Sodium is cheap, widely available, and in newest configurations, matches or exceeds performance of current-standard Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP) batteries.
In particular, CATL’s recently ann0unced batteries have an energy density that exceeds standard LFPs, and blows away any Lithium based system for it’s performance at low, and high, temperatures.
Much, much safer from “thermal runaway” ie fires.
Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Limited (CATL) announced that its sodium-ion battery has achieved an energy density of 175 Wh/kg and can support more than 500 kilometres of pure electric driving range. The company said the technology will enter mass supply next year, depending on customer rollout schedules.
CATL explained that sodium-ion batteries have slightly lower energy density than lithium-ion batteries but provide distinct advantages in low-temperature performance, carbon footprint, and safety. These characteristics, the company said, make the technology well-suited to expanding new energy vehicle adoption in cold climate regions and broadening the geographical scope of electric mobility applications.
According to CATL, the sodium-ion battery could cover over 40 per cent of passenger vehicle demand in the domestic market, giving it vast potential for commercialisation. The company added that its sodium battery packs are designed for strong compatibility with No. 20 and No. 25 standard modules, including battery swap formats, enabling use across a broad range of vehicle platforms without requiring significant design changes from automakers.
Earlier this year, on April 21, CATL introduced what it described as the world’s first large-scale mass-produced sodium-ion batteries. The initial products included the “Sodium New Power Battery” for passenger vehicles and the “Sodium New 24V Integrated Starter Battery” for heavy-duty trucks. Both were developed for wide operating environments, capable of functioning at temperatures ranging from- 40°C to 70°C.
The Naxtra Battery product line includes two categories: the Naxtra passenger EV Battery and the Naxtra 24V Heavy-Duty Truck Integrated Start-Stop Battery. Both are capable of performing across the full temperature range from -40°C to +70°C, redefining the extreme temperature limitations of batteries. The Naxtra passenger EV Battery retains 90% usable power at -40°C. In an extremely low state of charge with only 10% SOC remaining, the Naxtra passenger EV Battery can still achieve no significant power degradation at a temperature of -40 ℃.
CATL’s Naxtra passenger EV Battery achieves an energy density of 175Wh/kg, the highest among sodium-ion batteries worldwide, and comparable to LFP batteries. It offers a 500-kilometer range and can achieve over 10,000 cycles, which significantly reduces maintenance costs. In terms of safety, the Naxtra Battery eliminates combustion-supporting factors at the material level, thus achieving a transformative breakthrough from “passive defense” to “intrinsic safety”.
Is there going to be sodium ion batteries created for home solar backup power? Seems like it would be much safer than the LPF offerings. I’m thinking of the LA Palisades fire and aftermath.
ISTM that Na+ batteries will do very well in the non-mobile applications, like home- and grid-scale storage, where weight is much less of an issue than in vehicles.
I saw an announcement a few weeks back from Stellantis-France where they were promoting alternate battery technologies based upon “manganese-iron” and “nickel-manganese-cobalt”.