Sodium Ion Battery

June 29, 2022
Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
Category: DPN Topics

Sodium Ion Battery

Subject: Science

Context: The Indian off-grid energy storage market is expected to expand exponentially as the country aims to fulfil 50 per cent of its energy demands from renewable sources by 2030, resulting in high demand for storage batteries.

Concept:

Background:

Currently, the two dominant commercial options to fulfil energy storage needs in India are lithium-ion batteries (LIB) and lead-acid batteries (LAB).
LABs save 13.3% more emissions than nickel-manganese-cobalt (NMC) batteries but have low energy density, explosive potential and can even damage neurons of central nervous system.
LIBs gained high commercial value due to their high energy density, compact size and enhanced cycle life. They are used in EV manufacturing and also for energy storage in electronics and off-grid power supply. However, material scarcity and higher costs restrain their production up-scaling.
Therefore, diversification of battery technology is necessary for the rapidly growing Indian energy storage market, considering the issues related to material scarcity, supply vulnerability, production cost, environment and health with LABs and LIBs.

Sodium Ion Batteries (SIB):

The sodium-ion battery (NIB or SIB) is a type of rechargeable battery analogous to the lithium-ion battery but using sodium ions (Na+) as the charge carriers.
Its working principle and cell construction are almost identical with those of commercially widespread lithium-ion battery types, but sodium compounds are used instead of lithium compounds.

Advantages

Challenges

high natural abundance (seventh-most abundant material on earth)
less costly than LIBs and 20-30% cheaper than NMCs
lightweight compared to LIBs
energy density of up to 160 Wh/kg
non-flammable and no thermal runaway
operate at a wider temperature range i.e., more efficient in cold environments (as low as -20℃),resist moisture
45% less global warming potential than lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries and about 25% less than NMC batteries
Can be discharged to zero volts to avoid accidents during transportation which also reduces the cost of transportation

No electric vehicles use sodium ion batteries.
low energy density making it difficult to make small batteries for use in electric vehicles. E.g., LIBs have 300 Wh/kg energy density, and is a better choice for heavy and high-speed battery EVs.
limited number of charge-discharge cycles. E.g., SIBs can be recharged 2,000 times for 80 per cent of their life cycle, whereas LIBs are rechargeable up to 4,000-6,000 times.