Successful development of alternative sodium-based batteries: low cost and high efficiency

　　Researchers at Stanford University have developed a sodium-based battery that can store as much electricity as a lithium-ion battery, but at a much lower cost. Related research findings have been published in the journal Nature Energy.

　　It has been 25 years since the invention of lithium-ion battery, and it has been occupying the main market, but lithium has become more and more scarce, and the cost of mining is also getting higher and higher.

　　For this reason, after research, scientists discovered that sodium can also store ions, and the cost of manufacturing batteries is lower and the amount of electricity is more.

　　According to a report on October 10 by the US "Overseas News Network", researchers at Stanford University have developed a sodium-based battery that can store as much electrical energy as lithium-ion batteries, but at a much lower cost. Related research findings have been published in the journal Nature Energy.

　　Although the new sodium-based battery may never meet the needs of electric vehicle manufacturers, researchers believe that it will help store energy from sustainable energy sources such as solar panels and wind turbines.

　　Researchers pointed out that lithium is the best choice for manufacturing batteries, but lithium has become rare and expensive. Humans need to use other richer elements, such as sodium, to develop higher-performance and low-cost batteries.

　　Currently, the cost of mining one ton of lithium is about US$15,000, while the cost of mining one ton of sodium is only US$150.

　　In the newly designed sodium ion battery, sodium ions can be attached to inositol, and inositol is a common compound that can be extracted from the liquid by-products of rice bran or corn processing.

　　The new combination of sodium ions and inositol significantly improves the ion cycle of sodium-based batteries, enabling ions to move more efficiently from the cathode through the electrolyte to the phosphorous anode, thereby generating a stronger current.

　　In addition to comparing the cost and performance of lithium and sodium, the researchers also analyzed how sodium ions attach to the cathode during charging and discharging, and this insight will help improve battery design.

　　But the researchers also emphasized that they still need to do more tests to determine the volumetric energy density of sodium battery systems compared with lithium-ion batteries.

　　Scientists also want to know how big a sodium-ion battery that stores the same energy as a lithium-ion battery needs to be designed. In addition, the researchers also plan to improve the design of the battery's phosphor anode.