nanoFlowcell Holdings plc is a Swiss
flow cell battery research and development company.
nanoFlowcell claims to have developed the first flow battery small enough to be used in
electric car
An electric car or electric vehicle (EV) is a passenger car, passenger automobile that is propelled by an electric motor, electric traction motor, using electrical energy as the primary source of propulsion. The term normally refers to a p ...
s. Its battery, also branded nanoFlowcell, was first presented in the Quant E, Quant F
and Quantino prototype vehicles. Similar to regular
redox flow batteries, the nanoFlowcell battery uses
electrolyte
An electrolyte is a substance that conducts electricity through the movement of ions, but not through the movement of electrons. This includes most soluble Salt (chemistry), salts, acids, and Base (chemistry), bases, dissolved in a polar solven ...
fluids to generate electricity from chemical compounds. nanoFlowcell uses, unlike the electrolytes in
vanadium flow batteries or
polysulfide bromide flow batteries, proprietary molecules as charge carriers; the electrolyte used in the nanoFlowcell is non-toxic and environmentally compatible. The electrolyte used in the nanoFlowcell battery has an
energy density
In physics, energy density is the quotient between the amount of energy stored in a given system or contained in a given region of space and the volume of the system or region considered. Often only the ''useful'' or extractable energy is measure ...
of 600 Wh per litre, which is ten times the energy density of regular redox flow cells. nanoFlowcell states that mass production cost for its "non-flammable and non-explosive" electrolyte is below 10 cents per litre.
The feasibility of nanoFlowcell's flow cell technologies has been questioned.
[
nanoFlowcell has registered offices in Kilchberg, Switzerland and London, United Kingdom. The company became a ]public limited company
A public limited company (legally abbreviated to PLC or plc) is a type of public company under United Kingdom company law, some Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth jurisdictions, and Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is a limited liability co ...
in 2021.
QUANT Prototypes
Under the name QUANT (derived from quantum mechanics
Quantum mechanics is the fundamental physical Scientific theory, theory that describes the behavior of matter and of light; its unusual characteristics typically occur at and below the scale of atoms. Reprinted, Addison-Wesley, 1989, It is ...
), nanoFlowcell Holdings developed applications for its nanoFlowcell flow cell technology, mainly electric vehicles such as the QUANT E, QUANT FE and Quantino. The Quantino is the latest electric prototype vehicle produced by nanoFlowcell engineers for their battery testing purposes. The road-legal version of the Quantino was first introduced at the Geneva International Motor Show
The Geneva International Motor Show was an annual auto show held in March in the Swiss city of Geneva.
The show was hosted at the Palexpo, a convention centre located next to the Geneva Cointrin International Airport. The Salon was organised by ...
in 2016, together with its more powerful sibling QUANT FE. The QUANT name and design itself was previously used in the Koenigsegg
Koenigsegg Automotive AB () is a Swedish manufacturer of high-performance sports cars based in Ängelholm, Skåne County, Sweden.
Koenigsegg cars have on several occasions broken various production car speed records.
Company
The company w ...
Quant solar electric concept car, in which La Vecchia's previous venture, NLV Solar, was involved.[
The Quantino and QUANT FE prototype vehicles have been used for technology presentations towards the automobile industry in 2016 to further demonstrate the use and advantages of flow cell technology in electric cars. Several journalists who drove Quantino and QUANT FE in public testings confirmed functionality of the nanoFlowcell's flow cell technology.]
nanoFlowcell claimed that the Quantino consumed 12 kWh per 100 km in a mixed test.
bi-ION Electrolyte
Similar to regular modern redox flow cells, nanoFlowcell produces electricity from liquids. nanoFlowcell insists that the electrolyte solution is not common salt water as commonly stated in several internet forums and automotive press, claiming that the electrolyte solution they named bi-ION consist of a conductive liquid - organic and inorganic salts dissolved in water - and the electrolytes themselves, nano-structured molecules which are specific molecules designed by the company. While dissolved redox salts are responsible for the energy transfer in conventional redox flow batteries, the bi-ION electrolyte is stated to be an energy storage medium whose suspended nano-particles would have allowed a considerably higher energy density than regular redox electrolyte liquids.
Controversy
European R&D institutes cast doubts over nanoFlowcell's technological progress with flow cells, while in the United States several R&D institutes announced their breakthrough with similar flow cell designs for electric vehicles. In a report, Top Gear stated that while American universities find nanoFlowcell's technology plausible, there are European institutions that are not convinced.
The Quant 48Volt delivers 560 kW at 48 V, with 140 kW going to each motor. This means the current going to each motor is equal to 2917 Amps which would heat up the cables dramatically. Porsche, by comparison, saved 66 pounds on the Taycan by going from 400 V to 800 V and is able to keep the motors cooler by going to higher voltages with greatly reduced currents.
According to a Jalopnik
Static Media Inc., the business name of 7Hops.com Inc., is an American internet company established in 2012, incorporated in Delaware, and based in Indianapolis. It operates ZergNet, a content recommendation business that promotes paid content ...
article, Dr. Stephen Granade points out that, at the time of writing, the energy density of the flow batteries would be 5 times that of Tesla's batteries with technology where the energy density is typically far lower.
In another controversy, the founder has previously been accused with defrauding an older lady by having her invest in non-existing solar panel technology, although he was acquitted.
See also
*Ionic liquid
An ionic liquid (IL) is a salt (chemistry), salt in the liquid state at ambient conditions. In some contexts, the term has been restricted to salts whose melting point is below a specific temperature, such as . While ordinary liquids such as wate ...
References
External links
{{Automotive industry in Switzerland
Electric vehicle industry
Technology companies of Liechtenstein
Automotive companies of Switzerland
Car manufacturers of Switzerland