Role of Bismuth in the Electrokinetics of Silicon Photocathodes for Solar Rechargeable Vanadium Redox Flow Batteries

Abstract The ability of crystalline silicon to photoassist the V3+/V2+ cathodic reaction under simulated solar irradiation, combined with the effect of bismuth have led to important electrochemical improvements. Besides the photovoltage supplied by the photovoltaics, additional decrease in the onset potentials, high reversibility of the V3+/V2+ redox pair, and improvement in the electrokinetics were attained thanks to the addition of bismuth. In fact, Bi0 deposition has shown to slightly decrease the photocurrent, but the significant enhancement in the charge transfer, reflected in the overall electrochemical performance clearly justifies its use as additive in a photoassisted system for maximizing the efficiency of solar charge to battery.