journal article·2026-01

Impact of External Magnetic Fields on the Electrochemical Performance of Liquid Metal Batteries: A Finite Element Analysis

Dilawar Hussain, Hulin Huang, Tasawouf Ali

ChemNanoMat· Volume 12· Issue 1
Publisher page

Abstract

The extended cycle life, excellent safety, and affordability of liquid metal batteries (LMBs) make them a viable option for large‐scale stationary energy storage. However, stable stratification in the positive electrode inhibits convective mixing and causes extreme concentration polarization, which limits their discharge performance. In this study, we employ the finite element method to investigate the influence of external magnetic fields on the charge and discharge behavior of three‐layer battery composed of Mg|LiF–LiBr|Te. Simulation results show that when a 120 mT magnetic field is applied, the discharge voltage rises by 24.43% at a current density of 300 mA cm −2 . Strong magnetic effects are observed at a higher current density of 700 mA cm −2 , where merely 80 mT magnetic field increases the discharge voltage by 62.66%. Additionally, we model and investigate three different LMB topologies with electrolyte thicknesses of 13 mm, 8 mm, and 5 mm. The voltage generated by the 5 mm‐thick electrolyte LMB is 0.24 V higher than that of the 13 mm‐thick electrolyte LMB by indicating that higher operating voltages are produced by thinner electrolytes. The findings enhance LMB performance and demonstrate that proper control of fluid flow is crucial for achieving better efficiency.
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Research context

OpenAlex topics: Molten salt chemistry and electrochemical processes · Advancements in Battery Materials · Extraction and Separation Processes

SciVX discovery tags are terminology-based. OpenAlex topics are source-provided classifications.

Affiliations

Laboratory of Aerospace Entry Descent and Landing Technology College of Astronautics Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics Nanjing China

Research in Modeling and Simulation (RIMS) Group Department of Physics COMSATS University Islamabad Islamabad Pakistan

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