The reason for the award is his master's thesis “Investigation of Electrolyte Composition in All-Iron Redox-Flow Batteries to enhance overall Performance” and the corresponding publication “Investigating the Iron Plating and Stripping of Anolytes for All-Iron Redox-Flow Batteries”, which convinced the jury in the evaluation criteria “environmental and sustainability relevance”, “practical application relevance” and “technical benefit”.
Mr. Engler graduated from the Schul- und Leistungssportzentrum Berlin (SLZB) in 2018 and completed a dual course of study at the Duale Hochschule Sachsen (DHSN); Staatliche Studienakademie Riesa, majoring in energy and environmental technology in cooperation with NBB Netzgesellschaft Berlin-Brandenburg mbH & Co. KG (GASAG Group). From 2021 to 2024 he studied Regenerative Energy Technology (M. Sc.) at the TU Ilmenau, completing his master's thesis in 2024 on the topic of iron-based redox flow batteries under Prof. Andreas Bund, Head of the Department of Electrochemistry and Electroplating. Since October 2024, Mr. Engler has been a PhD student and scholarship holder of the Thuringian Graduate Funding in the Department of Electrochemistry and Electroplating and continues his research work on iron redox flow batteries.
Iron-based redox flow batteries are promising candidates for large-scale storage technology applications from renewable energy sources such as wind or solar farms. A redox flow battery is also known as a reversible fuel cell. The electrolytes stored in external tanks are pumped through the reaction cell, in which the respective oxidation or reduction reaction takes place reversibly. If the flow of electric current is reversed, the redox reactions are reversed and the stored charge can be used via a consumer. In his work, Mr. Engler fundamentally researched the electrolytes for this type of battery with regard to electrochemical and thermodynamic characteristics so that an electrolyte selection can be made for later battery prototypes.
The investigations allowed a selection of electrolytes for both electrode chambers of the battery and could be used in initial pilot tests on a test stand. The concept thus demonstrates an excellent link between classic electroplating technology and modern sustainable energy storage systems and indicates potential for answering current and future questions relating to the long-term storage of electrical energy.
Source: Marius Engler, Department of Electrochemistry and Electroplating