The ideal redox material is based on main group elements, is liquid, and provides solid-like redox density

We discovered such a class of low molecular weight organic redox materials with exciting features:

(i) they are liquid in pure form and dissolve salts, being active material and electrolyte at once. (ii) they are reduced and oxidized with a voltage window of 3 - 4 V, hence act as anolyte and catholyte. (iii) they are mixed ion and electron conducting, allowing for very high volume occupation in the electrode. (iv) applied in redox flow batteries unmatched energy densities are possible. (v) composed from only C, O, and H, the raw materials are accessible & cheap & scalable.

The organic molecules of adequate properties are first designed, then synthesized and purified.

Subsequent physico-chemical analysis via NMR, DSC, UV-Vis, Mass-spectrometry, viscosimetry, ... emphasize their intended physical properties.

Further on, by diverse electrochemical testing via cyclic voltammetry, galvanostatic cycling, impedance spectroscopy, in different cell set-ups… their real performance in batteries is revealed.

A loop of optimization is started to finally develop proper compounds, which are further scaled up and tested in diverse prototypes.

The project is currently funded by the Proof of Concept Grant of the European Research Council

and by the Institute of Science and Technology Austria.