Investigation of the charge/discharge characteristics of aqueous zinc–ferric chloride batteries

In a Zn–FeCl3 battery, zinc granules were used as the anode and ammonium chloride as the electrolyte in both the anode and cathode zones, with ferric chloride as the active cathode substance and carbon felt as an inert cathode. A PE-01 homogeneous membrane was used as the membrane between the anode and cathode zones, with 100 ml of solution in both the anode and cathode zones. The charge/discharge characteristic of the battery was investigated for various concentrations of ferric chloride and ammonium chloride. At present, there are still some difficulties in using this zinc–ferric chloride battery as a rechargeable battery because zinc cannot be electrodeposited very well. However, it can possibly be used as a fuel cell and the operating lifetime of the fuel cell is very long. The actual energy density of a Zn–FeCl3 fuel cells is approximately equal to the actual energy density of a Pb–PbO2 battery. When a mixed solution of 2 M ferric chloride and 2 M ammonium chloride was used in the cathode zone with 4–5 M ammonium chloride in the anode zone, a better discharge characteristic was obtained, with a discharge time of approximately 14–15 h at 5 Ω. The most remarkable advantages for Zn–FeCl3 fuel cell are that both zinc and ferric chloride are very cheap and environmentally friendly, with flat discharge voltage characteristics.