TECHNOLOGY FOCUS - INORGANIC CHEMISTRY - Preferred Components: The catalyst material comprises nickel, platinum, palladium, rhodium, silver, gold, titanium, alloys, oxides, or their ions. The metal fuel comprises zinc, where precipitates of zinc in presence of the catalyst material oxidize to form zinc ion, while hydrogen ions present in the ionically conductive medium reduce to form hydrogen gas. The catalyst material comprises a more noble metal than the metal fuel. The electrochemical cell comprises an electrochemical configuration comprising lead-acid, nickel-zinc, nickel-cadmium, and zinc-bromine.    TECHNOLOGY FOCUS - INSTRUMENTATION AND TESTING - Preferred Components: The electrochemical cell further comprises: a charging electrode comprising the oxidant electrode, and a separate charging electrode spaced from the fuel and oxidant electrodes; and many catch trays configured to contact particulates of the metal fuel throughout a flow path of the ionically conductive medium. The fuel electrode and the charging electrode are configured to, during recharge, reduce a reducible species of the metal fuel to electrodeposit the metal fuel on the fuel electrode and oxidize an oxidizable species of the oxidant by application of a recharge potential difference between them from a power source. The fuel electrode comprises a series of permeable electrode bodies (12a-12c) arranged in spaced apart relation, where the spaced apart relation of the permeable electrode bodies enables the recharge potential difference to be applied between the charging electrode and at least one of the permeable electrode bodies, with the charging electrode functioning as the anode and the permeable electrode body functioning as the cathode, so that the reducible fuel species are reduced and electrodeposited as the metal fuel in oxidizable form on the permeable electrode body, where the electrodeposition causes growth of the metal fuel among the permeable electrode bodies so that the electrodeposited metal fuel establishes an electrical connection between the permeable electrode bodies. The catalyst material is formed by a plasma spray or electroplating process. The catch tray is positioned along a flow path of the ionically conductive medium, where the catch tray is configured to allow the ionically conductive medium to flow through it. The catch tray comprises a porous screen positioned between a flow inlet for the ionically conductive medium and the fuel electrode, where the porous screen comprises pores of approximately 0.01-1000 mu m in size. In the electrochemical cell, many catch trays are positioned in at least one of a bottom of the cell, a fluid pipe defining the flow path, and a reservoir for storing an excess of ionically conductive medium connected along the fluid pipe. The catch tray is positioned in spaced relation to the fuel electrode, so that particulates of the metal fuel separating from the fuel electrode fall under gravitational forces into contact with the catch tray. The particulate contacting portion of the catch tray is positioned substantially perpendicular to the fuel electrode and a mounting portion of the catch tray is substantially parallel to the fuel electrode, and thus substantially perpendicular to the particulate contacting portion of the catch tray.