Sodium Ion Batteries- "The future of Batteries?"

India is having a clean energy installation target of 175 GW by the end of 2022. The current electric grid is incapable to moving the nation toward a clean energy future which is one of the most concerned point. In order to utilize emerging renewable technologies such as Solar and Wind, researchers have been setting their sights on developing energy storage devices capable of harnessing huge amounts of energy for applications ranging for grid storage to electric vehicles.

The manufacturing of batteries in India represents a huge economic opportunity, according to a draft ‘National energy storage mission’ (NESM) document, which outlines how the country could capture value across the supply chain and accelerate the country’s adoption of renewable energy. India is aiming for 100% of car sales to be electric by 2030, which NITI Aayog said was ambitious but achievable.

Lithium-ion batteries (LIB) are rechargeable and are widely used in laptops, mobile phones and in hybrid and fully electric vehicles. However lithium is expensive and resources are unevenly distributed across the planet. Large amounts of drinking water are used in lithium extraction and extraction techniques are becoming more energy intensive as lithium demand rises -- an 'own goal' in terms of sustainability.

Sodium-ion batteries (SIB) are a type of rechargeable metal-ion battery that uses sodium ions as charge carriers. Even though sodium-ion batteries would be physically heavier than lithium-ion technology, researchers have been investigating sodium-ion batteries because they could store energy for large solar and wind power facilities at lower cost. Due to massively growing demand arising from energy storage systems, sodium ion batteries (SIBs) have been recognized as the most attractive alternative to the current commercialized lithium ion batteries (LIBs) owing to the wide availability and accessibility of sodium.

Sodium is inexpensive and can be found in seawater so is virtually limitless. However, sodium is a larger ion than lithium, so it is not possible to simply "swap" it for lithium in current technologies. For example, unlike lithium, sodium will not fit between the carbon layers of the ubiquitous LIB anode, graphite. Sodium is a very reactive material (more-so than lithium), and even a minuscule exposure to air can cause it to degrade which makes manufacturing a sodium-ion battery difficult. Specialized machinery and very tight quality controls are needed to make a good, long-lasting sodium-ion battery. Furthermore, researchers are still looking to improve the process to make these batteries. One of their goals is to optimize the chemical makeup of the battery which would result in improved electrical output.The scientists are trying to find new materials to act as battery components for sodium-ion batteries that will compete with lithium for capacity, speed of charge, energy and power density.