Development and Performance Analysis of a Low-Cost Redox Flow Battery

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

The manuscript Development and Performance Analysis of a Low-Cost Redox
Flow Batery. However, the preparation method is not new and the performance of the device is mediocre. In our opinion, this manuscript is recommended for acceptance after Major revisions.

1.     The electrochemical performance of different electrolyte solutions should be provided and compared with each other.

2.      In the introduction part, the logicality is not very explicit, and there are some English grammatical errors, please double check and correct them. Authors are encouraged to cite some relevant and recent literature and discuss another kind of batteries, such as.: Dual-Ion Battery (10.1002/aenm.201502588), calcium-ion battery (10.1038/s41557-018-0045-4), aluminum ion (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pmatsci.2024.101253) and sodium ion batteries (https://doi.org/10.1002/adfm.202403166, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ensm.2022.11.040)

3.     Authors are encouraged to do any ex-situ characterization and provide some insights for mechanism.

4.      Provide some SEM or TEM analysis and compare the results.

5.     Provide the EIS spectrums for the batteries and explain in the light of these references: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cjsc.2023.100108, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmst.2022.11.015, https://doi.org/10.26599/JAC.2024.9220831

 

6.     English of the article should be improved by native English person. 

Comments on the Quality of English Language

Extensive editing of English language required

Author Response

"Please see the attachment."

Author Response File: Author Response.docx

Reviewer 2 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

Huq et al report the study on the redox-flow batteries, which is a very conventional type of energy storage approach, particularly for large-scale grid application. But the review thinks this paper couldn't perform like a scientific paper, while it reads more like a report for an experiment class. The following suggestions could be considered to improve the quality.

1. Although redox flow battery is regarded as sheap, analysis of the cost of the Zn-Cl redox flow battery should be statistic, which can be compared with the cost of lithium(sodium)-ion batteries, sodium-S batteries, aqueous battereis, and so on. 

2. All line charts should be plotted by the authors, rather than by screen shooting.

3. Real pictures are not suggested to be included in the main text. which should be put in the supporting information, because all of these materials or apparatus are typical but not represening the advance in this field.

4. Introduction is too long, making me lost in looking for the motivation and novelties in conducting this research.

Author Response

"Please see the attachment."

Author Response File: Author Response.docx

Reviewer 3 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

This study presents a comprehensive examination of a low-cost Zinc-Chlorine Flow Battery (ZCFB) utilizing saltwater and mineral spirits as electrolytes, focusing on renewable energy integration and economic feasibility in Bangladesh. However, to enhance the depth and quality of the manuscript, I recommend a major revision before it can be considered for acceptance by Processes. Specific suggestions are as follows:

1. The figures in the manuscript (Figures 12-27) appear to be screenshots directly from the testing software, which does not meet academic standards. Please redraw these figures using scientific graphing software such as Origin. Additionally, consider combining these figures into composite figures instead of presenting them separately.
2. There are several referencing errors in the manuscript, such as "Error! Reference source not found" appearing twice in Section 2.1.1 (Page 6) and elsewhere. Please carefully check and correct these citations.
3. The manuscript contains typographical errors, such as the chemical equation on Page 15, "2Cl₂+2e^- ↔ 2cl^-," which should be corrected to "2Cl₂+2e^- ↔ 2Cl^-".
4. I suggest citing the following references to strengthen the discussion: “Digitization of flow battery experimental process research and development,” Energy Mater 2024, 4: 400019; "Carbon sheet-decorated graphite felt electrode with high catalytic activity for vanadium redox flow batteries," Carbon, 2019, 148: 9-15; and “Electrocatalysis at Electrodes for Vanadium Redox Flow Batteries,” Batteries 2018, 4, 47. These references could provide additional context and support for your methodology and discussion of electrode materials.

Author Response

"Please see the attachment."

Author Response File: Author Response.docx

Round 2

Reviewer 1 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

Accept

Reviewer 2 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

The revised manuscript can be accepted.