Historically, Johnson Matthey has had a long association with electrochemistry, and perhaps this was inevitable because of the importance of the platinum group metals (pgm) to Johnson Matthey’s early development. Platinum, in particular, has been incredibly useful in the field, because of its exceptional electrocatalytic activity and impressive inertness in most environments. Famously,...

Rechargeable metal-oxygen cells could exceed the stored energy of today’s most advanced lithium-ion cells. However challenges exist that must be overcome to bring this technology into practical application. These challenges include, among others, the recharge and cyclability efficiency, materials development and improvements in fundamental understanding of the electrochemistry and chemistry inside the cell. The common challenges for the anode, including corrosion, passivation and dendrite formation and those for the air cathode and the electrolyte are summarised in this review for cells based on magnesium, calcium, aluminium, silicon, zinc and iron.

Chemically regenerative redox cathode (CRRC) polymer electrolyte fuel cells (PEFCs) are attracting more interest as a platinum-free PEFC technology. These fuel cells utilise a liquid catalyst or catholyte, to perform the indirect reduction of oxygen, eliminating the major degradation mechanisms that plague PEFC durability. A key component of a CRRC PEFC system is the catholyte. This article reports a thorough study of the effect of catholyte concentration and temperature on CRRC PEFC system performance for H₇PV₄Mo₈O₄₀ and Na₄H₃PV₄Mo₈O₄₀, two promising polyoxometalate (POM)-based catholytes. The results suggest 80°C and a catholyte concentration of 0.3 M provide the optimum performance for both H₇PV₄Mo₈O₄₀ and Na₄H₃PV₄Mo₈O₄₀ (for ambient pressure operation).

Introduction The third UK Energy Storage Conference (UKES2016) was held at the Edgbaston campus of the University of Birmingham, UK, from midday on Wednesday 30th November to midday on Friday 2nd December 2016. The aim of the conference, organised by the Energy Storage Research Network on behalf of the UK Research Council funded Energy SuperStore Hub and chaired by Professor Nigel Brandon...