign, fully recyclable, and offer a potentially lower cost per kWh for long-duration storage applications.

The potential for local manufacturing of the iron flow systems is also high, thanks to simplified componentry such as PVC pipes, water pumps, and fiberglass tanks.

Dr Watts also suggests that this allows for “potential … to reskill workers moving out of the coal-fired power station industry who have similar skill sets in maintaining plant equipment.”

“As we invest in more solar and more wind, the demand for large-scale batteries and storage will increase to ensure Queensland’s energy is reliable and affordable, these new batteries are perfect to support our energy grid,” said Steven Miles, Queensland’s deputy premier.

“Testing the biggest large-scale iron flow battery at QUT’s Banyo facility is another step toward meeting our renewable energy targets.”