Co-design of flow fields and vibration control for vanadium redox batteries

Jacer Hamrouni
Advanced Fluid Dynamics, Energetics and Environment Laboratory, National School of Engineers of Sfax, University of Sfax, Sfax 3029, Tunisia
Leila Abdelgader
Advanced Department of Computer Sciences, Taif University–Khurma University College, Al-Khurma 2935, Saudi Arabia
Abdennaceur Kachouri
Advanced Fluid Dynamics, Energetics and Environment Laboratory, National School of Engineers of Sfax, University of Sfax, Sfax 3029, Tunisia
Mounir Baccar
Advanced Fluid Dynamics, Energetics and Environment Laboratory, National School of Engineers of Sfax, University of Sfax, Sfax 3029, Tunisia

Article ID: 3976

Keywords: bio-inspired flow battery; co-design framework; electrochemical-mechanical coupling; energy storage reliability; flow-induced vibration control; topology-optimized flow field; vanadium redox flow battery

Abstract

Vanadium redox flow batteries (VRFBs) are promising candidates for grid-scale energy storage, yet their performance and operational reliability remain constrained by conventional flow field designs, such as serpentine and interdigitated architectures, which inherently trade-off between uniform reactant distribution, hydraulic efficiency, and mechanical stability under dynamic fluid loads. While previous optimization efforts have focused separately on electrochemical performance or pressure drop reduction, no integrated framework has addressed the coupled interaction between flow field topology, species transport, and flow-induced vibration, leaving a critical gap in achieving simultaneously high efficiency and long-term structural reliability. This study introduces a bio-inspired, co-design framework that integrates topology optimization, computational fluid dynamics, electrochemical reaction modeling, and structural dynamics analysis to concurrently optimize flow field architecture and mitigate pressure-induced vibration in VRFBs. The methodology employs a density-based optimization approach guided by Murray's Law and leaf venation principles, constrained by pressure drop limits and manufacturability, and validated through both high-fidelity numerical simulations and experimental prototype testing. The optimized biomimetic flow field achieves a 28% increase in volume-averaged reaction rate, a 27.6% reduction in pressure drop at 40 mL min⁻¹, and a 41% reduction in root-mean-square vibration acceleration compared to a conventional interdigitated design. Voltage efficiency improves by 5.2 percentage points, reaching 89.5% at 120 mA cm⁻², while active area utilization increases from 68% to 91%. These results demonstrate that the proposed co-design framework successfully decoupled the traditional trade-off between electrochemical performance and hydraulic-mechanical stability, providing a validated, nature-inspired pathway toward high-performance, reliable energy storage systems that address practical engineering challenges in noise, vibration, and durability.

Published

2026-07-07

How to Cite

Hamrouni, J., Abdelgader, L., Kachouri, A., & Baccar, M. (2026). Co-design of flow fields and vibration control for vanadium redox batteries. Sound & Vibration, 60(4). https://doi.org/10.59400/sv3976

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Vol. 60 No. 4 (2026): In Progress

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Research Project

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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