Sodium-ion batteries and what seems to be their rise in 2024

Discussion about sodium-ion batteries, and whether they can over throne lithium-ion ones, has been going on for quite some time now, but some major breakthroughs at the beginning of 2024 make their commercialization seem closer than ever.

First of all, sodium-ion batteries have looked like a promising alternative to lithium-ion ones for quite a while now, mainly due to sodium being available in abundance on our planet, as opposed to lithium.

Lithium is hard to beat, as it is the third lightest material on the periodic table after hydrogen and helium. So, this makes clear that it would be rather unlikely for a mineral to surpass its potential when it comes to battery making.

But sodium looks like a promising complementary material for the future of batteries.

It does have some disadvantages compared to lithium, with the main ones being its smaller energy density (i.e. how much energy can be stored per kg of material), followed by its lower energy performance and shorter life span.

However, sodium-ion batteries would be cheaper, safer, as they do not explode or catch on fire as easily, and more environmentally friendly.

All the aforementioned attributes would make it an ideal complementary material for battery making, and more specifically, it could be used in stationary power storage for renewable energy, or small and slow electric vehicles.

This way, more lithium would be available to produce batteries needed in more demanding applications, such as fast cars.

As for 2024, it looks like a promising year for sodium-ion batteries, with BYD, the world’s largest EV maker, breaking ground on its new $1.4 billion, 30GWh capacity, mass production factory in January.

In addition to this, vehicle production giant Stellantis, announced its intention to invest in a new sodium-ion battery startup, Tiamat, which is also planning to open a production plant in France.

Finally, JAC Group’s YiWei electric vehicle, is the company’s first carrying a sodium-ion battery, and went into production in early January.