An Aluminum/Chlorine Rechargeable Cell Employing a Room Temperature Molten Salt Electrolyte

A novel rechargeable electrochemical cell is described which employs an Al negative and graphite positive electrode in a room temperature molten salt electrolyte of 1.5:1 . The graphite positive electrode functions as a reversible intercalation electrode for chlorine, eliminating the need for separate anolyte and catholyte compartments. The cell possesses an average discharge voltage of 1.7V for currents of 1–10 mA/g graphite and over 150 cycles at 100% depth‐of‐discharge for positive electrode limited cells have been demonstrated. Improvements in the chlorine storage capacity of the positive electrode are needed to obtain satisfactory energy densities.