The Penn State Research Foundation

Wulin Yang

Jia Liu

Fang Zhang

Bruce E Logan

Thermally regenerative ammonia-based battery systems and methods of their use to produce electricity are provided according to aspects described herein in which ammonia is added into an anolyte to charge the battery, producing potential between the electrodes. At the anode, metal corrosion occurs in the ammonia solution to form an amine complex of the corresponding metal, while reduction of the same metal occurs at the cathode. After the discharge of electrical power produced, ammonia is separated from the anolyte which changes the former anolyte to catholyte, and previous anode to cathode by deposition of the metal. When ammonia is added to the former catholyte to make it as anolyte, the previous cathode becomes the anode. This alternating corrosion/deposition cycle allows the metal of the electrodes to be maintained in closed-loop cycles, and waste heat energy is converted to electricity by regeneration of ammonia, such as by distillation.

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State College, PA, United States of America

Wulin Yang