Vanadium foil is an ultra-thin metal foil made from pure vanadium or vanadium alloys (such as vanadium-titanium alloys, vanadium-aluminum alloys, etc.) through processes like rolling and annealing, typically with a thickness ranging from a few micrometers to several hundred micrometers. Its core advantages stem from vanadium itself, which has a high melting point (1890℃), excellent high-temperature strength, good corrosion resistance, unique electrical properties and biocompatibility. Therefore, it demonstrates irreplaceable application value in fields such as new energy, aerospace, electronics, medical care and chemical engineering.
Electrolyte corrosion resistance: The electrolyte of vanadium batteries is a sulfuric acid solution containing V2+/V3+ and V4+/V5+ (strong acidity and strong oxidizing property). Pure vanadium foil can form a dense oxide film (V2O5) in this environment, avoiding corrosion and dissolution. There is no metal ion dissolution during long-term use (with a service life of over 10 years), ensuring the purity of the electrolyte.
The bipolar plates of hydrogen fuel cells need to simultaneously meet the requirements of "high electrical conductivity", "resistance to proton exchange membrane corrosion" and "lightweight". Pure vanadium foil (thickness 10-30μm) is often used as the base material for bipolar plates due to its acid resistance (the working environment of proton exchange membranes is acidic) and coatability. After electroplating or sputtering metal coatings (such as gold, platinum or carbon-based coatings) on the surface of vanadium foil, the conductivity and corrosion resistance can be further enhanced. Moreover, the ultra-thin feature of vanadium foil (more than 50% thinner than traditional stainless steel bipolar plates) can reduce the overall weight of the battery, making it suitable for scenarios such as automotive and portable devices.
Vanadium and vanadium alloys (such as V-4Cr-4Ti alloy) maintain excellent mechanical properties (tensile strength > 400MPa) at high temperatures of 600-1000℃, and their density is only 6.11g/cm3 (lower than that of nickel-based superalloys at 8.4g/cm3), making them ideal materials for "high-temperature lightweight" components in aerospace. Vanadium foil is suitable for the requirements of precise structures due to its "ultra-thin" feature.
