American-Made High-Energy Density Flow Battery with Neutral pH Electrolytes for Tactical and Strategic Energy Resilience

The Department of Defense requires advanced energy storage solutions that overcome lithium-ion limitations for tactical and strategic applications. Current systems present operational challenges including fire/explosion risks, logistical complexity, supply chain vulnerabilities, and insufficient energy density for distributed military operations.This proposal addresses these gaps through development of a revolutionary NanoElectroFuel (NEF) iron-air flow battery system with neutral pH electrolytes. Our liquid-format, iron-based chemistry has been demonstrated at 50% higher system level performance than commercial Li-ion systems and has  the potential to deliver 700+ Wh/kg gravimetric and 1800+ Wh/L volumetric energy density, representing 3x weight reduction and 5x size reduction compared to lithium-ion. The technology is inherently safe (non-flammable, non-toxic), cost-effective (5x cheaper production), and fully domestic (100% US sourced and manufactured).The core innovation in this project transitions our proven alkaline electrolyte chemistry to neutral pH composition, achieving close to seawater-level safety while maintaining high ionic conductivity and electrochemical performance. This enables enhanced safety, environmental compatibility, improved scalability, and extended cycle life.Our three-phase technical approach includes: (1) Electrolyte optimization from alkaline to neutral pH while preserving ionic conductivity and integrating compatible catalyst compositions for oxygen reduction/evolution reactions; (2) Voltage efficiency enhancement through optimization of catalyst composition, identification of additives/dopants that minimize charge-discharge voltage gaps and systematic elimination of parasitic losses via electrochemical impedance spectroscopy analysis; (3) Advanced performance validation through 10kWh+ full-system testing and duty cycle simulations for aviation and long-haul applications.The NEF technology platform addresses critical DoD energy priorities including Agile Combat Employment operations, contested logistics, and expeditionary energy autonomy. Unlike conventional batteries, our flow battery separates liquid energy storage and energy extraction units and can be transported via standard logistics channels charged without special handling requirements, enabling rapid deployment to Forward Operating Bases and supporting distributed warfare concepts.Our company have secured $50M in private funding for commercial development, this SBIR effort will optimize the technology specifically for defense applications, delivering a scalable, field-ready energy storage solution that advances American energy independence while providing tactical energy superiority for multi-domain operations.