Lower-cost sodium-ion batteries are finally having their moment

In distinction, a sodium-ion battery will depend on a part—sodium—that you’ll uncover in desk salt and ocean water.

Among the many many alternative benefits, sodium-ion batteries perform increased than lithium-ion batteries in extreme chilly. CATL has acknowledged its new battery works in temperatures as little as -40° Fahrenheit.

Moreover, a sodium-ion battery has rather a lot lower menace of fireside. When lithium-ion batteries preserve damage, it might really lead to “thermal runaway,” which triggers a dangerous and toxic fire.

The tactic of manufacturing sodium-ion batteries is very similar to that of lithium-ion batteries, or in any case associated enough that companies can shift present assembly traces with out having to spend intently on retooling.

Nonetheless sodium-ion batteries have some disadvantages. The large one is low vitality density compared with lithium-ion. In consequence, an EV working on a sodium-ion battery will go fewer miles per value than a lithium-ion battery of the similar dimension.

“That is merely what nature has given us,” Srinivasan acknowledged. “From a physics perspective, sodium batteries inherently have lower vitality density than lithium batteries.”

A typical sodium-ion battery has an vitality density of about 150 watt-hours per kilogram on the cell diploma, he acknowledged. Lithium-ion batteries can fluctuate from about 180 to virtually 300 watt-hours per kilogram.

I requested Srinivasan what he makes of CATL’s declare of a sodium-ion battery with 200 watt-hours per kilogram.

“We’re normally skeptical of experiences releases from companies,” he acknowledged. He specified that his comment applies to all battery companies.

Venkat Srinivasan, director of the Argonne Collaborative Coronary heart for Vitality Storage Science, discusses battery evaluation with a provides scientist in one among many vitality storage discovery labs at Argonne Nationwide Laboratory.

Credit score rating:
Argonne Nationwide Laboratory

The nationwide labs’ initiative has a five-year timeline, with a goal of rising sodium-ion batteries with vitality densities that match or exceed these of at current’s iron phosphate-based lithium-ion batteries. Researchers would do this by discovering various efficiencies in design and provides.

The enterprise is happening alongside the labs’ ongoing work to develop and improve different types of batteries.

Lithium-ion batteries dominate at current’s market. This yr, worldwide manufacturing of lithium-ion batteries was about 1,500 gigawatt-hours, and manufacturing of sodium-ion batteries was 11 gigawatt-hours, or decrease than 1 %, based mostly on Benchmark Mineral Intelligence.