A team from South Korea has broken new ground with a new generation of sodium batteries that are both cheaper and safer than traditional lithium-ion batteries found in smartphones and electric cars. Sodium, which is 500 times more abundant in nature than lithium, also has greater charging and efficiency potential than its lithium-ion counterpart. Until now, sodium-ion batteries have faced limitations, including long charging times and a lack of storage capacity, which have hindered their worldwide adoption.
HIGH POWER SODIUM-ION BATTERY
Researchers from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) have overcome these problems by developing a high-energy, high-power sodium-ion battery capable of fast charging.
The new battery exceeds the energy density of commercial lithium-ion batteries and can be used in both electric vehicles and consumer electronics.
"This hybrid sodium-ion energy battery can charge quickly and reach an energy density of 247 Wh/kg and power density of 34,748 W/kg," said Professor Jeung Ku Kang from the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at KAIST.
A MAJOR BREAKTHROUGH IN ENERGY STORAGE SYSTEMS
Newly manufactured batteries represent a major breakthrough in overcoming the current limitations of energy storage systems. The batteries are predicted to have wider applications in a variety of electronic devices.
The breakthrough comes just weeks after a team in Japan discovered a new process for mass producing solid-state sodium batteries.
The new technology could eliminate range anxiety by significantly increasing the charging capacity of electric car batteries and more than doubling the range of existing electric vehicles.
