2023 年 91 巻 2 号 p. 027001
In sulfuric acid (H2SO4) aqueous solutions containing manganese (Mn) and titanium (Ti) ions, which are used for the positive electrolyte in redox flow (RF) batteries, the addition of a small quantity of bismuth (Bi) has been found to be very effective in suppressing the MnO2 precipitation in the charging process from Mn2+ to Mn3+. The effect of the addition of Bi on the structural change in these solutions has been analyzed using x-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) techniques. X-ray absorption near edge structure (XANES) spectra indicated that some Mn4+ ions were generated only when Bi was not added. It was also confirmed that the Mn-O octahedral coordination was maintained at a high state of charge (SOC). On the other hand, no change was observed in the valence of Ti and Bi ions even at high SOCs. Extended x-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) measurements combined with fitting analysis clarified that the addition of Bi resulted in the generation of Mn-O-Bi coordination at the SOCs of 70 and 90 %. Bi-O-Mn coordination may suppress the MnO2 precipitation at a high SOC.
