What Is a Vanadium Redox Flow Battery (VRFB) and How Does It Work?

Vanadium redox flow batteries (VRFBs) are rechargeable flow batteries that store energy in liquid vanadium electrolytes held in external tanks. Unlike conventional batteries that store energy in solid electrode materials, VRFBs store energy in separate liquid electrolytes that are pumped through the battery system. This design allows energy capacity to be scaled by increasing electrolyte volume, making VRFBs well suited for long-duration, large-scale applications such as grid stabilization and renewable energy integration.

A vanadium redox flow battery (VRFB) stores and releases energy through redox reactions in liquid vanadium electrolytes. The electrolytes are stored in external tanks and pumped through a cell stack, where electrochemical reactions convert electrical energy into chemical energy during charging and convert stored chemical energy back into electricity during discharging.